Suicide Prevention

"If love were enough to stop someone from hurting themselves, suicides would hardly happen." Sue Klebold - Mother of Columbine shooter

So How Do We Prevent Suicide?

Suicide is a complicated subject. But it is also surmountable.

I recently heard a professional - in her 30's, nice job, has kids, a husband, house, and dog - share she struggles with suicidal ideation (thoughts) on a regular basis and just two months ago went through a serious battle with it - again.

She said, "But I beat the darn thing!"

I love that!

"But I beat the darn thing" processed through my mind so many times since then. I want to track her down again and ask, "How did you beat it?" But it sure wouldn't be the first time I asked a person that question. I ask it over and over again. It's my own personal research. A lot of top-notch university research exists on suicide as well - its prevention, suicidal ideation, after-attempt recovery, and family/friend survivorship (postvention). We'll share links to that information here. And we'll share important local resources too.

But some people cannot wrap their minds around the idea of taking their own life and can't fathom why anyone would do it. Rejoice!! That's wonderful!!! But empathy and understanding can go a long way toward prevention, and EVERYONE has the power to reduce the numbers of suicides by talking about it and raising awareness. I think one of my favorite and clearest ways to explain suicidal ideation to someone who has never struggled with it is explained by Georgia Survivors (https://www.span-ga.org/) as follows ...

To read the complete presentation, click on the PDF below ...

SUICIDE PREVENTION

One of our favorite tools for Suicide Prevention is our QPR class. QPR stands for Question, Persuade, Refer. It's a one hour class we teach on Zoom or in person.

Question, Persuade, and Refer — the 3 simple steps anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. Each year thousands of Americans, like you, are saying "Yes" to saving the life of a friend, colleague, sibling, or neighbor. QPR can be learned in our Gatekeeper course in as little as one hour.

If you would like to join us for a QPR class or host one at your place of work, your living room, or your church, contact us, and we'll make it happen. Follow us on our Facebook page where we always post our upcoming classes. https://www.facebook.com/FamilyMentalHealthPromotion

Watch the video below to find out more about our local QPR class ...

Shareable video link for above QPR video https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/749751192

There is so much information about suicide prevention, etc. written by national organizations. We'll list some of those for you below. But first, let's concentrate on some local help and support ...