What if your best friend told u she wanted to Kill herself and possibly harm other people???

Question

What if her friend told the parents and/or school officials???

Was it the right thing to do??
How would u have handled it??
Did she betray her friends trust?

I never said this is my friend....It's just a question

Answer 1

hey i have some of the same problems i think its a good thing what you did. your friend might get mad at you at first but in the end it will be ok. if your friend was goin to hurt herself or others it could have been bad so by telling it was a smart idea. im 14 and if you ever need anyone to talk to my e~mail is [e-mail]. i hope things work out for you!!!!


brandi

Answer 2

It was the right thing to do. This question presents a dilemma in that there are pros and cons to telling people in a position to handle the problem, so the answer isn't completely clear cut. However, the dilemma isn't well-balanced as there is a fairly clear answer which is that you are forced to tell what your friend can not tell.

The consequences of living with the death of your friend and the death of others due to your not telling is much more significant than betraying your friend's confidence.

If you betrayed your friend's trust, then your friend's trust was mistakenly placed as your friend should trust you to do the right thing which is to prevent her from harming herself and/or others. What kind of friend would let a friend risk death or life in prison? Therapy is a much better alternative.

I really think that school officials are generally more able to deal with these things and can tell the parents, so I'd tell the school officials. They have degrees in counseling.

Answer 3

You need to report it. If they are planning to harm others you can help. You may be saving lives and her life too.

Suicide is the worst. Those that commit suicide go into a dark place with lots of crying. Their soul stays there (no one knows how long) waiting to be born again. Why kill yourself if you have to suffer and then just come back again? And the next time you come back it could be worse, you could be one of those starving African babies in the Congo. I know that when you come back your situation is always worse so why would it be good? Why not stay here and stick it out and hope things get better?

If this was my friend I would talk to her and tell her things can change. Lets work on the problems in your life. Report what she planned to do and they will get her help (it could be a mental imbalance in the brain which is treatable).
You are not betraying trust. You can not since she is not in her right mind at the time. Would it be better to sit quiet and have killing or death on your conscoius, I think not.

Answer 4

It is definitely the right thing to tell parents, school officials, anyone who will listen. Anyone who talks about harming themself or others just might do it. This is usually a symptom of severe depression, and telling adults who can help may very well save the person's life.

It's true that it's important to keep confidences and be the kind of person that people can trust. However, some secrets should not be kept. It's appropriate to tell people who have responsibility for the safety and well-being of your friend if you have reason to believe that her safety and well-being is in danger. How would you feel if your friend did hurt herself or someone else, knowing that you might have prevented it?

Answer 5

It may only be a cry for help, but if she were to act on it and hurt or kill others and it could have been prevented, just think about the guilt you would have to live with for the rest of your life?

I honestly believe that if someone tells someone else that they want to kill themself, it's their way of reaching out for help. Otherwise, why bother telling anyone? If someone really wants to die I don't think they would tell anyone, because if they did someone might try to stop them

It was absolutely the right thing to do. I would have done the same thing. I don't feel that you betrayed her trust because she had to know, somewhere in her mind, that you would tell someone about somethig that drastic. But there always is the possibility that she may feel betrayed anyway.

All you can do is try to talk to her about it and see how she feels. Let her know that you are her friend and that you care about what happens to her. If she's angry there is nothing you can do about it. You still did the right thing.

I would prefer the pain of losing a friend because she was mad at me as opposed to the pain and guilt of losing her to suicide because I kept my mouth shut. It's not always easy doing the right thing, but you did good. You may have even saved her life and someone elses life.

Doing the right thing isn't always going to make you popular and it isn't always going to make everyone happy, but it will sure make it a lot easier to live with your choices.

Answer 6

A suicide threat should be taken seriously. No, I think you did the right thing, and I would have done the same. This girl needs help and the sooner she gets it, the better. You did not betray her trust. I think she was asking for help in a roundabout way. You were a good friend to notify her parents and school officials. Hopefully, she will get help soon.

Answer 7

Well first of all I would have taken this very seriously. Your friend definatly need immediate help! You should tell and keep telling till people listen. You may have saved her from doing something stupid. It is better to try to help her. I would have handled it the same way. And as for betraying the friends trust---which is worse? Telling and getting her help, or living with the possible outcome if you didn't tell and she hurt others and herself. You did the right thing!!!

Answer 8

The first thing you want to do is breath, relax and take this conversation seriously.
A person who confesses these kind of thoughts and feelings must be talked to at length in order to judge the degree of seriousness. Why, when, how, where, to whom, etc. This information must be passed on immediately to people in-charge: police, parents, adults, leaders, counselors, etc.
People who talk about this issues, might be asking unconsciously for help!! And it is the listeners responsibility -the right thing to do - to provide this help by alerting someone, that your 'friend' wants to end her life. In these kinds of situations, there is no such thing as betrayal of trust, for your responsibilities to your friend, that is confessing to you this suicidal plan, is to protect her life. Your civic and moral responsibility, as well, is to protect your community by alerting others that your friend has told you that she has plans to attempt to murder other people. If the friend told the parents and school officials, about this plot, it is very likely that the friend saved her life and gave her a chance to grow beyond the confusion and pain that adolescence can sometimes be. I am very sure that your best friend future husband and children would have agreed that you did the right thing by telling someone. Do the right thing! Face your fears!! Otherwise people will die!

Three steps teens can take

1. Take your friend’s actions seriously
2. Encourage your friend to seek professional help, accompany if necessary
3. Talk to an adult you trust. Don’t be alone in helping your friend.

Answer 9

Are you kidding me??? Betray her trust? No way!! She wanted you to tell somebody.... that is why she told you. It is a complete cry for help. Now, by telling, she will get the help she needs. All because of you-- as her friend-- cared enough to say something. Good work. Even if she can't see that you were helping her now, someday she will. Congrats for taking action. Some people wouldn't because they don't want to betray trust.. I think she couldn't have a more true friend then you for helping her out.

Answer 10

killing herself is one thing but harming others police an school officials an parents must be told

I would have called the cops instantly an told school officials as soon as I could an told my own parents which would tell the persons parents no trust was betrayed