Experts Shed Light on Suicide
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
The 2015 Indiana Suicide Conference at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center, Grace College, broke attendance records with over 300 registered participants, according to officials there.
The day-long event – with the theme “Journey From Hopelessness to Health” – featured two keynote speakers, an intervention panel presentation and nine break out sessions.
The break out sessions covered a variety of topics from an innovative application of three energy psychology techniques called The Phoenix Protocol, to a workshop on the Question, Persuade and Refer steps and serving specific at-risk groups like the transgender population and law enforcement.
Suicide Prevention Social Media Chat (#SPSM) co-founders Tony Wood and Dr. April Foreman led the workshop on “Suicide Prevention and Social Media.”
In an interview before the workshop, Foreman said, “Suicide prevention is a really niche specialty in mental health, and this is really unfortunate that this is a small community because suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. It’s one of the leading causes of death in the world. For young women, like ages 15 to 19, it is the leading cause of death in the world. Yet, there’s only a few people in the world who know much about it. Additionally, we have all these sort of different stakeholders in suicide prevention that are in the same profession – so primary care, law enforcement, pharmacists, psychologists, school people, legislatures, crisis workers, and they all really care about this but they don’t often talk to each other.”
She said she and Wood think there is a “lot of hope and promise” in media technology for identifying people at risk and help get them resources, or help spread resources to policy makers and people who make a difference, like the people at Thursday’s conference.
“So we use the Suicide Prevention Social Media Chat to get all the stakeholders to the table, sharing what they know, as quickly as they can, and we create really good digital content that people can spread to their networks,” Foreman said.
SPSM uses social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Periscope and Twitter.
“If there’s a social media tool, I’m trying to figure out how to use it to save someone’s life,” she said.
While in Indiana at Thursday’s conference, Foreman said she’s talking about using media but she’s also using media to share the conference with others.
“All of our content gets archived. It’s shareable, it’s saveable, you could put it on your Facebook page – all of that stuff. So that’s what I’m doing,” she said.
Foreman added that anyone interested in suicide prevention should follow her and SPSM on social media.
“I have a fairly large Twitter following and I have a few Facebook friends. But, you know, if you’re really interested in innovative mental health; if you’re interested in suicide prevention; if you want to meet the best experts in this field and want to figure out how to learn and grow from them; if you have really great ideas; if you’re a person with lived experience – you attempted suicide and survived – come join us! We believe we have some options that can save lives and we would love for you to be a part of that.”
Lisa Brattain, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Indiana/Ohio director, moderated the Intervention Panel. It included Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Dept. Lt. Sam Preston, a hostage and crisis negotiator; Dr. Siquilla Liebetrau, Bowen Center staff psychologist; Dr. Phil Rodgers, a keynote speaker and LivingWorks Education vice president of design, development and evaluation; and Kayla Hands, a high school suicide attempt survivor and suicide prevention activist.
Rodgers commented on efforts to increase conversations about suicide and bring it out of the darkness: “Suicide has so much stigma attached to it, it’s something we don’t talk about very much. So having a dialogue about suicide is critical and in that way we reduce the stigma around suicide.”
Teens need to know they have someone looking out for them, Hands said.
When Brattain asked what an effective intervention looks like, Liebetrau said, “I think the most important part is the fact that you are a human connection. You are an ear to listen. ... You’re a human being so you can lend an ear. You have a heart, you can give hope to the person. So in that perspective, we’re the same. As long as you can be there for the person, as long as you can notice that they’re struggling and you’re willing to listen and sit there with them, I think that’s the number one thing. That’s the biggest thing anyone can do.”
Preston said his department’s peer support team listens but cannot offer advice because they’re not clinicians. Sometimes they may reframe what the person said so they can think about their problem in a way they haven’t before, he said.
Brattain asked about signs a person may be suicidal and what questions to ask. There is no single formula, Liebetrau answered, and prevention might look different for everyone. She said if you suspect someone is suicidal, you should “absolutely” ask and be very direct about it and don’t dance around the question.
“If someone is talking about suicide, it’s probably the greatest warning sign,” Rodgers said. “... We need to ask directly, not passively.”
Hands said when she’s been suicidal, she had a loss of appetite, couldn’t sleep and felt numb or empty. Others may have a complete sense of hopelessness, talk about suicide or give their stuff away.
“Definitely don’t be afraid to ask the question, ‘Are you feeling suicidal?’” Hands said.
Brattain asked how personal biases about suicide might affect an intervention. Liebetrau said your preconceived notions definitely show when you’re talking to somebody, and if a person is uncomfortable talking about suicide, it will show. The person will be able to pick up on that and “they’ll just not go there.”
“You have to just get yourself comfortable with being able to ask the questions, and get comfortable with the fact that you can make a difference with the individual sitting in front of you,” she continued.
Rodgers added, “Get yourself comfortable. It is something that is very uncomfortable with people. Understanding you’re uncomfortable with it really is the first step in recognizing that and being more able to intervene.”
When calling law enforcement for a suicidal subject, Preston said to give as much information to dispatchers as possible, including the person’s diagnosis, if weapons are involved and what kind of medication the person may be on.
“It’s just important that we get every piece of information because it helps us make a more thorough assessment,” Preston said.
If a person says they’re going to use medication to end their life, Liebetrau said that medication should be removed from them. The same applies to a gun or other means of hurting themselves.
WNDU Channel 16 News Anchor Tricia Sloma remarked that news media are encouraged not to report suicide, and asked, “How can we do a better job? We know we can do a better job in reporting suicide and trying to diminish the stigma about it.”
Rodgers warned not to sensationalize a suicide or discuss the means, but to talk about prevention. Hands said it is a good idea to report suicides, but it should be followed up with something more uplifting and about suicide prevention.
“It’s just all about how you word it,” she said. “Glorify a person’s life, tell about all the good things they’ve done, but definitely follow it up with something about prevention that can let people know if they are feeling suicidal because of that loss that there is help for them, too, to seek assistance.”[[In-content Ad]]
The 2015 Indiana Suicide Conference at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center, Grace College, broke attendance records with over 300 registered participants, according to officials there.
The day-long event – with the theme “Journey From Hopelessness to Health” – featured two keynote speakers, an intervention panel presentation and nine break out sessions.
The break out sessions covered a variety of topics from an innovative application of three energy psychology techniques called The Phoenix Protocol, to a workshop on the Question, Persuade and Refer steps and serving specific at-risk groups like the transgender population and law enforcement.
Suicide Prevention Social Media Chat (#SPSM) co-founders Tony Wood and Dr. April Foreman led the workshop on “Suicide Prevention and Social Media.”
In an interview before the workshop, Foreman said, “Suicide prevention is a really niche specialty in mental health, and this is really unfortunate that this is a small community because suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. It’s one of the leading causes of death in the world. For young women, like ages 15 to 19, it is the leading cause of death in the world. Yet, there’s only a few people in the world who know much about it. Additionally, we have all these sort of different stakeholders in suicide prevention that are in the same profession – so primary care, law enforcement, pharmacists, psychologists, school people, legislatures, crisis workers, and they all really care about this but they don’t often talk to each other.”
She said she and Wood think there is a “lot of hope and promise” in media technology for identifying people at risk and help get them resources, or help spread resources to policy makers and people who make a difference, like the people at Thursday’s conference.
“So we use the Suicide Prevention Social Media Chat to get all the stakeholders to the table, sharing what they know, as quickly as they can, and we create really good digital content that people can spread to their networks,” Foreman said.
SPSM uses social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Periscope and Twitter.
“If there’s a social media tool, I’m trying to figure out how to use it to save someone’s life,” she said.
While in Indiana at Thursday’s conference, Foreman said she’s talking about using media but she’s also using media to share the conference with others.
“All of our content gets archived. It’s shareable, it’s saveable, you could put it on your Facebook page – all of that stuff. So that’s what I’m doing,” she said.
Foreman added that anyone interested in suicide prevention should follow her and SPSM on social media.
“I have a fairly large Twitter following and I have a few Facebook friends. But, you know, if you’re really interested in innovative mental health; if you’re interested in suicide prevention; if you want to meet the best experts in this field and want to figure out how to learn and grow from them; if you have really great ideas; if you’re a person with lived experience – you attempted suicide and survived – come join us! We believe we have some options that can save lives and we would love for you to be a part of that.”
Lisa Brattain, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Indiana/Ohio director, moderated the Intervention Panel. It included Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Dept. Lt. Sam Preston, a hostage and crisis negotiator; Dr. Siquilla Liebetrau, Bowen Center staff psychologist; Dr. Phil Rodgers, a keynote speaker and LivingWorks Education vice president of design, development and evaluation; and Kayla Hands, a high school suicide attempt survivor and suicide prevention activist.
Rodgers commented on efforts to increase conversations about suicide and bring it out of the darkness: “Suicide has so much stigma attached to it, it’s something we don’t talk about very much. So having a dialogue about suicide is critical and in that way we reduce the stigma around suicide.”
Teens need to know they have someone looking out for them, Hands said.
When Brattain asked what an effective intervention looks like, Liebetrau said, “I think the most important part is the fact that you are a human connection. You are an ear to listen. ... You’re a human being so you can lend an ear. You have a heart, you can give hope to the person. So in that perspective, we’re the same. As long as you can be there for the person, as long as you can notice that they’re struggling and you’re willing to listen and sit there with them, I think that’s the number one thing. That’s the biggest thing anyone can do.”
Preston said his department’s peer support team listens but cannot offer advice because they’re not clinicians. Sometimes they may reframe what the person said so they can think about their problem in a way they haven’t before, he said.
Brattain asked about signs a person may be suicidal and what questions to ask. There is no single formula, Liebetrau answered, and prevention might look different for everyone. She said if you suspect someone is suicidal, you should “absolutely” ask and be very direct about it and don’t dance around the question.
“If someone is talking about suicide, it’s probably the greatest warning sign,” Rodgers said. “... We need to ask directly, not passively.”
Hands said when she’s been suicidal, she had a loss of appetite, couldn’t sleep and felt numb or empty. Others may have a complete sense of hopelessness, talk about suicide or give their stuff away.
“Definitely don’t be afraid to ask the question, ‘Are you feeling suicidal?’” Hands said.
Brattain asked how personal biases about suicide might affect an intervention. Liebetrau said your preconceived notions definitely show when you’re talking to somebody, and if a person is uncomfortable talking about suicide, it will show. The person will be able to pick up on that and “they’ll just not go there.”
“You have to just get yourself comfortable with being able to ask the questions, and get comfortable with the fact that you can make a difference with the individual sitting in front of you,” she continued.
Rodgers added, “Get yourself comfortable. It is something that is very uncomfortable with people. Understanding you’re uncomfortable with it really is the first step in recognizing that and being more able to intervene.”
When calling law enforcement for a suicidal subject, Preston said to give as much information to dispatchers as possible, including the person’s diagnosis, if weapons are involved and what kind of medication the person may be on.
“It’s just important that we get every piece of information because it helps us make a more thorough assessment,” Preston said.
If a person says they’re going to use medication to end their life, Liebetrau said that medication should be removed from them. The same applies to a gun or other means of hurting themselves.
WNDU Channel 16 News Anchor Tricia Sloma remarked that news media are encouraged not to report suicide, and asked, “How can we do a better job? We know we can do a better job in reporting suicide and trying to diminish the stigma about it.”
Rodgers warned not to sensationalize a suicide or discuss the means, but to talk about prevention. Hands said it is a good idea to report suicides, but it should be followed up with something more uplifting and about suicide prevention.
“It’s just all about how you word it,” she said. “Glorify a person’s life, tell about all the good things they’ve done, but definitely follow it up with something about prevention that can let people know if they are feeling suicidal because of that loss that there is help for them, too, to seek assistance.”[[In-content Ad]]
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