Lithuania has the highest suicide rate in Europe and Darius Linkevicius, a wood cutter with a wife and three children, can understand why.
"Suicide seems to be a way out of all the problems. You are gone and there is no need to think about them," he said.
"I have been thinking about committing suicide but only when drunk, never when sober."
High suicide rates are one of the painful social issues for the Baltic states of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia which joined the European Union in 2004 after the Soviet Union's collapse.
Beyond the impressive economic growth and transformation of their capitals from drab cities into tourist attractions is a world of hardship for large swathes of the population.
Pensioners struggle to survive, healthcare facilities are often poor and cases of tuberculosis, a disease often associated with poverty, are far above the EU average.
Tens of thousands of Latvians and Lithuanians have emigrated to seek higher wages and a better life: others seek a more final way out.
The suicide rate in Lithuania was 30 people per 100,000 in 2006, with men most at risk. In neighbouring Latvia the rate was 21.4, according to official data.
Suicide is particularly prevalent in rural communities where unemployment rose following the dissolution of Soviet era collective farms. In wood cutter Linkevicius's district of Varena the toll was 71.9 per 100,000.
People lack the necessary education and professional skills, or are too old to adapt to new realities, and the state has put too little effort in helping them, experts say. In desperation, many turn to alcohol, fuelling their feelings of hopelessness.
PICTURESQUE COUNTRYSIDE
Varena is a picturesque area of forest and lake where life is tough.
