Suicide Awareness Month
Written by: Paige Blayne, Advanced Clinical Intern
September is Suicide Awareness Month. This month, we can take a step back to acknowledge how we can better help those struggling with suicidal thoughts. It is important to recognize that people experiencing these thoughts may be at the lowest points of their lives. You may be asking yourself, “What can I do to help?” The answer is, be kind, compassionate, and if the situation calls for it, get help for yourself or someone you know that may be experiencing suicidal thoughts. These thoughts can happen to anyone, regardless of what is going on in their life.
What is suicide awareness?
Suicide Awareness is a time to raise awareness and consciousness regarding the topic of suicide. Conversations around suicide are often kept behind closed doors, which means that many people feel shame, fear, and confusion when they experience thoughts of suicide. Bringing awareness to the topic of suicide lessens the stigma surrounding it by creating an open dialogue about it.
Opening this dialogue is important because it can shift public perception of those experiencing suicidal thoughts, spread hope, and share information to friends, families, and individuals about resources, coping, and suicide prevention (NAMI, 2022).
What should I do if myself or someone I know is experiencing suicidal thoughts?
Thoughts like this can be scary to experience. Firstly, remember that you are not alone. If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can get help. Reach out to friends, family members, or loved ones for support. Recognize warning signs in yourself or others and get help or help others to do so. Seek help through therapy or other forms of mental health treatment interventions. Join a support group. Try to engage in meaningful self-care practices every day. There are resources at the end of this post that further detail resources and hotlines for coping with and healing from suicidal thoughts. Remember, if it is an emergency, call 911 or a crisis hotline.
How do you work with clients experiencing suicidal thoughts?
When engaging with clients experiencing suicidal thoughts, it is important to treat them with kindness and compassion. These clients are likely undergoing one of the most difficult times of their lives, sometimes without others knowing. In working with these clients, teaching coping and problem-solving skills, teaching better relationship and parenting techniques, and employing crisis intervention skills are useful tactics (CDC, 2022). In addition to these techniques, building a safe space for the client to work through these thoughts is deeply necessary. Suicidal clients need a validating and unconditionally kind relationship with their therapist, a relationship wherein the therapist emphasizes the client’s power and autonomy to seek help (GoodTherapy, 2021). A critical piece of working with suicidal clients is to be present and allow them to talk about their feelings in a nonjudgmental space. It must also be noted that working with suicidal clients must include assessment of risk, safety, access to weapons/methods of suicide, support systems, access to proper care, and planning. Helping clients to engage in treatment, creating a collaborative plan for treatment, seeing clients more frequently in treatment, active listening, identifying the current crisis, establishing treatment goals, following up with clients who do not engage in therapy, making a list of how to manage suicidal thoughts, and making a list of what to do instead of attempting suicide are some useful strategies when attempting to reduce suicide risk (GoodTherapy, 2021).
Resources & Hotlines
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Call 800-273-TALK (8255) or visit www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org
For Spanish speakers using the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 888-628-9454
Crisis Text Line (text-only service): Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor, or visit www.crisistextline.org
988 Mental Health Crisis Line: Call or text 988 to connect with a trained Crisis counselor.
U.S. Veterans Crisis Hotline: 800-273-8255, press 1 or text 838255
Teen Hotline: 310-855-4673
Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
Trevor Project: 866-488-7386 or text START to 678-678
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, July 5). Prevention strategies. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/prevention/index.html
Miller, G. (2021, May 28). Thinking about suicide? help is available here. Psych Central.
Retrieved September 7, 2022, from
https://psychcentral.com/lib/suicide-prevention-hotline-number?slot_pos=2&utm_term=feature& utm_source=Sailthru+Email&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=generalhealth&utm_content=2022-09-07&apid=32888090&rvid=c8b5f8750dbc010ef074915122c26e9cda510aa070e99b6b3 16dd6f302b6a782
Suicide prevention awareness month (SPAM). NAMI. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Awareness-Events/Suicide-Prevention-Awareness-Month-(S PAM)
Suicide prevention: Resources and awareness. SAVE. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://save.org/about-suicide/preventing-suicide/
Team, G. T. E. (2019, November 9). 3 elements of therapy that can help a client move beyond suicidality. GoodTherapy. Retrieved September 7, 2022, from
https://www.goodtherapy.org/for-professionals/personal-development/therapeutic-alliance/article/building-therapeutic-relationship-when-suicidality-is-present
