Man commits suicide in off-campus apt.

A West Philadelphia man committed suicide last night in an off-campus apartment at 40th and Chestnut streets, according to University Police Sergeant Keith Christian. University Police received a report of the suicide at about 8:55 p.m. from Philadelphia Police, who responded to the scene. Although the person was not a student and was not affiliated with the University, his roommates are students, Christian said. Victim Support and Special Services was notified and responded to take a confidential report. Although information about the conditions of the suicide is sketchy, a University Police officer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said he heard the person had hung himself. According to a guest column written in 1992 by Sari Fogel, a staff psychiatrist for the Student Health Service, some behaviors which are often signs that someone is considering suicide are: ·Avoidance of friends and family and a progressive tendency toward isolation; ·Any marked change in behavior such as sleeping more or less than usual, serious appetite change, loss of interest in school or sudden shifts from depression to relief; ·Engaging in risky behavior or expressing indifference about such risks, for example, going out alone late at night, driving recklessly or not paying attention to personal safety; ·Increasing abuse of drugs, alcohol and/or food. Often people use substances in attempts to deal with their pain; and ·Sense of despair, talking about the meaningless of life, seeing no hope for change in the future, talking about death and suicide as the only option, and giving one's possessions away or settling one's accounts.

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