Background: Parasuicide is a serious health problem worldwide, it is also the third leading cause of death among women aged between 15 and 35 years. Women experience parasuicide more than men in the African continent. The World Health Organisation has stated that every thirty seconds there is an individual trying to attempt suicide. Objective(s): To explore the emotional and psychological struggles faced by women with history of parasuicide, and further, the coping mechanisms and resilience strategies used by women with a history of parasuicide in the selected hospital in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. Methods: In this study, a phenomenological research design was used to determine experiences of women with a history of parasuicide. The study was conducted at one of the district hospitals in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. Ten women who committed parasuicide at least 6 months ago and longer, during the time of the data collection, were selected purposively. Data were collected using a reflective diary in which participants manually or digitally recorded their experiences, thoughts, emotions, actions and journeys around the subject. Participants were recruited at the Outpatient Department, Psychology Department and even in the community, using the pamphlets. Data collection and data analysis ran concurrently. Data were analysed using Tech’s open coding method. Results: Four themes emerged as follows: the experiences of women with history of parasuicide, perceived impact of self-harm, suggestions for suicide prevention strategies and current coping strategies. Conclusion: Measures must be implemented to tackle the alterable psychosocial risk factors for suicide, while suitable pharmacological treatment is established for concurrent mental health disorders. Support and psychoeducation must be provided to the immediate family members of patients exhibiting suicidal behaviour for their own welfare and to enhance their capacity to assist the patient.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, W.S.Z.; methodology, W.S.Z.; software, W.S.Z.; validation, W.S.Z. and G.O.S.; formal analysis, W.S.Z.; investigations, W.S.Z.; resources, W.S.Z.; data curation, W.S.Z.; writing—original draft preparation, W.S.Z. and G.O.S.; writing—review and editing, W.S.Z. and G.O.S.; visualisation, W.S.Z.; supervision, G.O.S.; project administration, W.S.Z. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research received no fundings.
Institutional Review Board Statement
This study was conducted according to the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the Turfloop Research Ethics Committee (TREC) (TREC/1737/2024: PG) 2 December 2024.
Informed Consent Statement
Informed consent was obtained from all objects involved in the study. Written informed consent has been obtained from the participants to publish these papers.
Data Availability Statement
The datasets that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author, W.S.Z. Because the data contains information that could jeopardize the privacy of research participants, it is not publicly available.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest. The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationship that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article.
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