The June 22, 1985 Awake! magazine states this on page 27, “According to the Bible, when we deliberately put someone’s life unnecessarily in danger, we could become bloodguilty (Compare 1 Chronicles 11:17-19)”

Blood Guilty. Jehovah’s Witnesses are accustomed to hearing the phrase in their publications and public discourses at their Kingdom Hall meetings. And so it’s understandable if members of the sect consider Lauren Stuart blood guilty after the Oakland County Medical Examiner’s Office and police determined this 45 year old wife and mother to be the murderer of her husband and children before turning the gun on herself.

On the morning of Friday, February 16, 2018, police responded to a call to check on the safety of this Keego Harbor, Michigan family of four.

Neighbors John and Jackie Tristani said they awoke Friday morning to hear police outside the victims’ home.

“My son said police were repeatedly calling out ‘Lauren, come outside,’ “ said John Tristani. “When she didn’t respond they (police) went inside. A few minutes later, they came back outside, shaking their heads.”

Daniel Stuart, 47, Steven Stuart, 27, and Bethany Stuart 24, and the family’s dog were all victims of homicide. A handgun was found at the scene. Investigators also found a suicide note which may help explain what led up to the deaths. They would not discuss its contents.

The Tristanis said Lauren Stuart had once attempted to “recruit” them into the Jehovah’s Witnesses but did not take an interest in it. Obviously, Lauren Stuart’s religion from childhood was still very much part of her as an adult to approach the Tristanis with it’s message several years ago. Joyce Taylor, a family friend and former Jehovah’s Witness herself, believes the Stuart’s religion is a key element in unraveling the cause of this tragedy.

“They were shunned every way possible. If Lauren went to the grocery store, they didn’t look her in the eye,” said Taylor, “When you are raised a Jehovah’s Witness, they choose your friends. They choose who you associate with. And if you go against that, they will disfellowship you, or shun you.”

Jehovah’s Witnesses practice “shunning” individuals who leave the religion. Taylor said “All they wanted to do was raise their family the way they wanted to,” referring to their choice to support their children’s right to higher education which is frowned upon in the Watchtower organization. The congregation pulled their support from the Stuart family and they struggled with feelings of shame and isolation.

When Taylor learned about the tragedy, she visited the Union Lake Kingdom Hall and interrupted their Sunday meeting with this introduction,

“Excuse me everyone, My name is Joyce Taylor … Two days ago, four people died as a result of your shunning process.”  She went on to explain, “Five years ago you people pulled your support from this small family, the only support they had was you people. You turned them away and you shunned them.”

Joyce Taylor is not the only one holding this congregation accountable for the deaths of Lauren, Daniel, Steven, and Bethany Stuart. Outrage from the Ex-JW Community on line has been fueled in more posts, videos, and what’s become known as Cart Crashes (confronting JWs at their literature carts). Many of us began leaving “reviews” on the Facebook page for the Kingdom Hall in White Lake, Michigan from which the Stuart family was disfellowshipped. To read those reviews or leave one of your own, please go to https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kingdom-Hall-of-Jehovahs-Witnesses/111526465554013 (View SAVED Comments Pulled from Facebook 02-27-2018)

I left my own comment there exclaiming: Blood Guilty.
And that is by no means limited to the White Lake, Michigan Kingdom Hall. It’s WORLDWIDE!At the time of this writing, there are 21 reviews on that page of sad stories involving shunning, suicide, and broken families due to the Watchtower’s policies. And this is a very small rant in comparison to the daily discussions in Facebook groups for former Jehovah’s Witnesses. Prior to Facebook, there were Internet groups like our Meetups but before the world wide web there were only hard copy memoirs to read. Many former members suffered in silence not knowing who to turn to since the Watchtower instills a fear of every traditional avenue of help: psychiatry and counseling, clergy, and former members. Some of them have discovered help available on line after many years of isolation. Knowing the stories I know, I do not hesitate to call this organization blood guilty. Even regarding this tragic account of the Stuart family, we learn this is not the first such incident.

In 2001, the shame of being thrown out of the Jehovah’s Witnesses drove former Michigander Christian Longo to murder his wife and three young children in Oregon. Authorities said his financial troubles triggered his expulsion from the religious group, which then triggered the killings.

In 2014, a family of four was found dead in their South Carolina home in a murder suicide carried out by the father, who was a devout Jehovah’s Witness. All four were shot in the head.

So what do you think? Is there a connection between the religious practices of Jehovah’s Witnesses and these cases? Many former cult members confirm there is. But can a religious organization itself be responsible? Apparently the Watchtower agrees that it can be. They advise that ” if we are part of any organization that is bloodguilty before God, we must sever our ties with it if we do not want to share in its sins. (Rev. 18;4, 24: Mic. 4:3)” –United in Worship of the Only True God, 1983, page 155.

Perhaps you’re thinking these few cases are not enough evidence to hold the organization responsible for one woman’s reaction that resulted in the murder of her family and her own suicide. Then I invite you read more. A few years ago, I began to collect actual posts from former Jehovah’s Witnesses in response to the topic of suicide. I have respected the privacy of individuals by not including names or the specific sites from which these comments came. Each of these comments is, however, taken from a variety of actual support groups that have sprung up on the Internet to meet the needs of those tossed out and shunned by the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Suicide is VERY common among active and disfellowshipped members of this cult.

If you are so inclined, please pray for these individuals and do what you are able to EXPOSE THE WATCHTOWER and HELP PEOPLE LEAVE IT and find HEALING.

Original Post: On November 16, 2014 my cousin took her own life. We were both shunned from our family for leaving. Since her parents (my Uncle and Aunt) are still in the org. there was no funeral. They are acting like she never existed, but her friends and other people who knew her, are doing a Celebration of Life tomorrow! She was my rock and was always checking on me to make sure I wasn’t going back in the org. I have had a really hard time coping with her death, needless to say my family never notified me that she had died, I learned through Facebook! Thanks for listening to me!

Comment: I don’t think I can imagine anything more horrific and unnatural than pretending a loved one did not exist. The immediate reaction is supposed to be the one you’re having, wanting to reach out and be with those who knew her. I think the celebration of life is a great idea, and I’m glad an obituary got in the newspaper. No matter what happens to her life, she was here for however long she was here, and it should be recognized. Between this group, and possibly a grief support group if you can find one, I hope you can find some comfort in dealing with this.

Comment: I am so very sorry!! I’m hurting because of your loss & I’m angry because of the actions of the JWs. This just proves how awful they are. It makes no sense whatsoever for parents to not acknowledge their own child even in death because of that cult. Remember that your cousin loves you and will be looking after you from now on. And this group will be here to lend a shoulder and help you heal.

Comment: I’m so terribly sorry for your huge loss on many levels as I have felt suicidal because of my mother’s shunning me as well. Please feel better soon dear.

Comment: My cousin and I are also both out and I found out through mutual work acquaintances that they are telling people they have two kids when they really have three. Her two siblings are still in. It’s terrible how they just erase you from their lives. So sorry for your loss.

Comment: So very sorry. For you, for her children and for her, for the terrible hurt that took her there. The WT has so much blood on it’s hands.

Comment: My thoughts are with u, I can’t imagine how u must feel. I don’t comment very often, but your post really affected me. Things will get better, the pain will subside, but you will never forget her. Big hugs

Comment: my heart is broken. Your loss is felt by all of us. I too have experienced the ultimate loss, my oldest daughter. Please grieve for her and never go back to those cold hearted bastards, they have no love or compassion.

Comment: oh, damn! I’m so sorry to hear that. That cult is so cruel. Big hugs to you!!!

Comment: I am so tired of the inhumane feelings of this cult. They think they are so high and mighty. The road salvation really is narrow, too narrow for the great crowd of jw’s.

Comment: i am truly sorry for your loss . so many senseless deaths caused by this cult

Comment: How can they call themselves “christian” when they don’t even have common courtesy? Had troubles w/ my parents telling me about deaths as well. Unforgivable. So sorry she couldn’t hold on any longer. Hugs to you.

Comment: This is so sad and SO wrong. I am very sorry. I hope you can find some peace through others who care and perhaps with the support from different ones on here…xo

Comment: I am so sorry for the loss of your cousin. Just remember, no-one KNEW her like you did. YOU have all the good memories, etc. I am glad there will be a Celebration of Life. It sounds as though she deserves to be remembered in such a wonderful way. I’m so sorry you were not notified ….. just remember – THEY are the ones who act like she never existed. It sounds like she was a very big part of your life and she deserves the respect and acknowledgment for that. (((Hugs)))

Comment: I am so sorry to hear that. I will pray for you tonight. Be thankful that you can still give her a celebration of her life even if her parents wont attend. Remember that there’s a telephone line that’s always open, prayer. Don’t forget that Jesus can heal your hurt and He can heal your broken heart. Much love my sister, God bless you.

Comment: That’s horrible I’m so sorry for your loss! Damn Borg.

Comment: It is sad when people do that to those who have left the godless borg. If they would ever think that they are needlessly cottoning to the rules of seven men sitting in New York City, laughing their butts off because people will do whatever they say, thinking that they are going to get eternal life, when they are going to hell because they are listening to man and not whom they should.

Comment: Warm hugs, Sweetie. Such a travesty, typical of the jws.

Comment: So tragic. Those arseholes are unforgivable. Sending love and best wishes your way.

Comment: Sorry for your loss, we know that Org creates heartless puppets but to not have a funeral for you own child!!!!!!.

Comment: So sad… And yet, evidence in itself of the control this evil organisation takes of (I presume) otherwise good people. Love.

Comment: Im so very sorry! How sad for her to feel so desperate BUT I UNDERSTAND. No religion should have this kind of detrimental effect on a person. It should be comfort not the reason you kill yourself. Horrible . We are here for you. We really are. Even tho we are far away we are only a messege away. Hugs and love to you.Again Im so sorry.

Comment: this hurts me, can understand the pain your in, went through the same, Sending you love and healing light dear

Comment: Yup and they think they aren’t brainwashed and that they aren’t drones. I think all the ex J.W.’s should start a huge campaign to get lawmakers to penalize any group that encourages family destruction, This is abuse and it destroys families and it needs to be stopped. That organization killed this young woman by means of harmful ideology.

Comment: I’m speechless! How loving are they??? My heart goes out to you. I’ve only been been left (fading) a couple of months but I see so clearly how unloving this organisation really is, seeing how ‘love’ is the identifing mark! What love!

Comment: I HATE THE PRACTICE OF SHUNNNING!!!…Ur story makes me sad!!!…such a waste of a beautiful energy because of some bullsh*t!!!…{{{HUGS}}}!!!…xoxoxo

Comment: Words cannot convey the sense of loss from suicide. Sometimes it is hard to know the pain we are going through and many times it is covered with a tough face or just expending yourself helping others. The pain that she apparently was experiencing is now at rest and sadly her family will never accept their role in causing her death. Shame on them.

Comment: I am so sorry for your loss. More people than we know just cant go on because they take so much. We are left in a world we can’t understand with no support. Please know that you are not alone and above all keep surviving!

Comment: How sad. I’m so sorry. The wasted potential that this organization has caused is criminal. Shunning is so hard on people. Most don’t fully understand. I wish I could attend the service. I didn’t know her but have known many others who have struggled with the pain this organization causes. Words cannot express the loss you’re feeling right now. My heart goes out to you.

Comment: The family or friends of all these suicide victims should sue. They are indeed victims.

Comment: I’m so sorry. To have you find out on Facebook shows they lack the Christ-like love they claim to have. It is just cruel. So sorry for your loss. Big hugs

Comment: So sorry. The cult is soooo destructive. I had a niece who committed suicide about the same time -also a former member of the cult, but her reasons were different. Condolences.

Comment: Wow I am soo sorry for your loss!! You have my deepest sympathy!! This hurts and angers my heart soo much!! How can ppl not see the hatred and unloving acts that this was!! I just want you to know that you and your cousin have much love and support around the world now!!

Comment: You make sure you stay and continue to run the race, fight the fine fight. Sorry for your cousin she must have been very tired and hurt.

Comment: Rat parents, do a slam bam celebration for you cuz she deserves every it. I lift a glass in her memory.

Comment: Oh, video the celebration. Send it to a select few who know the scummy dross parents. Maybe, just maybe questions will be asked.

Comment: Too sad and too common. Thank you for sharing this and honoring her memory.

Comment: Oh my… I am so sorry! JWs are taught such hate. I look forward to the day when all the victims of the WT are vindicated by the fall of this dreadful cult!

Comment: Please accept my sincere apologies, something has got to be done about this cult.

Comment: you guys should organize a protest and picket the kingdom hall,…… call local news…

Comment: My heart goes out to you. There is so much hate in that organization. Take heart. Your cousin is still with you and around you. I’m a JW survivor, and I know how hard it is t continue continuing on. Take heart in knowing that people do care about you, and any time you want, message me. I’m here for you. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted die after being shunned. Just know that you are here, and you spoke out. This is important. One big hug from me.

Original Post: Question for the group…..as a JW did often, or ever even once think of committing suicide, but would NEVER tell anyone?

Comment: Yeah, but I don’t think I was super serious because I couldn’t figure out how to do it so it wouldn’t hurt or that I might change my mind when it was too late. But, saying that, time and time again, it seemed the ONLY answer to my angst was death. I was like that for a year, then decided to leave and see if I could be happy for 30 days in a row, then I wouldn’t mind dying at Armageddon. Pretty f-ed up for a young person in america these days to be thinking that way instead of what masters degree I should be getting.

Comment: It just seems to me that being a JW can give you symptoms of bipolar disorder, OR other mental disorders when the only issue is youre a JW? And I’ve read the symptoms of bipolar disorder, Knowing what the WTS puts its members through mentally, does that theory hold water?

Comment: I was 20 years old when I tried to committing suicide I wrapped a belt around my neck and pulled it tight and my mom stopping me, because I was told by many they don’t want me around and no one wants to marry me because I was poor kid, and I had issues with my mom didn’t want me around either.

Comment: I’m on medication now to keep me stable and I gave days where I don’t want to be around people because I’m down and now I’m in a different church I do fine now I’ve been threw about 6 medications until they found one that’s works for me

Comment: Not when I was ‘asleep’ but when I woke up and contemplated all that would come with being awake , yes , I no longer wanted to live and felt mentally unstable for quite a while . Luckily I sought out therapy .

Comment: I did more then once as I felt it would be the only way I could be free and be at peace but I could never do it as I couldn’t cause my family that hurt…..I’m happy now though with a beautiful family of my own

Comment: I thought about it often. Even told my mom once. I got a lecture and told I was being selfish. Only reason I didn’t go through with it was a classmate reached out to me. I never said anything to my family again about wanting to die. It took years for them to take my depression seriously and finally let me take medication.

Comment: Truly: crossed my mind, but I was TOO DAMNED ANGRY to want to do one tiny thing ever to participate in their smear campaign against me. Secrecy– I WANTED The (pseudo-) Friends to KNOW what a rotten deal had been handed to me. I told and told, and it was like the JWs if thought cared about me had both hands clamped over their ears, eyes squeezed shut, shaking their heads and chanting, “ICANTHEARYOU, ICAN’THEARYOU, ICAN’THEARYOU….. Royally furious, was I.

Comment: Yes, I seriously thought about it, but stopped myself when I thought about my kids and the fact they would grow up with out a parent that loves them. Couldn’t bear the thought of their father raising them with the abusive way he was.

Comment: I was suicidal most of the 30 yrs I was in. I thought about it all the time. Counsel from elders, ” do more in the ministry, pray more, put the kingdom first”.

Comment: Since i was 8

Comment: My mom did shortly after she was df that and the attitude of the j w is the reason I left the org

Comment: My mom was on suicide watch/meds for depression etc

Comment: Yes

Comment: I was suicidal on the way out. I was very stressed knowing they wanted to disfellowship me. No, couldn’t seek help from the organization, they were the ones stressing me out.

Comment: O never did, but I knew two JW men who killed themselves. One shot himself on the Hall parking lot after a Sunday meeting and another set himself on fire inside his car. He lived for two days then died. Very sad.

Comment: I’m totally speechless. I’m sorry but there’s no way anyone could convince me that you decent people and the people that you know of who actually carried out the acts of suicide all had mental disorders that had absolutely nothing to do with them being Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Comment: That is a question. Does the organization PRODUCE mental illness or does it ATTRACT those who are already dealing with it?

Comment: I think its a bit of both.

Comment: I considered it as a way out. I contemplated waiting until my kids were out of school so they could make a life. I never let myself consider there was another way out. I never thought of just leaving.
When the proverbial door opened that showed me that there was another way I ran towards it. Never had those thoughts again.

Comment: I was a convert to the religion in my 30s and already had some issues with depression. I talk candidly about it now but I did not find any empathy from the actual JWs. Instead, my husband observed how they only aggravated it further. I am much better now. I really credit my relationship with Jesus Christ as a complete deliverance.

Comment: I grew up as a witness but felt so helpless in my own life that I considered it. I chose to leave instead.

Comment: I think it is Totally designed and orchestrated to render the ones who ever leaves the WTS mentally crippled. It is also my strong belief that, these techniques that the Watchtower strictly imposes on its members are devised by some of the world’s best marketers. In short, the GB members aren’t that smart.

Comment: I believe it. It’s like a big experiment to see how jacked up you can make people with mind control.

Comment: True. Because when you build your entire life around something, excluding all else then what do you have left once you leave? You’ve burned your bridges or in my case, were never allowed to build any. I left knowing that I would be completely on my own. And I was naive. Even at 25 I was kept in the dark and kept silent so long that it was a struggle just to get by in the world – much less to get by with no support.

Comment: I’d like to know anyone that goes thru teen years and growing up as a jw and doesn’t! Not to mention the adult upheavals or the ‘backroom’ or being shunned part!

Comment: And people who haven’t been through it can’t understand when you say, “yes, I have family, but they won’t help me and don’t want to really talk to me”. Family is supposed to be the one thing you can count on. As JWs even that is taken.

Comment: Of course. I couldn’t live like that anymore. It was either leave or end it all. Thank goodness I left.

Comment: how sick is it now looking back and realizing that you described intimate details of your life to 3 old men? I think I feel most stupid for that.

Comment: I agree…. And here’s the thing that’s totally f***** up excuse my French. If every Jehovah’s Witness here who commented are any Jehovah’s Witness anywhere in the world knew prior to committing themselves to this organization that it would be this agony and suffering would be what’s forthcoming if they leave, no one would ever join!!!!

Comment: I have tried to commit suicide. I was depressed (didn’t know that at the time) about not being able to do anything right. I took a handful (literal handful) of her pills. To this day I am happy it didn’t work, and I haven’t told my mom or anyone in my family.

Comment: Holy shit, if I had a choice then I wouldn’t have! I think my mom was desperate at the time.

Comment: several times. The first time I was about 14/15 years old. Hopelessly in love with a guy in our congregation, he was not interested in me. I had a lot of troubles with my identity, my younger sister, who was verbally much stronger than me. I had to babysit my sister while my parents gave bible study to a couple. I was desperate. First got myself an eating disorder (BED) and in my diaries I often mention I want to commit suicide but I didn’t dare to do so because of what Jehovah would think of me and I didn’t want to leave my parents alone with my sister who was a difficult adolescent.

Comment: From my personal journal as a JW….
..I feel suicidal when I follow these gods. Perhaps that is the decisive moment. Live and ide for who and what? Exist for these mortal beings who have decided what I should do and be?

Comment: Yep..and after I was first out and didn’t have any identity I attempted…damn them for taking everything and everyone away..but I survived and now I’m doing great

Comment: All the time. No point talking to the elders. They would be all “have more faith, pray, study more”

Comment: I still struggle with these feelings. I just try to sleep it off…

Comment: I read a book that resonated with me far more than the Bible ever did, and it helped with this issue. It’s called Journey of Souls by Dr. Michael Newton. I highly recommend reading it.

Comment: I attemped suicide. thats how I left. i was committed to a mental health complex & never went back. Now Im a happy mother of a 2 year old. & Im thankful daily that shell never go thru what I did.

Comment: All the time. No point talking to the elders. They would be all “have more faith, pray, study more”….Ironically, that is the same canned response you get from ALL religions and ‘religious’ Job’s false comforters and those whom the employ then deploy to hound u for just asking for understanding assistance

Comment: Ur best bet is to tell ALL religions to go fuck themselves and only concentrate on you…protecting you and any minor children (including any pets you have), providing for ONLY you and them ONLY, and ONLY looking out for you and them only. Never expect anyone to understand. And never rely on anyone caring enough to put their hand outstretched to help you up. They all will ONLY see it as u wanting a handOUT and pity. Fuck em all and be like, to hell with it. As f’d up as they are, ONLY jw’s look out for u and that is only if u r content with not ever being urself but with whatever gb says u CAN be

Comment: I know I thought about it. The Borg makes it seem like you have no hope for the future if you are not an active JW which can be devastating unless you find out that it’s just a bunch of BS

Comment: Yes so many many times!

Comment: started around 13 14 also was having some homicidal thinking..suicidal tendencies continued as late as last dec

Comment: I would have done it but was afraid that my son would find my body and that would hurt him too much.

Comment: i wanted to a few times and once i even expressed it to my family. my mother just replied not to get blood on her new carpet…

Comment: I attempted suicide twice as a teenager. The first time I had called to talk to my sister and nephew one last time she figured out what I had done and called my dad. The second time my stepsister walked in right after I took a bottle of pills and made me throw them up. The first two years after leaving I was still on meds for depression and anxiety and I struggled daily with the thoughts of suicide. Was hospitalized about 7months after breaking free. Now I’ve been off meds for about two and a half years and I’m okay now mostly because I found the love of my life and she has truly shown me how amazing life can be. I still have times when I get depressed and I’m still mo good with groups or crowds but she makes that easier too. As time goes on it gets a little easier in some ways.

Comment: Attempted a few times. Had my stomach pumped, not very pleasant.

Comment: JW and Ex-JW suicide rates are through the roof! Proof of how destructive the cult is. Thoughts yes.

Comment: I’ve been suicidal for so long it’s a strange day when I don’t feel that way

Comment: I tried several times as a young teenager and six months after I was disfellowshipped (18 yrs.old) I shot myself in the chest. I’m 43 yrs. Old now and thank god my life was worth something to someone from beyond. I’m still learning how to heal emotionally from all the crap I have endured.

Comment: Several times

Comment: I’m reading all this and getting damn pissed off! And that’s HEALTHY!!!! what kind of religion produces such fruit??!! This is NOT of God. The Watchtower is a demon disguised as an angel of light offering death and despair.

Comment: What’s so messed up is, my newly found sister (non-jw)found my no blood card and hid it so that I could get the 5 pints of blood I needed to live. My parents were pissed about it. Btw , I was brutally raped and beaten and was told by my parents it was my fault for leaving and I went through the whole conviction process by myself!

Comment: I am so so so sorry and all those who’ve been so brutally treated by this evil cult and those who blindly give their allegiance to it.

Comment: I never knew so many exJWs thought about and/or attempted suicide. The scars are so deep from that damn cult. I’m so glad that we all can share and lean on each other when we are feeling bad. To those who still dealing with depression or suicidal thoughts remember two things; 1) It definitely gets better so hang in there. 2) you can come to any member of this group for support and encouragement!! Much love to you all!!

Comment: I know about one young man in the congregation where my mother was going who committed suicide shortly after being DFed. The Witnesses never blamed the shunning of him as a factor in his suicide. They simply said he was living a sinful life and that is why he did it.

Comment: MY aunt who was 13 and baptized committed suicide due to sexual abuse and how the elders mismangaed it. She was sent to live with an older sister ofhers who was not a JW. Since she was no longer going to meetings then she was no longer a JW.

Comment: My sister (never baptized) who decided when she was young that she could never be a good Witness so she decided to be as bad as she could. Got no treatment for the sxual abuse she experienced. My mother sent her to foster care. She spent all her adult life living a self-destruictive life – drugs. booze and sex. She worked as a stripper for many years. She eventually committed suicide. The elders said it had nothing to do with how her mother shunned her and everything to do with her lifestyle. But then maybe if she had been protected and loved she wouldn’t have chosen that kind of life. She tried many times to change her life and made many suicide attempts until she finally succeeded in 2005.

Comment: the elders disfellowshipped me after I told them of my suicidal thoughts and plans. I guess they figured if they threw me out then if I did succeed with my plans they could say that it was something else that caused me to do it and had nothing to do with shunning or how they mismanged my sexual abuse or the abuse from my elder husband.
The remedy to depression/melancholy is to put “God’s will” first. Which means to shut the hell up and pound the pavement doing Jehovah’s Witnesses ritualistic activities.

Comment: What would make you think that someone that is torn up by guilt over what ever it was for which they were disfellowshipped, has been indoctrinated to believe that Jehovah God has rejected them and they are then subsequently shunned by every family member they have and every friend they have ever known, why would anyone ever think that a person in that situation would likely to be depressed or suicidal?
Seriously, the WTBTS shows a STUNNING lack of compassion and/or awareness in this area, stunning. All the more tragic for a religion that loudly claims to be identified by their “Christian love” for one another. (John 13:35) Two words: Major Fail.

Comment: To shun a person consequently isolates them at the very point when they most need support.

Comment: I remain troubled by the failure of our species to extend compassion to those who need it the most

Comment: Actually, I’m surprised more people that leave or are expelled from the JW religion don’t either either kill themselves while in the mire of despondency and despair or commit acts of violence on those that have abused them in retribution for the violence they have had inflicted upon them! I’m not qualified to comment on the reasons why this is so; I only know my own heart and my own experience.

Comment: What a messed up excuse for a religion! If Jesus is really up there, I’d imagine he would be pretty upset with them. But then again maybe not as we’ve not heard a peep out of him …

Comment: that is terrible and heartless. When I served as an elder there were a few who were suicidal my immediate thought was one of helping them – never did I think of encouraging any behaviour of friends and family that would tip them over the edge. Often, I would encourage them to seek professional help and that I would follow up to makew sure they did. Elders cannot deal with mental illness no different than one who had a serious physical illness. That does not mean that there were not a few heartless elders who saw suicide as a “sin”. One only has to recall the events King David had post the loss of his son – if ever there was an account of one suicidal in the bible that would be it. How God dealt with that is an indication of how we mere humans should folow suit.
I recall In the two decades I was part of this cult I recall four suicides (I gave a funeral talk at one) compared to not one amongst my workmates, aquantances and work community for the same period.

Comment: I had chance to visit recently with my family physician who had retired (he was happy I was no longer a JW) and he commented in his years of family practice the highest incidence of depression and alcoholism was with his JW patients. Add to that the ones with imagined diseases and conditions. No wonder many resort to suicide as the only way out, how terribly sad and a shameful indictment on the leadership for perpetuating false reasoning. they have been instrumental in forcing a self inflicted postponment of hope.

Comment: How correct that Benjamin Franklin stated:
“I conceive that the great part of the miseries of mankind are brought upon them by false estimates they have made of the value of things”

Comment: I disagree that they are responsible for the deaths of those they disfellowship.
They are responsible for all deaths of those disfellowshipped and all that kill themselves while still inside the group.
Want help? Don’t get help – pray more. Remember, it’s always your fault.
Living up to impossible expectations is a real bitch. For lack of a better term…

Comment: I think the attitude of the GB is pretty plain in cases that happen right under their nose. The young man serving at Bethel who jumped to his death from his dorm window several years ago. I believe the story behind it was that he was struggling with his sexual orientation.
Viola! an excuse for the GB to show their self righteous disregard for a human tragedy. He was some one’s son.

Comment: It absolutely boggles the mind that if you seek help for depression or suicidal thoughts, the only counsel you will get from the elders is “go out in service more” or “pray more”

Comment: Sounds like some serious criminal charges should be filed, here, but I believe all religions are protected from that because it’s assumed that you have the right to choose how you worship, but if you’re a born in you really didn’t have the chance.

Comment: I think you were an exception to the rule. I was always told more service , more prayer and study. Just divert your attention to something “spiritual” and you will be fine. I came very close to doing it and if it hadn’t been for a non-JW friend I might have tried.
When my sister died I had an appointment with my DR the next day and she immediately started a risk assessmet on me. Two suicides in the family with a long history of abuse – I’m considered high risk. But I told her that since I left the JWs and the first husband (1985) suicide has never once been considered. That is quite something since I had been thinking of suicide when I was 6 yrs old.
It is a huge shame on ther WTS and JWs but like the image posted above they will wash there hands of it and point people in another direction.

Comment: I knew about 3 or 4 in my time as a JW who committed suicide . One of them was a really close friend I knew who was inactive. He died in 2003. His kids knew my kids growing up as teenagers and we took them on hiking and camping trips. It was very sad. The octrasism and cutting off I believe turned him to drugs of some sort – and he lost his life at age 56. I think of him often, he was a good guy.

Also, Think about people who kill themselves because of self-medicating, i.e. drug and alcohol abuse.
The list is long.

Comment: 6
1 was Dfd
1 was afraid of getting Dfd
1 was a bethelite of about 15 years who was sent back to the field
3 depression

Comment: I have known of 4 or 5 suicides or attempted suicieds…(at least one failed). By comparrison, I can think of only 1 non-Witness.

Comment: When people get DF’d, many times they just ‘go away’ and hide. Many move to far away places and they become what I refer to as ‘the walking dead’. They do this for years, and many still go on thinking it is their fault, still believing. There are lots that you would never hear about.

Comment: I know that the WTS does not count a divorce as a jw one if the person is inactive, da’d, or df’d, or never baptized even if attending meetings.
But then does the WTS keep suicide stats? They don’t keep track of the names of anointed jws and even consider some of them as not being “genuine.” I have never seen a report and stats available that is reputable. Just word of mouth.

Comment: I know of two…
One was a close friend growing up, who became a regular pioneer and MS. He was the “perfect” JW, married a pioneer sister and did everything by the book. He was always under pressure to do more by both the elders and his wife. As I was moving out of that congregation, I noticed that he was acting less happy and somewhat down in the mouth. I think his spirituality was suffering and he had started to struggle. After I had moved, I found out he had put a gun to his head and committed suicide.
The other instance was from that same congregation. We had a young brother who was obviously effemminate, but not openly gay. He eventually was DF’ed for being gay (or so it was speculated). He was out for a a couple years, “gave up” his gay lifestyle and was reinstated. Within months, he took his own life…another victim of the “Happiest People on Earth”!

Comment: Can we include those who have died as a result of not accepting a blood transfusion. If thats’ not suicide what is? Wait! To JWs that might fall under the category of martyrdom or self-sacrifice.

Comment: I know of 2 suicides. Both were in good standing but severely depressed and saw no other way out. One was the son of a prominent Elder who was in love with a JW gal with no “pedigree”. His father shipped him off to Bethel where the poor young man had a breakdown. I’ve forgotton how long he was there.(happened many years ago) Soon after he returned home he put a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger.
The second one was a thrty-something married man with a couple of young children and a wife who was sickly. He locked himself in his garage and sucked on the tailpipe of his car.
More than just the lives of the victims were ruined. Those that loved them were permantly scarred as well.

Comment: I don’t know of anyone – JW or not – who has actually commited suicide. But I do know that when I was suffering badly with post partum depression, I got no help from the elders. The only thing they told me was that I should get on depression meds and I should expect to take them for the rest of my life.
At least they recommended medication for depression… which would mean a visit to the doctor.
When I had PPD, I was investigated for Demonized™ articles in my home (without my knowledge or consent, and was pissed off beyond belief when I found out about it), was advised against seeing a psychiatrist (he’ll brainwash you right out of The Truth™!), and when I went anyway I was advised against discussing anything about being a JW (he’ll think we’re all nuts!!). Because I was unable to go Door-to-Door™ due to panic attacks and had asked the Congregation Secretary™ in confidence for help – perhaps sitting in on Bible Studies™ with the Pioneer™ Sisters™, rumours started circulating that Sister Scully doesn’t want to go in Service™ anymore, and then a Pioneer™ Sister™ came up to me after a Meeting™ and rudely told me: “Get off your ass and get your own damn Bible Studies™”.
Then, I made an extraordinary effort to attend the Memorial™. One of the Elders™ greeted me with “Look at what the cat dragged in”. Then during the Memorial™, I had to take the baby to the back of the room because she was fussing, and the Attendants™ refused to pass the Emblems™ to me. There were DFd people in the audience having the Emblems™ passed to them, but not me. I was suicidal from that incident – I just wanted to save Jehovah the trouble of destroying me at Armageddon™. I was in the hospital, and they all knew it, but not one of them gave a $h!t about me. I believed I would have been better off dead, that my family and everyone I knew would have been better off if I was dead.
That happened about 18 years ago… but whenever I write about it here, those feelings come flooding back as if it were yesterday. I still can’t write about it without shedding tears.

Comment: I know of three..one killed himself in his car (shot himself) his wife was still a JW,but they would NOT allow the funeral from the KH,
Even for his wife…. had to be done in a funeral parlour by a minister ..He obliged.

Comment: They are not human. I’ve seen many equally disgusting things with my own eyes.

Comment: I’ve been a baptized Witness for over 20 years. In that time, I’ve heard of a Witness (a friend of a friend) committing suicide. I’ve also had one relative hospitalized after he OD’d on painkillers, and I’ve personally wrestled another JW relative to the ground whilst she was threatening to OD on painkillers. I’ve also recently learned of an attempted suicide in my local congregation, but it’s very hush hush because it’s the wife of one of our elders.
What a truly “happy” people we are.
[edit post: I forgot I once successfully stopped a young JW who was on his way to hurl himself off a bridge. I wish that was an exaggeration.]

Comment: I know of one for sure. I’ve written about her before, but she was stalked by the elders and anyone they directed to do so.
She had a daughter who was baptized young, around the time of the “stay alive in ’75” campaign. As a teen she was df’d but hadn’t really been to meetings in some time. Well later the adult daughter would visit Mom from time to time. Apparently the congregation she attended before didn’t care, but when she started attending the Nazi congregation I attended, well these elders didn’t like it, and the fact that her duaghter would stay overnight. Go figure, the horid crime of visiting and caring for your mother.
Well the brothers would drop by unannounced, or just do drive by’s to see what cars were in her driveway. Well push comes to shove and she is df’d. After some time, suffering depression because her social life is in shambles, she climbed into her car, closed the garage door, and went to sleep.
Her daughter sent nasty letters to her so called friends. Blasting them for their so called Christian personalities.
There were a few others that involved late stage cancer, and the offical word on those was that they od’d on pain killers

Comment: Two – both were Elders sons, married with family and in their mid 30’s. One was D/Fed but I do not know the circumstances of that, the other was in good standing.

Comment: I knew a teenage JW who came close to suicide.
She was DFd and her parents kicked her out; they would only speak to her again if she came back into the organization, which she wasn’t willing to do.
She was very despondent and taking about suicide.
Fortunately, some “apostates” took her in and convinced her that she was a worthwhile person and helped her turn her life around.

Comment: Two sisters in our congregation killed themselves in the last ten years. Both hanged themselves. One was discovered by her husband, who was an elder. The other was discovered by her teenage daughter. She was a single parent. Both funerals were conduced by elders, and one included a brief talk at the kingdom hall. During the funeral for the elder’s wife the elder conducting the funeral stated that the sister was a victim of the manslayer Satan, according a recent Watchtower that talked about suicide in these terms. He hinted that it is reasonable to hope for a resurrection in these circumstances, a commendably liberal attitude from JWs in the situation. But I could not help thinking it was slightly ironic in that the elder’s wife herself was extremely hardline before she got depressed and hanged herself. She often criticised younger ones for holding hands before getting married, Bible Studies who took too long to get baptised (“yeah it’s good he got baptised, but if Armageddon had come five years ago he would be dead now!” sticks in the mind) and people who were not regular at the meetings. I can’t help feeling that if she had attended such a funeral as an observer rather than the deceased she might have had a few choice words to say about the situation.

Comment: What you experienced is outragious and inexcusable!

Comment: Thanks for sharing that. Wish I could give you a big hug right now.

Comment: I know of six, but they have all happened since I drifted out and nobody wants to talk about it.
Another has tried at least twice.
If you count born in, never baptised, one of New Zealand’s highest profile murderors killed himself using the jailhouse wall.

Comment: I know of numerous suicides of JWs over the years. Two that come to mind: (1) A JW in our hall who hung himself. (2) A murder suicide a few years back in a local congregation. Recently, an attempted suicide by a close friend in our hall. This one was truly brought on by dumbass Elder neglect!
Just another day in Paradise!

Comment: I can think of 3.

Comment: They aren’t human, they are drones.
I see the problem as a social one. If you happened to be their friends and in their social group, they may extend help to you and also hide your sins , if any. If you do not happen to be one of them they will expose you for the slightest infraction. often they will DF you to protect one of their own group. thye will also make excuses for your depression etc. If you aren’t one of them then your depression is seen as withdrawl of Jah spirt.
I had to get past theirs was the true religion before I realized I was just in a pyramid type scheme operation and if you got on the outs with folks it was hard to get back. It really is who you know .
Knowing it was not the truth is what helped me . I was suicidal most of the time I was in and i still shake when I drive by the KH. They are drones of the highest sort, Nazis probably had more blood flowing through their veins. apology to Mr. Goodwin for invoking Nazis.

Comment: I know of 2 but I don’t know the reasons.

Comment: just one but they family questioned it,, saying he was clumbsy.. and really like to warm up his car… with the doors closed.. he was the son of everyones favorite elder.. I knew him as a child, then he wasa a local writer for the paper it wasa big news.. here in my town..
Along with the sister who was Murdered By the Russian dance instructor.. I knew her real well…. She was a very sweat lady…

Comment: 1 male aged early 20s. Dfd and separated from his wife. He moved away from his home town and tried and failed to build a new life.
Stuck in a dead end job without support of family and friends it was obviously too much for him. He hanged himself.

Comment: wow I just remembered another one. Sister who gave my wedding shower. Was terrified of water – so badly that it took them 3 hours to get her baptized. Every one else had been baptized and were gone and they were still tryign to talk her into the waist deep water.
She went swimming in the ocean and everyone said it was an accident. yea right.
She had been hospitalized several times for serious depression and was considered weak.

Comment: I know, personally, of three suicides here. I’ve posted elsewhere about them; the only son of single sister hanged himself aged about 15. An Elders son gassed himself in his car at cemetery. An Elders mother overdosed on alcohol and sleeping pills. The Elder told me, privately, that the ambulance officers suggested suicide. The wider BOE didn’t know and the funeral was conducted at the KH.
All three were baptised or in good standing.
Two or three have joined me in psych groups that were JW’s. All had Elders as fathers, coincidentally. They all spoke of suicidal feelings, except for one who had had a gutsful of her endometriosis. (Actually, her Dad is a good guy)
Reasons for my (failed!) suicide attempts revolved around a sense of worthlessness and hopelessness because of never doing enough to keep the jealous God happy. I have never been disfellowshipped.
BTW, after ten years in and out of mental hospitals, I only had one brother try to make contact with me. Good on him, but, only one!?
Good luck for your talk

Comment: Good grief,
Those elders were vicious pits full of unloving arrogance – ad to think that the morons at Watchtower Corporation can’t figure out why they’re bleeding members!!!

Comment: There was another thread a few months ago that I contributed to. I am going to repeat the same post, as I don’t have the heart to add anything just now:
This subject has concerned me greatly, as I have lost 3 friends, 2 of them dear friends who I miss greatly, to suicide in the past few years. I have come to believe that the ridiculous policies and characteristics of the religion itself were largely responsible. This has occurred in two adjoining congregations located about 40 miles apart in rural midwest US, each with about 100-120 publishers.
The first was in 2007-2008. Elder and wife, mid 50’s, children at the age of moving out, wanted to go into the Spanish speaking work. The Society and Witness culture – you know what I am talking about- influenced them to sell their house and serve temporarily in the Dominican Republic, with the idea of immersing themselves in the language to learn it better. After 6 months they returned broke and he was literally burned out, as they had him giving virtually every meeting part, in Spanish yet. Also he had been taking an anti-depressant, and without health insurance he decided he could do without it. He had returned to the home congregation for a few months before they were going to serve in a Spanish speaking congregation in the US southeast. He killed himself on a cold weekday afternoon in March. I think about him virtually every day, as he was at my house in the weeks before they went to the DR, and I got the feeling he wanted to talk about it, but I didn’t take the time to sit down with him. It haunts me to this day and I have since resolved to never again let such an opportunity pass. He was an active elder in good standing at the time of his death.
The second was in 2009. A sister with a great deal of intelligence and drive, was unhappy with being a ‘Stepford’ witness wife… she liked to work and was of the type who should have gone to college and find a measure of fulfilment in a career. Her teenage son was disfellowshipped. She wanted desperately to move out of the area and start something different. She got an appartment 80 miles away and separated from her husband. She overdosed in the spring of ’09. She was not actively associating at the time, but was not disfellowshipped. She was a dear friend and I thought the world of her.
The third was in 2010. An active ministerial servant, married with young children, took his own life. Depression over losing his job, starting a different job with lower pay, prospect of losing his house, perhaps other reasons I do not know about, as I did not know him really well.
I have not given any names or exact locations because, in agreement with the previous poster, we need to think about the surviving family and children, who would be pained to see their loved one’s name pop up on a google search in this context

Comment: I am sure they won’t have counted the one i knew who felt he was not good enough to join the JWs and hung himself either.

Comment: Many of us here have been spared from the utter aloneness and isolation one suffers when leaving the Organization for whatever reason.(I faded) By visiting this site we managed to bolster our fragile psyche and gained strength from the experieces of others here that mirrored our own. One can only imagine what it would have been like to loose your entire support system without the help of anyone as thousands before us did. No one in the world understands what our experience was like better than another former JW. How many of those visiting this site were spared from going the route of suicide? Hard to say but you know there were more than a few.
The only JW I knew who chose suicide was also the only actual “new” person I knew who was baptized in our hall in the 25 years I was there. The rest were young people who grew up in JW families. This guy married a former JW girl who had been DF’d and when she returned, he followed. Try as he may, he just couldn’t live the JW life long term. He became a MS and tried very hard but left after a few years. His buisness failed after that, he suffered a few setbacks in his health. He felt like a failure on all counts and took a lethal dose of pain medication. I can’t say for sure, but knowing him, I’m sure part of the guilt from dropping out of the TRUTH, played a part in his downward spiral.
I often think back and cringe about those who I was supposed to shun over the years. Thankfully I never felt the need to punish anyone like that but I went along with the practice just the same.

Comment: Thank you for sharing your story of gross WBT$ bungling, incompetence and abuse. I am certain it is all too common due to the (supremacist, self-righteous, unrepentant and apostate) way the WBT$ is structured and operates – sorry you had to go through it too.
My brother succeeded in committing suicide whilst DF’d.
My mother tried, likely a few times, in the early years of her marriage.
I had persistent suicide thoughts probably around this time too (pre-teen years).
Now that I am out, after 4 decades and 3 generations, I see and understand virtually the whole picture, where this is all by detailed design of the “god of religion” with whom the GB lustfully fornicate spiritually every opportunity they get, so as to keep us from the “God of Abraham” and his powerful healing message known as the Abrahamic Promise or the full unabridged gospel.
The idea is that when we discover we have been spiritually raped (and often physically too) we would run from God whereas we’ve never come to know him in the first place, since we never knew we had to or could look for him and have a real personal relationship with him (apart from the apostate pseudo-mediator ruling religious clergy class or Pharisees/FDS/GB/Sanhedrin).
The “cognitive dissonance” we all had to live with for decades is a known and powerful tool (of the “god of religion”) for creating mental distress and illness, along with all manner of dysfunction and abuse repeatedly described by all on this forum.
It is no mere accident that the WBT$ ruling religious clergy class (Pharisees and Sanhedrin/GB) have become carbon copies of Jesus’ religious enemies as described in Matt 23 with their supremacist self-righteousness attained by means of apostate legalism, moralism, ethnocentrism and Gnosticism.
It is no mere accident that Watchtower followers who claim to be “publishers of the good news” are ignorant of the “good news according to Paul”. More than half the Bible’s 152-odd references to the “good news” are by Paul!!!

Comment: 4 … well actually 3, but one seemed very suspicious which was ruled an accident … left convention early, parked in garage, closed garage door, left door to house open and car running.

Comment: I just thought I would mention that we address the issue of suicide among Witnesses in our latest 2012 Survey.
The question is asked across all 6 voter categories “Have you ever known or heard of one of Jehovah’s Witnesses committing or attempting suicide?”
Here are the results out of 54 responses so far (bearing in mind the survey has only been online for 24 hours):
Active witnesses, 8 voters, 100% said “yes”
Serving elders, 3 voters, 67% said “yes”
Anointed, no voters yet
Inactive (faders), 22 voters, 77% said “yes”
DF/DA, 15 voters, 100% said “yes”
Never baptized, 6 voters, 83% said “yes”
I’m sure you’ll agree that if this trend continues, it won’t bode well for the Society’s claims that the organization represents a “happy people”.

Comment: I personally knew 5 people who committed suicide and one attempted suicide. The attempted suicide person slashed her throat, but later told people she had throat surgery and that’s why she has to wear turtle necks even in the summer time. We found out the real reason through her brother.
Also know of 6 people who were murdered by JW’s. One killed his wife and three children. Didn’t know the killer personally, but my son did.

Comment: These are all so tragic.
I worked for 20 years with victims of violence – mostly when they were children. A few had tried to committ suicide before they came to work with me. But in 20 years working with a high risk population like victims of childhod abuse not one made an attempt. And I worked with them specifically regarding the abuse. Over the 20 years I saw probably 500 men and women either in individuual counseling or in group work. These people were considered high risk and most had seriously considered it. Only 1 tried while I was working with her and I was able to get her help before she hurt herself.

Comment: I was in the JWs for 22 years. I saw more suicides and attempts connected with the JWs than I saw in my practice. Wow I never saw it that way before.

Comment: 6 JWs (myself included) vs 1 incest survivor
It pains me to know that so many of you have had such negative experiences and especially those of you who were personally involved. My heart goes out to all of you. Thanks for sharing

Comment: I know of two clear suicide’s. One was an uncle of an elder through marriage and was in my hall, he had suffered depression for years and I doubt got any true help. He shot himself on one of the most busiest streets where I live about about two in the afternoon. They would not hold his memorial in the hall as it was a suicide but the nephew did give the talk. That was about ten years ago.
The other clear suicide was a son of an elder. I think it was about three years ago. It was right when I was waking up to this not being the truth. A sister in my hall to encourage me invited me to the Special talk that we have every spring at the hall of this family. After the talk we went to dinner at the parents home. It was one of the most sadist things to see. The dad started to cry and the mom was still really broke up. Looking back I am sure that they blamed themselves. Probably the son wanted to leave the religion and just did not know how to from what was said that day. It was beyond sad.
I know there are more if I sat down and thought about it more. Many are so depressed it is unreal.

Comment: I am sorry for what you went through. I myself have been very close to suicide all because of this religion. In fact this sight has been a life saver for me, I was really on the verge, and then two of you got in contact with me, I really feel they helped save my life.

Comment: I know of two. One an older lady and another whose husband was a jerk. It didnt take him too long after her OD to find and marry a much younger woman. Both of these suicides were covered up and never spoken of again..

Comment: I heard about one brother who took his life after his son was disfellowshipped.
With another, I remember I was having soup with two older women, and they mentioned one brother whose suicide was reported in the newspaper. The one sister said, “He must have had sugar in his tea.” The other said, “That is the most SELFISH action anyone can take!”
More often than not, I don’t think it was often an approved topic for conversation. There is a certain code of silence. These poor people are forgotten. Nobody wants to think about them.

Comment: I can relate to being low due to being disfellowshipped. It is worse than divorce or any heartbreak…and there is never any respite. Family can become callous, hardhearted, and belligerent.
I have found the body is hardwired for self preservation, especially in regard to heights, and it’s very hard to circumvent. Hanging and other methods seem quite painful. And the worst case scenario is surviving an attempt, and having a lifelong disability. Fear of pain, heights, suffocation, failing has so far kept me alive.
Sometimes I feel I have a purpose. If I die, then I might fail to complete what I am here to do. Some days the only thing I can do is read and study more intensely. After feeling dangerously low last Thursday evening, Friday I poured myself into printing off and organizing my notes and research materials on 607. Saturday, I bought a new translation of the Bible from Books-A-Million and for a time that lifted my spirits.

Comment: Ones I personally know of: 1 DF’ed, one active (adult daughter of a prminent elder).
I’ve heard of several more.

Comment: Seek help for your depression. Especially if you get any more thoughts of suicide. Anti depressants, exercise, friends, hobbies all are helpful.

Comment: 2 because of sexuality/d/f issues.

Comment: 1 attempted suicide several times. Had been DFed; history of childhood abuse (was raised JW). Had to spend some time locked up in a Psych Unit.

Comment: 1 successful suicide – somebody with a history of severe depression trying to get reinstated. I heard that the humiliating way the elders in her congo treated her when she showed up at meetings was a contributory factor in pushing her over the edge.

Comment: 1 a long, long time ago – son of a well-known JW family. Can’t remember details.
There may be one or two more, but I cannot bring any specifics to mind at the moment.

Comment: One at Australian Bethel. One sister after a convention (talk) that hammered not having children in this time of the end. One brother with a young family who suffered from depression.

Comment: Two. A young brother, who once bought my first car, a very old orange coloured beetle. Everybody said, he was kind of depressed, but nobody asked further questions.
The other one not just shot himself, but also his wife an her best friend. He was df, but his wife and her friend still JW.

Comment: My mother tried to kill herself when she was 16 years old, while her dad and her stepmother visited a big assembley in N.Y. in the 50’s, leaving her alone for almost three weeks (they lived in Germany). She opend up all gasvalves. My Uncle found her bevor she choked or the whole building blew up. Nevertheless, she blamed it all her life on her stepmother and not on the religion, in wich she raised up and prevented her from beeing a self-esteemed person. Some years ago she mentioned, that she is not expacting to survive armageddon. This after more than 60 years of serving as a faithfull jw, raising four children an supporting her husband, who is serving as an elder since the day, they met in the late 50’s. Thats kind of suicide too.

Comment: I tried 3 times. My dad told my psychiatrist (over the phone) that my problem was a spiritual one. In a sense he was right, my spirit was dying.
Years later I was with a group of exjw’s and the subject came up. The question came up, who has tried? Everybody raised their hand. It’s nice to know none of us succeeded because, we are awesome folks.

Comment: 1- One year ago. A married JW imale 35 yrs old, from my ex-cong. We used to stay often together when I was in.

Comment: 1- Many years ago at Olympic Stadium in Rome , during District Convention. He jumped from the terraces, and no, the DC program was not suspended at all.

Comment: 1975 – I was pioneering in Moncton, New Brunswick. One of the other pioneers was a guy that back then, we didn’t know much about being gay,,, was teased about his mannerisms (bit of a flamer I can say now, without prejudice) …
He had a room, and lived alone. His mom was JW, and father had abandoned them when he was an infant. All he had was his mom, and the JW.
Anyhooo,,, we all didn’t know it, but he was gay and a tranny …. he hung himself in his room, and was only discovered when someone smelled it. Couldn’t stand the pain of knowing he would be shunned and condemned by his own mother, and everyone he knew. There was a note to that effect.

Comment: There have been far too many stories related on this board of people losing brothers, sisters, uncles, mothers, fathers, friends to suicide because they couldn’t deal with the JW lifestyle but didn’t know how to get away and make real friends.
Several of the friends I’ve made here have considered it at times, but thankfully, we were all too strong to go down that road.
The first time I wanted to die, I think I was 12 years old, the first time I really didn’t want to die I was around 39. Twelve is a hard age for anyone, but add a JW mother who was hell bent and determined that I not lose my life at Armageddon–and a non-believing father that I was SURE to lose at Armageddon…………mentally, I just threw my hands up.

Comment: I want to say to everyone on this thread,, who has felt suicidal … I’ve been there, too,,, all my life until I got some therapy. It was more about the sexual abuse and other stuff than the JWS,, but ….
You are normal! You are okay! You are not ‘just’ a survivor,, you are a THRIVER!

Comment: … and I love you,,, every one,,, even the Republicans! just kidding,, lol!

Comment: I was going to say the exact same thing.

Comment: When I look at the list of people on this board – not just the ones who have posted here but those I know who have posted on other threads – it amazes me how strong we all are. There is such an amazing power in all of us and we have all found ways to survive the madness and move on and even help other.
If you are still struggling with thought of suicide please seek help. Open your phone book to the crisis numbers and call someone. See your doctor. And keep talking.
… and for everyone that has committed suicide, how many have tried in a moment of desperation and a painful cry for help?

Comment: Young Damien was first, then quietly spoken Craig, Phil (dearest Phil), Grant, Tracy, and young Sam (the kindest and most talented kid I’ve met).
There were a couple of others whose names I’ve forgotten . . . but not their faces.

Comment: Only one I know of. I was really sad about it. I still remember her face perfectly. She was beautiful. She left behind two great kids too. Probably around 1973.
She was being treated for mental issues when her husband’s family decided to move 1500 miles away. very dominant father. So he dragged the family to a small town where I don’t think she kept up her treatments.
Now only in the past couple of years, I heard another rumor. Her husband, let’s call him Tim (no real names here), wasn’t exactly a manly macho looking guy, a bit the opposite. And neither was a good friend of his from back where we all grew up. Let’s call him Randy. Randy, as a teenager used to live with Tim’s family for a while. Randy I knew better since he stayed around where we live and I grew up and saw more of him. Randy always dressed special, a little more “fashionable” than the rest of the congregation. He married, but his wife always looked unhappy and frustrated. A friend of mine said once “it looks like she’s never gotten any”. Others might call her a “beard”.
Not that being effeminate or fashionable means somebody is gay. But let’s face it. Those traits aren’t uncommon among gay men. And not to judge if they were.
So, rumor was Randy and Tim were having a gay affair. And I know nothing for sure as neither has come out and both are still JWs. Anyway, rumor is Randy and Tim were on the phone together when Tim’s wife picked up the phone, listened in, discovered the relationship, couldn’t take it, and killed herself.
I believe my sister about the mental issues. Now whether mental issues + betrayal had anything to do with it, I don’t know. I hope not, for her sake. That whatever she was feeling, betrayal wasn’t mixed in. That somebody else’s actions didn’t push her over the edge.
She was a JW at the time.

Comment: I knew two. One was a pioneer who had a part on the CA the Saturday before he hanged himself from a bridge in north-central Indiana.
Another I grew up with who OD’d intentionally about a year ago. Funerals both by elders.

Comment: I cannot believe I forgot this suicide. It happened in the summer of 2010. I was at Bethel from 1990 till 1994 and I made really good friends with one of the sisters there. We have remained friends since leaving Bethel. She is on the east coast and I am on the west coast. We both left Bethel in 1994. I realized it was not the truth in 2008. She is still a reg pioneer. Being we are so far apart she has not a clue I do not believe anymore. We have little contact now because of me, I just do not know what to say to her anymore as she is still pioneering and believing the lie.
Well here it was the summer of 2010 and I was at Lake Tahoe visiting for the first time along with On the Way Out and my friend from Bethel calls while I was with flipper and Mrs Flipper and OTWO. I was totally taken back. She was very upset, as her niece had just committed suicide. I was so heart broken myself. I had met the girl who was then just four years old while we were at Bethel and had watched her grow up when I would visit my friend. The girls dad was an elder.
It came out when she in her mid teens that someone in the hall had molested her. From what I can gather it was a family member who is still in good standing. The girl was told to get over it from what I can gather as the family is very closed lipped about it. The molester said he was sorry after all my girlfriend has told me, what more can he do about what he did.
OMG!!! Anyway the girl overdosed in the summer of 2010 she was just 23 or 24 years old. My heart breaks writing this. She was a beautiful girl and it is all just so very sad.

Comment: I doubt I could go in to any other group that I know and have so many people know someone who committed suicide or even tried. Right now I live in an apartment building for seniors. Most oif the people here went through WW2 in Europe. Some were in concentration camps. From this group of survivors you would think they would know many who took their own lives. But I don’t think there is one person here that went through that or who had parents who went through it that could pull out a similar list of people they knew who tried
The damage that men do

Comment: There were two I was acquainted with from my cong. One had a history of mental illness. The other was a Bethelite who had been “let go” for lack of the proper word and sent home to “Special Pioneer” (Sorry, I cannot remember the terminolgy used. It’s when the ORG started downsizing))
And also heard from a cong member that their friend committed suicide.

Comment: I can think of 5 off the top of my head 2- MS’s with severe depression. One hanged himself because he couldn’t find a wife. The other hanged himself in the barn where his son found him. 1- active witness with bi-polar disorder 1- just d’fed for spousal abuse and jumped off a bridge 1- young sister OD’d (don’t know why) she was in my pioneer class Then there were 2 young brothers, one of which I was extremely close to who died over the blood issue

Comment: One in particular. An elder at one time. He had mental problems that caught up with him years after he had been DF’d, divorced and generally went haywire. His girlfriend had left him. He called her on the phone and said goodbye, then, while she was still listening, shot himself in the head with a .38 snub nose Colt Detective special. I know the gun because I had sold it to him years before.

Comment: I have known 3. One was like a father to me as mine was not around. I was 13 at the time. Then another was a friend I grew up with but lost contact with when I moved congregations. That one was when I was 18. And the most recent was a woman whos husband was recently DF’d for cheating on her. She decided to forgive him but the embarrassment of his decision led her to end it. This was about 3 years ago. I had heard she was getting more and more depressed waiting for him to be reinstated.

Comment: Suicides are the hidden statistic . Many family members will actively hide the fact that a relative took that way out.
The media will also go along with info suppression concerning this . Congos will also hide it
I learned of one suicide last yr while out in service with a relative of the person. I was in the congo with the one who died and did not know it was a suicide .

Comment: One older sister, sweet as can be. She had an unbelieving mate. She was distraught because her son-in-law divorced her daughter and got custody of the grandchild. Shot herself in the head. Not one Witness (other than me) called, or contacted her family in any way.

Comment: Elder, killed himself because none of his children accepted the religion. He was very strict and dictatorial, the kids took of as soon as they turned 18.

Comment: Older elder, real evil jerk. His adult children got awarded custody of their mother due to his extreme mental and physical abuse.

Comment: Young boy, 16, threw himself in front of a train.

Comment: My own daughter attempted twice. Fortunately I was almost out by then, never told the elders, and wouldn’t have let them near her anyway. She is fine now, not a JW. Cant really blame the religion totally , but I think it was a factor.
I think, in general this religion pushes people toward suicide because of the Black and white thinking, if you are not “whole souled” you are nothing. Also the fear of dealing with mental health professionals, due to the possibility of “bringing reproach on Jehovah”. Plus the sheer ignorance of most of the elders when it comes to mental health. The disfellowshiping is no doubt a huge factor. If you have depression issues anyway, it doesn’t help that you are shunned by your friends and family.

Comment: First Teenage girl (14-15) depress got in trouble wasn’t baptized.
2nd 19 year old girl depress wasn’t living upto JWs standards.
Both hospitalized on time. Both free from the WT.

Comment: An elder of a Watchtower Religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses killing himself for that reason that his children are not in the religion. I am sorry for him. Blame the Mother Watchtower for this. It stresses that elders should be in good standing to continue as elders. Imagine the pressure this man faced.

Comment: Yes, I feel sorry for him, even if he was a bit of a tough father. I think it was a combination of his own perfectionism and the requirements of a heartless organization. No matter how you may try, you cannot force anyone into a religion, but the expectation of the Watchtower is that you could, especially for elders. The JWs have the worst retention rate of any religion, but as a JW, you don’t know the odds are against it. The result is broken hearts, broken families and in some cases, suicide. This is the legacy of the WTBTS

Comment: Those are legitimate reasons you mentioned. The intense distrust the Watchtower religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses has toward Certified Mental Health professionals is baffling. How comes bringing reproach on ‘Jehovah’s name’ when you are merely seeking help? Does not Jehovah help those who help themselves?

Comment: I know of at least 5. One was my best friend as a child, and the other was the mother of one of my closest friends now. He called me when he looked through the window and saw her body inside. I came and helped open the door. She cut her wrists. She also left a rambling note about the “truth”.
Very sad. They broke down this way
3 teenage males
1 early 30’s male (fighting against homosexuality – great guy a real loss)
1 mid 40’s female with 3 children
I know of another serious attempt by a sister who came very very close to dying after refusing a transfusion. Two years later she took 70 Xanex.
Sad.

Comment: I know of 3 .
They were in the last 5 years or so.
One was a newly reinstated young man. He was Dfed for being gay and had just been reinstated. Very tragic, as he was so young and desperate to please the Borg.
The other 2 were Elders. It was such a complete shock . They were very loved and considered the nice guys. They had families. Tragic also.

Comment: A young brother committed suicide a few days ago on Vancouver island. Left behind a wife and small child.

Comment: I knew one, a very close friend for a long time, like a brother, but he was out of the religion when it happened. I still think about him often.

Comment: A young Sis of 19 or 20, daughter of a guy I grew up with, she turned on the motor while in the car in the garage. She was already a full time pioneer too. He and his wife had about nine or ten kids,she was the youngest, he ruled the house with an iron hand, yet, when she died, both parents had the nerve to say “we don’t understand what could’ve happened”.

Comment: My son – after being raised by religious crazies ( his mother and I).

Comment: I am so sorry.
I can not imagine losing a child this way.
I have lost my little brother . So I can undrstand a lttle bit.
But, your loss is so heartbreaking.

Comment: The legacy of this organization is many suicides. How many we will never know. Many suicides are hidden if the person involved has not been active ( per the dub think), but they are victims of this organization and its dictatorial methods. Gone for good, my heart goes out to you, I can only imagine what you have been through. This religion is contributing to these issues by their black or white thinking. If you are thinking of suicide as an option, know there is another world out there for you, there is a world beyond the Jehovah’s Witnesses, your life has value, don’t think this is an answer. Dont let this farce of a religion claim one more victim

Comment: I cannot begin to imagine the pain you and your wife have been through. I, too, raised my children in a crazy cult. We make many mistakes along the way as parents, trying to do what`s best for our children. It sounds like you`ve recognized the cult for what it is. Hopefully you have been able to find some peace in your life after losing your precious child. Thinking of you.

Comment: The post makes a great point about including not just baptised but those born-in. I would include those even associated from a formative age (3- 18 yrs. ) .
Baptism is not a requirement to have ones worldview and logical/reasoning skill completely perverted by wts teaching. Many taking their own lives as adults, are nevertheless still suffering from abuse or delusions they were subjected to at any of youiths formative stages.
I was an ‘elder’ during my childrens preteen and teen years and, when my eldest pubescent son developed the classic traits of mental illness. We were viewed as a ‘model’ JW family (to be presented at our Circuit Assembly as an example.
In reality, we were just hardcore JWs, hardcore critics, hardcore disciplinarians, hardcore ignoramuses, hardcore hypocrites. With a Registered Nurse for a mother, and an ‘elder’ for a father, my kids had parents who pranced all over two counties pretending to bring ‘salvation’ to others while not recognizing that we were verbally poisoning the minds of our own beloved children.
When still in high school, my son began to drink, do drugs, listen to hideous, horrifying, vulgar, music. He began to hear and fear ‘voices’ during that time – but never said anything for years as he thought he was demonized . Where do you suppose that reasoning came from?
Yes many, many, many tormented and destroyed lives, are the direct consequences association with the wts and their teachings.

Comment: one for sure. Former bethelite, elder who told me he was bi-sexual. He DAd himself many years ago but his health was failing and he was being shunned by his son and his daughter in law and was not allowed to see his grandchildren. My best friend who had been his first love in the 60’s found hanging in his garage soon to be 4 years ago. My heart still clutches when I think of him. He was one of GB rape victims while at Bethel which I have known about for 50 years. And I wonder why I am so ANGRY

Comment: I know of some specific cases of suicide.
1. The first happened shortly after I left the JW’s. A young mother of two in my former congregation committed suicide. I think her young JW husband loved her, and I don’t believe she was being abused. She might have had post-partum depression after having two babies in quick succession. She tried to get help from “worldly” sources, but was forbidden and/or ostracized for it. I don’t know many details.
2. The secons happened a couple of years ago in the town where I was born. A young woman, probably at least 3rd-generation, daughter of an elder, committed suicide after having a troubled and rebellious adolescence and young adulthood. I believe her parents did their best, but her dad could be severe and unfair. A relative of mine who lived in their town told me they had observed the young girl doing things forbidden by the Watchtower Company, and tried to warn the parents that the girl likely was headed for trouble. The parents apparently appeared not to believe what they were being told.
This young woman’s brother had been disfellowshipped at some point, and my relative told me the parents cried loudly and profusely as the announcement was being made. I also know that, at one point, the mother of these troubled children left the father for a time because of his cruelty to her. Her leaving apparently woke him up because they got back together and stayed together. I don’t know how he treated the children. I’m not trying to blame anyone, as I know it had to be beyond heartbreaking for these parents to lose their daughter in such a tragic way. I think there are ‘way too many parents who do not realize how much their children are hurt and emotionally scarred because of their well-meaning modes of “discipline.”

Comment: I just remembered a third case:
Several years ago, I attended a meeting for ex-JW’s . I met a beautiful young woman and her mother whose brother/son had committed suicide after the elders found out he was having an affair with a sister in the congregation. The elders dealt with the woman first. Then one of the elders walked over to the young man and said something like, “The elders will deal with you tomorrow.” The young man went home and drank poison (insecticide or herbicide, I’m not sure which). It’s sad that it took this unthinkable tragedy to wake up his family.

Comment: I cant remember who or why.I know one shot himself in his car. But I have heard of so many over the years I was a JW
I would hate for those who judged them( elders) to stand before the REAL Heavenly Judge …What sentances will they get  wasnt it said “THE WAY YOU ARE JUDGING IS THE WAY YOU WILL BE JUDGED”!!!!!

Comment: I just heard about someone in a neighboring circuit, someone DF’d, that recently committed suicide. From what was relayed to me the deceased’s children discovered the body. This person was in the process of “coming back” and had a boatload of psychological problems. I didn’t know the person, or any of their immediate family, just some of their distant family in our circuit. Whether this person’s death can be directly attributed to JWs/WT, I don’t know. I’m pretty darn positive the JW/WT aspect of their life didn’t help. Out of respect I avoided certain specifics, but there’s a few people on this board that reside in my area who might be or are familiar with this situation.

Comment: I’ve related this experience before but want to share it again. My best friend killed himself back in 1986. He had left his wife and two young sons but wanted to salvage his marriage. His marital problems were compounded by his bipolar disorder and the fact that he was also a gay man. There were other difficulties and all of them contributed to his suicide at age 32.
He had not been “disciplined” in any way: no public or private reproof, and he had not been disfellowshipped. Nevertheless, he had no need or respect for the elders. Our last conversation turned into a heated argument at one point when I begged him to go to the elders for help. I still hear him shouting at me, “Never say that to me again! I want nothing to do with them!” He killed himself two weeks later.
I think the elders tried to help him, but his problems were far beyond their reach or ability to handle. My friend refused to seek professional help as well even though I urged him to do so. In the end, he made the decision to end his life by himself, but I also don’t doubt that there were elements of this religion which were factors. The toxic shame it imposes on many played a significant role and all the more so since he was a gay man and was filled with self-loathing. Being immersed in as homophobic a culture as Jehovah’s Witnesses are certainly did not contribute to his mental and emotional well being. Looking back on his experience, I was very fortunate not to have met the same end.

Comment: My best friend attempted last weekend. He had a rough upbringing in an unloving Jw home. He is getting professional help. He is a very smart man, a little too smart for the watchtower I think. He is starting to see through the bullshit but his wife refuses to see. It is hard to cope once you find out the truth about the truth

Comment: I am glad that your best friend survived his suicide attempt. His death would have harmed so many people and for a long period of time as well. That was what happened in my circumstances. I grieved for many years after my friend’s death but have eventually come to grips with it. Your friend is going to need your help as well as that of the professional kind. Keep loving and supporting him. I hope that eventually his wife will give him the love and support he needs as well. But so insidious is the influence the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses wields over its rank-and-file members, that your friend’s wife may never change her mind.

Comment: How sad. And tragic that his chidren were the ones to find him. The WTS stance against people going for the counseling they need is definitely a factor in many suicides. They apply so much pressure and then when people are suffering the only solution the elders can come up with is prayer, meetings and service. That’s what gets so many in the first place.
WTS quackery

Comment: With respect to my friend’s attitude toward the elders, you are quite right to say he no longer trusted them and wanted nothing to do with them. While I don’t doubt they made an effort to talk to him, I also don’t doubt that their talk was far from helpful. When I said the elders tried to help him, I was speaking from their perspective. He obviously saw it in an entirely different light.
One of the problems these elders have is most of them believe they are appointed by holy spirit. It’s obvious to us that this claim is false. I can only think that elders refuse to look at their status objectively. The harm this has done to others cannot be overstated and many have paid a heavy price for this hubris.
I was luckier than my friend. When I realized I was in serious trouble, I got help and found the strength to survive. I hope your friend can make a recovery and keep on living. His battle with suicidal thoughts may not be over and there may be more crises ahead. I wish him all the best.

Comment: My mother.

Comment: hard for her children and all who loved her. Be assured God has not forgotten her.
She will live again and who knows, its God’s choice, she could have already been
resurrected and is living in a wonderful spiritual body, in another dimension.
And for all the scoffers who think they are so “scientific” any physicist will tell you
all energy and matter which includes us, can never be destroyed, it only changes
form, and physicists also have mathematical proof there are other dimensions,
that are as real as this one and that we cannot see, because of our limited perceptions.
The WT is not the answer to any of these mysteries of life and death and life after death.

Comment: I am so sorry, that must have been terrible.

Comment: I knew of five people who killed themselves, my own daughter attempted twice. I truly believe that the beliefs and practices of the Watchtower were a factor in all of these suicides. The black or white thinking, poorly trained elders, and punitive policies all play a part. For those with a tendency towards depression or other mental illnesses, these things are a mix that proves fatal.
A young married brother, depression, gunshot
An older concentration camp survivor, despondent over her non JW daughter losing custody of her own daughter to her Dub husband
16 year old boy, oppressive, abusive JW father
Older, abusive elder husband, angry his children got custody of his wife due to his abuse
Strict, elder father, due to his children rejecting the religion

Comment: I had a close JW friend who suicided, but he was inactive when he did. He was a victim of child molestation by a special pioneer many years earlier.
Oh how bloodguilty the Watchtower is.

Comment: I tried once– took a bunch of pills and woke up 36 hours later. I was living alone at the time and have never told anyone. Scared the crap out of me, but it still didn’t make the pain go away.

Comment: I am sorry you were in so much pain you tried to wanted to kill yourself, you are very lucky it didn’t work, and I am concerned you didn’t tell anyone. Please consider getting some help with this, if you have not already done so. Therapy can be very effective for depression. I feel for anyone who has been hurt by this religion, and I know how debilitating depression can be. Since leaving, I have gotten better and better, learned some coping skills, and seldom get depressed anymore. It is possible.
I think those of us who suffer from depression or suicidal thoughts are just collateral damage for the Borg, our existence contradicts their pretence that they are “Jehovah’s Happy People”. They don’t care if we fade out, get disfellowshipped or even commit suicide, they just don’t want us around, it makes them look bad. The best revenge is to go on to live a happy, fulfilling life.

Comment: my sister-in-law – bullied by the elders into returning to an abusive JW husband and felt she had no where to go

Comment: Is it any wonder so many people who are JWS end up committing suicide for they are profusely inundated with guilt for doing more or advancing in their so called spiritual growth and devotion to Jehovah’s will and purpose.
Adding the fact that the WTS. continuously push the notion that god’s judgment day is just around the corner.
Human psychology can be sensitive to many variable inputs of conscious awareness, probably two of the
most strongest and dominate are fear and guilt which can be realized in religious indoctrination like the JWS.

I’ve known of half a dozen of people who were JWS who committed suicide, particularly around
the 1975 Armageddon scare was being professed by the WTS.

Comment: I knew of six.
A teen who had an eating disorder and nearly died of it eventually committed suicide.
An elders wife who just had a family part on the CA the week before and I talked with her a couple of days before took a knife and killed herself.
A friend of ours her father killed himself.
A local elder who was in Bethel for years jumped off of a high bridge, they found his body months later.
A young brother drove off the road into a pond and couldn’t swim.
My husbands ex brother in law committed a very slow suicide by drinking himself to death in his mid 40’s. He was so bad they found him in a basement on an old mattress dead.
I suffered from depression and it started a year after I was baptized. It got very bad and I did seek help from a professional. Right before I woke up I thought about ending it many times but for me the love I have for my family always stopped me. I would go through the thoughts but then I would think about how much I love my family and what it would do to them and I couldn’t put them through it so I am thankful I was able to stop it. I became such a recluse and I wouldn’t leave our master bedroom sitting room for weeks at a time. My husband was scared for me and we found a wonderful therapist that helped us get stronger and we finally saw that the religion was the problem. I have been off meds for two years now and I never even go there now. I will have a down day very rarely now which is just part of life but nothing like what I felt before.
Right before I woke up I went to the elders thinking I could get help but that was a huge mistake. I had never trusted them the entire 30 years I was in but for some reason I gave them a chance and they failed miserably. I understand now why they did, we expect uneducated men to understand mental illness and they have no training or a clue how to deal with mental illness. When my husband was an elder he would let them talk about their feelings but he always instructed them to seek professional help. I know that wasn’t a popular recommendation from the WTS but he knew they needed more help and he wasn’t qualified to give more than a listening ear, being kind and loving to them.
Some of these experiences many of you have suffered are heartbreaking. Sending you a big hug!

Comment: In Iowa young brother not long married. Jumped of a bridge, can’t remember if w/ a rope around his neck.
An elder I knew in NW Arkansas.
And add to that myself when I got baptized under the premise of giving up my life for the spirit directed organization.

Comment: i know of 3
one just ocurred a few weeks ago. mid 20’s father with young family
havent heard how he did it but was a big deal around here after it happened
Comment: 2, one after getting dfed for smoking a cigarette, the other unsure the reason but jumped off a high bridge that’s popular for suicides.

Comment: I know of 6, one possible one (suspicious accident).

Comment: I know 2, both teenage boys

Comment: 2 spring to mind; plus an attempted one which I count as a serious attempt – it was a survived – a jump from a 3rd floor car park.
A couple of overdoses too. But they survived.
Oh, a family in the 70’s; wife tried gassing herself but survived, her UBM stuck his head in a gas oven and died. Their daughter jumped a high bridge.
What a happyfying experience their contact with jw’s was …

Comment: A CO in California just had to go to Missouri because his JW Brother just tried to kill himself this past week.

Comment: I heard a case in Czech Republic around 1995 when family drove with their car to the river south of Prague, put plastic tube from their exhaust pipe into the car and turned the engine running. Family of four had died, JW man, woman, and two their children. It was also widely reported by the press.

Comment: I know of two, both leaving young children.
Is there are hard data to show whether suicides occur more amongst JW’s than in general society?

Comment: I have heard of 5 in the surrounding area over the years. Of those 5, 2 of them I knew personally.

Comment: An ms I’d known for years who had depression and a whacko jw wife hanged himself in his own home. A young man raised as a jw but who never got baptizedand got into drugs killed himself in his parents’ bathroom. Another one, the jw brother of a I knew in another cong. He had schizophrenia I think. Two jw housemates of mine attempted it. However many we know of, it’s far too many. Seems to happen more than among non jws.

Comment: I know a sister who had a history of depression and mental illness who killed herself.
I also know a guy in his twenties who hanged himself in the New Forest after being exposed as having child porn on his computer. The sad thing is that this was just history repeating itself as he had been abused himself.

Comment: I don’t think the religion’s policies are entirely responsible for the apparent high suicide rate of JW’s and ex-JW’s. I think rather the religion pushes those people who already have some predesposition (genetic or life experience) to depression or suicidal actions. I, however, think that religioous leader have a great deal of power to save those people from themselves. That’s where the guilt of the Watchtower resides; having the ability to save someone, rather decides to push them over the cliff.

Comment: My Uncle who was an elder committed suicide when facing disfellowshipping . . . then his 4 daughters tried committing suicide afterwards (copy cat suicides).
My Uncle’s grandchildren tried committing suicide afterwards. They all survived but are very messed up! My ex-husband tried when he was 13 and again when he was 28 years old . . . due to depression and shunning.
My two oldest children tried a couple of times each due to my ex-communication (upon leaving their abusive JW father), my daughter still have heart problems due to the overdose.
My ex-husband’s nieces and nephew committed suicide . . . their parents left JW’s but attended the meetings occasionally . . . still hanging on the fringes of the skirt of death:
One left 4 small children behind,
another was beaten up by her boyfriend and later committed suicide (her mother who has claimed to be of the annointed didn’t go to her daughters funeral),
One, age, 16, was found drugged, raped, strangled and beaten in her bedroom in her mother’s house (ex witness who joined a gang) . . .
One, age 15, was chased by his father around his grand-parents home after an arguement . . . he ran up on the railroad tracks, walking backwards towards the train was hit and killed. It was ruled an accident. When in fact he either committed suicide or he was so upset after his father smacked him in the face, that when he was chased after and being yelled at (by a drunk reformed Ex-Witness father) . . . that he didn’t even hear the train whistle blowing!? He would be 33 yrs. old today if he was still alive. His grandfather who was an elder at the time, and his father . . . collected a lot of money from his death.
I became suicidal as a result of ex-communication, me AND my children being shunned (after I left an abusive JW husband), homeless 4 times and had a nervous breakdown and hospitalized 3 years ago. I have not recovered fully from it . . . will probably be on medicine for the rest of my life.
What I DO have is my life and freedom . . . many people have lost that opportunity . . . for those that are so depressed and considering committing suicide due to Jehovah’s Witnesses and the trauma you have been through . . . PLEASE reconsider! Go get help . . . go to your local emergency room.

Comment: I know of a recent incident (10 days ago) of a middle aged female JW with many family members in the organization who decided to end it all via a razor blade to the wrists. Extremely sad but just another day in JW paradise!

Comment: My best friend growing up shot himself in the head with a shotgun while his parents were at meeting. They found him on the front porch when they came home.

Comment: When I first started to attend the Witnesses Now for Jesus Convention back in 1979..actually that is when the Convention first started…we hear of many attempted suicides and many from young people…When they would leave the Organization..being shunned by family and even friends who where JWs..never really being part of the world..no place to go…and etc…the thought of suicide came forth. We heard testimonies of individuals trying to cut their wrist, and etc…During the latter part of the 70s and early part of 80s..there was no internet…no ministries to the cults…no discussion groups…meetups..no book on the Organization..nothing at all, but as the years went by things changed..remember…you have a person from a small town, like somewhere in TX..where would some go when he/she left the Organization…there was no one they could relate to as coming out of the Organization…you still hear even now of people wanting and committing suicide…while things have changed…in many cases not really…..also remember back in the early days the Organization had a tighter control…it seems the Organization is trying to get back its complete control of an individual. What I have said above is from someone who was never a JW; therefore, not a ex-JW, but an individual who has heard 100s, 100s and 100s of testimonies…..It seems that it is the younger JWs who are sort of seeing the “New Light” about the Organization and many are leaving.

Again, I ask, WHAT DO YOU THINK? Is there a connection between the religious practices and policies of Jehovah’s Witnesses and these cases of suicide and depression? Many former cult members have confirmed there is.

“According to the Bible, when we deliberately put someone’s life unnecessarily in danger, we could become bloodguilty (Compare 1 Chronicles 11:17-19)” –Awake! magazine, June 22, 1985, page 27

” if we are part of any organization that is bloodguilty before God, we must sever our ties with it if we do not want to share in its sins. (Rev. 18;4, 24: Mic. 4:3)” –United in Worship of the Only True God, 1983, page 155.

To read Tresa Baldas’ article in the Detroit Free Press on the affects of shunning, please open https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/03/18/jehovahs-witnesses-murder-suicide-keego-harbor/409695002/?fb_action_ids=10210753473008757&fb_action_types=og.comments

Keep yourself in God’s love (and OUT of the Watchtower),
Julie McAllen

An interview with Joyce Taylor and “ExJW Critical Thinker” 

Links to more articles on the Stuart family murder/suicide:

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2018/02/17/keego-harbor-family-murder-suicide/348230002/

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2018/02/19/keego-harbor-jehovahs-witness-mom-triple-murder-suicide/351559002/

https://nypost.com/2018/02/21/woman-shunned-by-jehovahs-witnesses-kills-entire-family-cops/

http://www.fox2detroit.com/news/local-news/friend-blames-religion-for-keego-harbor-familys-murder-suicide

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2018/02/16/4-dead-keego-harbor-murder-suicide/345756002/

https://www.wxyz.com/news/region/oakland-county/did-church-shun-family-in-keego-harbor-murder-suicide