Being suicidal may include:

• Thoughts
• Plans
• Threats
• Self-Injury
• Suicide attempts
• Deciding when to kill oneself
• An attempt means trying to kill oneself, but not dying as a result

Although suicidal feelings are almost always a reaction to emotional distress, they can develop and manifest in a variety of ways

• Covertly: The person may not be consciously aware of suicidal feelings, but may be behaving in ways that put his/her life at risk.
• Overtly: The person spends hours thinking about dying and expends a lot of energy developing plans, gathering supplies, and making preparations.
• Impulsively: The person may never think seriously about suicide until his/her feelings suddenly become overwhelming and the pain is too much to manage.