Frequency of Alexithymia and its Correlates among Patients with Attempted Suicide: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Alexithymia has been linked to various psychiatric conditions, including suicidality. However, its relationship with suicide intent in India remains underexplored. Aims: To assess the frequency of alexithymia, its domains and its correlates among patients with attempted suicide. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 40 medically stable patients with attempted suicide aged 18–65 years admitted to a tertiary care hospital. Alexithymia was assessed using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20), suicide intent using Beck’s Suicide Intent Scale, and depression, anxiety, and stress using DASS-21. Results: Alexithymia was present in 40% of the sample. 62.5%, 68.75%, 25% of alexithymic suicide attempters had depressive symptoms, were under stress and had anxiety symptoms respectively. The highest scores were seen in the domain of difficulty describing feelings. Alexithymia did not correlate significantly with suicide intent ( p = 0.71), depression ( p = 0.66), or anxiety ( p =0.557), but showed a significant positive correlation with stress ( p = 0.004). Conclusion: Alexithymia was present in 40% of suicide attempters, who also had a higher frequency of depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms. There was a prominent difficulty in the domain of describing feelings. Alexithymia severity correlated significantly with stress but not with the severity of suicidal intent.