Not all countries have doctors who are slaves to insurance companies, haha!

And I have nothing but sympathy and support for women who find themselves in such a hole that prostitution seems their only way out. It's the men who exploit that desperation that I have issue with.

I don't see how you could put prostitution on to that list given that it's unregulated and illegal in most counties, meaning rates of suicide amongst them couldn't be recorded. Especially when factoring in the amounts that are killed by pimps or punters, or die from alcohol and drug related issues, danger to prostitutes is far higher than any other 'occupation'. It's why police refer to them as high risk targets. Most violence against prostitutes isn't even reported, let alone recorded on a top ten list.

I've read interviews with 'Belle de Jour" who wrote secret diary of a call girl based on her own experiences. She readily admitted that she enjoyed her work but also made it clear she was a clear exception and that the vast majority of the girls she worked with (all high class escorts) hated what they did but needed the money to fund things like tuition fees and other such things. Most ended up self-medicating to get through what they had to force themselves to do.

My friend worked at a brothel for a year and had she not had a young son to support she wouldn't have done it. I sat with her crying her eyes out with humiliation over what she had had to force herself to do, but she continued to do it as she needed to provide for her son and she had no family to support her. She still hates herself for what she did and that was nearly 20 years ago. The psychological toll cannot be ignored, even to those who chose to do it.

All very good points, Beth.
Very good points.

Your helped me realize that in my initial post I was thinking of "high end" escorts, those who make a lot of money. I was not referring to the condition of the women that you described. Glad I was given the opportunity to define my own thinking and to post a correction here.

Always about the "high end" escorts, I do believe that they like most of their work because they make a lot of money. I found a few months ago the list below (US) called Highest Suicide Rate by Profession. The section about women is below the list for men. It is interesting that prostitutes do not appear on the list. But physicians, dentists, chiros, are at the top. Between you and me Beth, I find being a high end prostitute much less disgusting than being a physician. Both do it for the money. Physicians would not work without being very well paid (of course there are exceptions like Medecins Sans Frontieres and many at the local level):

Highest Suicide Rate by Profession
http://www.newhealthguide.org/Highest-Suicide-Rate-By-Profession.html

18 Professions Where People Most Likely To Kill Themselves (White Men):

Data for white males is the primary focus because of the high demographical representation of white males.

Times More Likely to Commit Suicide than Average

Physicians

1.87 times

Dentists

1.67 times

Veterinarians

1.54 times

Finance workers

1.51 times

Chiropractors

1.50 times

Heavy construction operators

1.46

Urban planners

1.43 times

Hand molders

1.39 times

Sellers of real estate

1.38

Assemblers of electrical equipments

1.36

Lawyers

1.33 times

Lathe operators

1.33 times

Farm managers

1.32 times

Operators of heat treating equipments

1.32 times

Electricians

1.31 times

Precision woodworkers

1.3 times

Pharmacists

1.29 times

Natural scientists

1.28 times

White Women:
• Among white women, physicians are at the highest risk as discussed previously. The rate is 2.78 higher when compared to non- physician general population.
• Likewise, sales related jobs are equally stressful with male dominance and sexual harassment issues leading to a higher rate of 2.43 when compared to general population.
• The third highest risky profession that is associated with suicide is women in law enforcement agencies (detectives and police), with a rate of 2.03 times than that of general population.

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Not related to the topic above, but just in case some of you are interested, here are some stats (US) about the professions that have the most psychopaths (notice the surgeons):

http://time.com/32647/which-professions-have-the-most-psychopaths-the-fewest/?hpt=hp_t3 by Eric Barker

The Most:
• CEO
• Lawyer
• Media (TV/Radio)
• Salesperson
• Surgeon
• Journalist
• Police Officer
• Clergyperson
• Chef
• Civil Servant

There are some expensive prostitutes (escorts) who love what they do.