September is Suicide Awareness Month
Greensburg Daily NewsSep 07, 2018
"A conversation about depression or suicide is going to be difficult, but you can have it without putting a young person at risk and it can be very helpful,"
According to suicide prevention experts, asking a child directly about suicidal thoughts is usually the best thing a parent can do to help their child open up about their emotions. Even if their child is not struggling with suicide or depression, parents can model for their child that it is good to talk about serious emotional concerns with trusted adults and important to reach out to friends to have these conversations, too.
According to
The Symptoms
All current research suggests that there is usually not just one thing that compels someone to feel suicidal. In many cases, it is a combination of emotions and situations that lead to a person feeling like there is no other escape available. The normal feelings of pain, loneliness, rejection, guilt, depression, frustration and helplessness, among others, can deepen until a suicidal person is hurting so badly they just want the pain to end by any means necessary.
"This is a conversation that saves lives," said
North Decatur High School Guidance Counselor
"I'm not sure if it's because they always have their phones in their hands and never take time for themselves, or if it's because, with the whole world of knowledge at their fingertips, they never take time to unplug,'" she said. "I know our policy is always that when we hear a student threatening to kill themselves, we have to, as educators, call the parents and investigate. You never know if it's just for attention or they're very serious. I truly think that in this very busy world we live in, and with as hard as we push students to perform better, they simply don't take time in the evenings to sit and take time to register everything that's gone on in their day."
Tips for parents and families in dealing with the threat of suicide include:
--Do not wait for a crisis. A good opportunity to talk about suicide or mental health issues is when things are going well.
--Check in regularly and ask your child directly how they are doing and if they have ever had thoughts about ending their life.
--Look for changes in mood or behavior that might be a warning sign that something is wrong. For example, if the child seems really down, they stop doing things they normally enjoy, or you notice significant changes in eating or sleeping.
Suicide in Adults
"One of the things I tell people all the time when I hear, 'I don't know anyone touched by suicide,' is to remember the game Six Degrees of
Many young people who have attempted suicide have said that in the depths of their depression, it felt as if circumstances had always been that way and always would be. This leads to insurmountable feelings of hopelessness.
When one's thoughts get so negative about themselves or their situation, it can be difficult to find a reason to live. They may begin to think that their problems are unsolvable or feel completely out of control. For many, the fear of the unknown is outweighed by the fear of living with their pain for the rest of their lives.
"Life is tough and it gets tougher every day," Maxwell said. "There are so many stressors for young people in everyday life nowadays."
Centerstone, a local mental health service provider, has a crisis line open 24 hours a day at 800-832-5442. Also, Celebrate Recovery is a Christ-centered confidential recovery program in
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