If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available 24 hours a day. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
Months of work, late nights and careful negotiation can come undone in a single phone call. A buyer walks away. A funding round dissolves. A company that someone spent a decade building has to close its doors. For the leader at the center, the loss can feel personal and public at once.
Setbacks like these are painful for anyone. For a person already living with depression, they can add weight to something that was quietly heavy before. The event does not explain everything, and it is never the whole story behind suicidal thoughts. But it can be the moment when a long struggle becomes harder to hide.
Why business loss can hit so deeply
Founders and executives often tie their identity closely to their work. When the work fails, it can feel as though they have failed as people. There may be employees to tell, investors to call, and a spouse who sacrificed alongside them. Shame and guilt can pile up quickly.
A composite example: a founder in his late thirties whose company shuts down might keep a brave face for the staff, help everyone find new jobs, and then go home and sit in the dark for hours. He may start thinking his family would be better off without him. That thought is a symptom of depression and a sign he needs care, not a conclusion he should trust.
Signs to watch in the weeks after
- Repeated talk about having let everyone down or being worthless
- Not sleeping, or sleeping most of the day
- Drinking more, or taking unusual risks with money or driving
- Cutting off contact with friends, mentors or former colleagues
- Saying there is no point in trying again, or no future worth having
- Giving away possessions or getting affairs in order
These signs can appear right away or weeks later, after the immediate scramble is over and things go quiet. Former employees, cofounders and investors may be grieving the loss too, which can make it harder for anyone to notice the person who led it.
What friends and partners can say
If someone you care about has just been through a business collapse, do not assume they are fine because they seem busy. Find a private moment and ask: "This has been brutal. Are you having any thoughts of suicide?" Plain words leave room for a plain answer.
If they say yes, stay with them, listen, and help them call or text 988. Should the danger seem immediate, call 911. It can also help to have any firearms held by someone outside the home for a while and medications stored securely.
Understanding one treatment option
A clinician evaluating a leader through a stretch like this may discuss Spravato. Spravato (esketamine) is a nasal spray the FDA has approved, taken along with an oral antidepressant, to treat depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder who have acute suicidal thoughts or behavior. It is also approved for treatment-resistant depression. It is not a crisis treatment: it does not replace emergency care or a hospital stay when one is needed, and it has not been shown to prevent suicide or to reduce suicidal thoughts or behavior. It is given only in a certified clinic under a safety program called the Spravato REMS. The patient takes it there under supervision, stays at least two hours to be monitored, and does not drive until the next day after a full night of sleep. It is never dispensed for home use. Whether it fits is a clinician's decision after an evaluation.
Life after a loss
A failed deal or closed company is a real loss, and grief is a normal response to it. Depression with suicidal thoughts is something more. It is treatable, and recovery from it is possible.
Once the noise of the collapse dies down, there is room for one quieter conversation. Many clinics that offer this kind of care provide a free 30-minute consultation, where you can explain what happened and ask whether a full evaluation would be useful. A sibling or old friend is welcome to come too.
If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available 24 hours a day. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.