LIFE EVENTS, STRESS AND COPING Suicidal patients in a time- perspective

In order to increase the understanding of suicidal behaviour, the general aim of the thesis is to gain a profound knowledge of the suicidal individual, and hence to find and ensure a preventive strategy. This will be accomplished by finding and trying new methods for evaluation of suicide risk. The Suicide Assessments Scale, SUAS, and a new self-rating version, SUAS-S were tested. These scales are sensitive to change of suicidality over time, and both of them seem to be valid and reliable suicide rating scales, which might aid the clinician in the assessment of suicide risk. A time-geographic life charting was invented and tested. This model promotes systematic descriptions of the patient’s life events (social and burdensome) over time, and geographical sites are used as anchors for autobiographical memories. A so called lifeline follows each individual and provides information on the person’s social capacity, as well as information on predisposing, stressful or precipitating life events. Vulnerability for adverse life events by measuring biological stress markers among suicide attempters was tested. High catecholaminergic markers in CSF (MHPG) and urine (NA/A) wer