...The taking of one’s life whether intentionally or through one’s own reckless actions is a tragedy. All victims, young and old, deserve our sympathy. Unfortunately, as a society we do not deal this compassion out equally. There is a hierarchy of empathy that has resulted in an unequal provision of care to those who subsequently die through their own actions. Those who gain most sympathy are the men and women who go on to take their life having had a clear and unambiguous intention to die by their own actions. Usually, they take their own lives as they feel a deep depression and hopeless about their prospects for happiness. This person can come from any background or class. By contrast, those to whom we mete out the least sympathy are those who act recklessly by taking an overdose of drugs, aware that it may result in their loss of life, but not actively seeking to die. Usually, they also feel a deep depression and hopeless about their future prospects for happiness. This person usually comes from a background of poverty and (in the US) is more likely to be black.1 In 2020 there were 5224 deaths in England and Wales due to suicide. This represented a rate of 100 deaths per million of the population.2 In the same year there were 2990 registered poisoning deaths related to drug misuse which represented a rate of 52.3 deaths per million....