PERSPECTIVE published: 01 July 2022 doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.894524 Edited by: Christos Theleritis, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece Reviewed by: Marinos Kyriakopoulos, King’s College London, United Kingdom Florian Riese, University of Zurich, Switzerland *Correspondence: Sheikh Shoib Sheikhshoib22@Gmail.com orcid.org/0000-0002-3739-706X Fahimeh Saeed Fa.saeed@uswr.ac.ir orcid.org/0000-0002-0214-3887 Specialty section: This article was submitted to Public Mental Health, a section of the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry Received: 11 March 2022 Accepted: 09 June 2022 Published: 01 July 2022 Citation: Shoib S, Chandradasa M, Saeed F, Armiya’u AY, Roza TH, Ori D, Jakhar J, Rodrigues-Silva N and Banerjee D (2022) Suicide, Stigma and COVID-19: A Call for Action From Low and Middle Income Countries. Front. Psychiatry 13:894524. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.894524 Suicide, Stigma and COVID-19: A Call for Action From Low and Middle Income Countries Sheikh Shoib 1 * , Miyuru Chandradasa 2 , Fahimeh Saeed 3 * , Aishatu Yusha’u Armiya’u 4 , Thiago Henrique Roza 5 , Dorottya Ori 6,7 , Jitender Jakhar 8 , Nuno Rodrigues-Silva 9,10 and Debanjan Banerjee 11 1 Department of Psychiatry, Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Hospital, Kashmir, India, 2 Department of Psychiatry, University of Kelaniya, Ragama, Sri Lanka, 3 Department of Psychiatry, Psychosis Research Center, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran, 4 Department of Psychiatry, College of Medical Sciences, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Nigeria, 5 Department of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil, 6 Department of Mental Health, Heim Pal National Pediatric Institute, Budapest, Hungary, 7 Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary, 8 Fortis Hospital, New Delhi, India, 9 Mental Health Unit, Hospital School of the University Fernando Pessoa, Gondomar, Portugal, 10 Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal, 11 Consultant Geriatric Psychiatrist, APOLLO Multispecialty Hospitals, Kolkata, India Suicide is a global health issue that needs to be addressed. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an increased mental health burden. Stigma has obstructed efforts to prevent suicide as individuals who need urgent support do not seek appropriate help. The influence of stigma is likely to grow in tandem with the COVID-19 pandemic. The stigmatization of persons with mental illnesses is widespread worldwide, and it has substantial effects on both the individual and society. Our viewpoints aim to address the probable link between stigma and suicide in the wake of the current pandemic and propose ideas for reducing suicide-related stigma. Keywords: suicide, stigma, COVID-19, mental health, psychiatry INTRODUCTION Suicide is one of the leading causes of death globally, with this trend being more pronounced in younger people and low and middle income countries (LMIC). According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), over 77% of suicide deaths worldwide occur in LMIC, with more than 700,000 suicide deaths reported in 2019 and 173,347 in India alone (1). Suicide is thus considered a global public health concern. COVID-19 pandemic was the most pressing issue faced in the 2020–2022 period, and it had a detrimental effect on communities, including patients and healthcare workers. Pandemics are not just medical experiences; they cause interference in nearly all biopsychosocial dimensions. According to the WHO, until May 18, 2022, there have been approximately 523 million confirmed cases of COVID-19, and the disease has caused the death of more than 6.27 million people worldwide. LMICs have suffered more intensely with the pandemic, accounting for many cases and deaths. For instance, the death count in Brazil surpassed 665,000 and 325,000 in Mexico; in India, the number is approximately 520,000, and in Iran, more than 141,000 have died due to COVID- 19 (2). In addition to the impact of the virus on the mental health of affected populations, social distancing, quarantine and other similar measures used to control the spread of the virus also Frontiers in Psychiatry | www.frontiersin.org 1 July 2022 | Volume 13 | Article 894524