Marin County reports decline in suicides
Marin Independent JournalSep 22, 2022
Sep. 22—More than two years after
Mental health officials are hesitant to assign a cause for the improvement.
"Locally, we've observed decreasing rates of suicide in the past five years, and we're focused on our goal of zero suicides in
Schirmer provided supervisors last week with an annual report on the progress made in addressing suicide. The effort to create the plan was launched after three
In 2018,
The county recorded 34 suicides in 2020, and in 2021, the most recent full year for which data are available, there were 29. However, the number of suicides in the county dropped more dramatically before the county plan was adopted, falling from 46 in 2019.
Prior to that, the number of suicides in
"I don't have any thoughts on why the overall trend is declining," Schirmer said.
One thing that hasn't changed since the county plan was approved: White men between the ages of 40 and 69 remain the
According to the county's public health office, men accounted for 77% of the suicides in
Ninety-two of the 109 people who committed suicide in
Half of suicides in
The data on
As part of its effort to address suicide, the county has formed eight "community action teams." Each specializes in an area such as schools, data, communications, "men and boys" and "postvention."
"We are seeing higher rates of death by suicide for middle-aged and older men," Schirmer said. "That is the reason that we have an action team specifically focused on men and boys."
Schirmer said the purpose of the men-and-boys team is to raise public awareness of the risk to this group; to develop structures for people to ask for support; and to provide peer support.
"My remedy to that is to break down isolation and build a support system," Casey said. "If you don't have one, start working on one, whether it is family or friends."
The men-and-boys team is planning a hike at
A community guide to suicide prevention and support that the county recently published, titled "From Compassion to Action," states that cultural, social and religious beliefs can prevent people at risk for suicide from seeking help.
"Social and cultural influences can impact beliefs about what it means to 'be a man,' contributing to disproportionate risk among military members and veterans, and men and boys across the lifespan," the booklet says.
"We know that racism and discrimination are risk factors for suicide, and increased rates of suicide among marginalized groups highlights the role that inequities and systemic oppression play in a person's life," it says.
According to the public health office, White residents in
Black residents accounted for 3.8% of the suicides during this period while comprising 2.1% of the county's population. Latino residents accounted for 8.5% during those three years while accounting for about 16% of the county's population. Asian and Pacific Islander residents accounted for less than 1% while comprising 5.7% of the county.
The "postvention" team gets its name from a word coined by the American psychologist
Two
"This work has been life-saving for me," said
"I couldn't imagine my life beyond my next breath," Balestreri said. "What I really needed the most was to find someone who had suffered the same type of loss. I knew there was a language we shared that no one else understood."
"I'm motivated today by helping others in their journey and speaking openly about suicide loss," Balestreri said.
The
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