Persistent and long-lasting physical health conditions, pain, and sleep disruption are important risk factors for suicide, and is an independent risk factor for suicidality.
While pain serves a short-term protective function that resolves with healing, when pain persists for three or more months it moves to a condition that has no benefit but also impacts a person's ability to work, move, sleep, enjoy social or family time and can cause emotional distress. People living with Chronic Pain may also experience stigma and judgement, sometimes from within the health system itself. Combined this can lead to a loss of hope and despair, especially when it can take a long time to diagnose, with 49% of Australian 18–24-year-olds living with chronic pain reporting suicidal thoughts, and 12% having attempted to take their lives.