8yr old son with intrusive thoughts

[neenienana]

My son has confided in me that he has lots of intrusive thoughts and has expressed a wish to commit suicide on two occasions now. I have spoken to the senco and she has given me some tips, ie writing thoughts down and posting in a box. I have'nt tried them yet but intend to try it tonight with him. I have also ordered a workbook called shrinking the anxiety gremlin. I was wondering if anyone else had experience of this and whether I should be going to gp now which the senco said was the next port of call.

I don't have any experience of this, but I was a primary TA / helper for twenty years, and some children can imagine all sorts of things that might surprise adults.

That is good that he has told you, and it must have been quite difficult for him.

But what could have triggered this? 8 yr olds don't usually know much about death or suicide. Has he been exposed to any unsuitable TV, video games, stories etc? Not at home probably, but could it have been at someone else's house? Does he have siblings, or older friends, who might have access to computer or phone sites?

I guess play it down as much as possible, but give him full support if he does talk about it again.

If my 8yo expressed suicidal thoughts I would go to GP and ask for a referal to a private psychiatrist. I would certainly not play it down but take it very seriously.
What are the intrusive thoughts exactly?
Whatever caused it, it is a cry for help.

This sounds tough. How are his friendships and relationship with siblings?
Have you spoken to the school to find out if anything is going on there, bullying would be the most obvious but it could be more subtle, like not feeling good enough, or cyber bullying. Did anything change in his life / routine recently? Do you feel like you can talk to him, in a way that makes him feel like there is someone looking out for him and his interests?

I would also consult the GP, as melli has said. .
Definitely take it seriously but not necessarily literally.

Is he actually having suicidal thoughts (e.g. wanting to kill die), or are the intrusive thoughts related to suicide? There's a big difference - the first indicates depression with anxiety, and the second indicates OCD.

If it is the latter, I've copied and pasted some info for you;

'Suicide obsessions are a specific category of suicidal thoughts that are unique to individuals with OCD. If you’ve read my previous posts on harm obsessions, you might conceptualize suicide obsessions as aggressive obsessions directed inward. Suicide obsessions involve repetitive, unwanted thoughts of suicide that cause severe distress. In contrast to other types of suicidal thoughts, suicide obsessions are symptoms of OCD that do not reflect a “true” intention to kill or harm oneself but rather reflect a repetitive thought loop that gets stuck.
Suicide obsessions can occur spontaneously, seemingly out of nowhere, or may be triggered by unpleasant (or even pleasant!) activities. These repeated, unwanted thoughts about death, suicide, or self-harm may occur many times throughout the day.'

'Suicide Obsessions & Self-Harm Obsessions

Here are some common examples of suicide and self-harm obsessions.
Fear of committing suicide in the absence of a desire to do so (e.g., fear of slitting your wrists, hanging yourself, or overdosing on medications).
Fear of becoming depressed and then feeling compelled to commit suicide.
Fear of jumping off of a building or another high place.
Fear of stepping out into oncoming traffic and being hit by a car.
Fear of jumping in front of an oncoming train or subway.
Fear of sticking your head in a hot oven.
Fear of putting your hand in a blender and turning it on.
Fear of grabbing ahold of a hot pan or stove burner.
Fear of putting your arm down the garbage disposal and turning it on.
Fear of driving off bridges or intentionally crashing head-on into other vehicles.
Fear of intentionally disfiguring your face with a curling iron.
Fear of intentionally crushing your car or yourself under the garage door.
Fear of losing control and intentionally blinding yourself.
Fear of mutilating yourself in other ways listed above.'

If the above does not apply, ignore me, but thought it was worth putting out there. x

He has expressed a desire to commit suicide as a way of stopping the thoughts. We have moved house recently and my dad's dog died last wk. I dont think he is being bullied and he does have some good friends but there have been incidences invthe classroom and playground where he has felt kids ganging up onvhim over silly things. I am not sure about where he got the ideas of suicide from. I always monitor what he and his brother are doing online. His brother is 10 and they do fight a lot, he often feels like his brother is putting him down.

Yes spoken to school and senco has been brilliant. She is going to arrange meeting with someone from cahms and sort out some play therapy.