Day 7 - National Suicide Awareness Week

*Note: I have been writing posts each day this week with information that I hope will be helpful concerning the problem of suicide. If you have not already done so, please read my initial introductory post on the topic for my background and a way that you can participate in helping to address this awful problem that devastates so many lives.

Also, if anyone reading this has his or her own blog, I would be grateful if you might be willing to do a post sometime this week mentioning the week (feel free to link to my blog if you want). Most people don't think of suicide beyond the occasional publicized celebrity death, but when it happens to someone you love, you too would wish more was being done to help those who fall into such deep despair. A post this week can be a small step in helping with that cause.

The focus of my posts throughout this week has been primarily on resources to help those who have lost someone they love to suicide. This is understandable since that is where I have come from in recent months. And I did this intentionally, because that has often been an overlooked aspect of the topic of suicide.

But it seems appropriate to close out the week with a post on the problem of suicide itself. Suicide is one of those topics that is not talked about in "polite" company. The stigma surrounding suicide is deep and long-established. Religions have considered suicide to be an unforgiveable sin. Socially, people often assume that suicide can only happen in the "messed up" families, that a suicide likely indicates parental or spousal failing. The person who has lost someone to suicide becomes a modern-day Hester Prynne, wearing a nearly-visible "S" on his or her clothing, always identified as "the one whose [relation] committed suicide."

But the problem of suicide is too large and too devastating for this stigma to continue. Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States, fourth for those between the ages of 18 and 65. Every 18 minutes someone in the United States completes suicide, and it is estimated that suicide attempts are made once every minute (in reality, the number of suicide deaths is probably far higher than the 30,000 or so confirmed, because many suicides are ruled accidental due to indeterminate situations....i.e. - was it a suicide or a legitimate accident with a gun?). And every one of those suicides leaves a trail of broken hearts and lives of those who are left behind.

I love the symbolism of the AFSP's fundraising walk, the Out of the Darkness Overnight, where those participating walk 20 miles through the night, ending the walk as the sun rises the next morning. It is a beautiful symbol of hope and healing for those in the "darkness" of the pain of losing someone to suicide. But it also is a bold statement that this topic, which has been kept in the shadows for too long, needs to be discussed openly, honestly, and frequently.

I think this quote is excellent: "Suicide is not chosen; it happens when pain exceeds resources for coping with pain." This is an excellent summary of a pretty complex topic, but it covers the two main aspects of the problem. To reduce the occurrences of suicide, we as a society need to help to (1) reduce the pain and/or (2) increase the coping resources.

Happily, many in the medical professions and in politics have begun to see the need to find answers to this problem. The resources today are greater than they have ever before been in history. 24-hour, free-of-charge help is readily available to anyone dealing with suicidal thoughts, from such sources as crisis hotlines like 1-800-SUICIDE. Constant, well-funded, ongoing research continues to identify those at greatest risk and develop strategies for helping those who are facing deep pain and hoplessness.

What causes passion? What issues or topics arouse something within you that prompts you to action? Generally, we don't just randomly select something to which we want to dedicate ourselves and our time; rather, we are confronted through mean of a person, an event, a story, or an experience which so affects us that we are moved to do something about the need we see. So I understand that many who read this will not feel the passion that I do, since I have seen firsthand the devastation caused by suicide. But perhaps hearing my story would encourage someone to put a bit of effort into educating yourself on the topic and contributing to its solution. Perhaps doing that may even help someoone to avoid the devastation altogether.

So, for anyone who may be interested, here are some good starting points on the internet for learning about suicide and how you can be involved in helping address this problem and identifying warning signs for those you love and care for:

• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
• American Association of Suicidology
• Befrienders Worldwide - I appreciate that they recognize the increased risk of suicide among gay and lesbian people. That's a subject I hope to investigate further in the days to come.
• Hopeline (1-800-SUICIDE)
• Samaritans
• SAVE (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education)

This is the final day of the National Suicide Awareness Week, but I hope that perhaps you will think about this topic in the days to come and ask yourself what you can do to be a part of the solution. There are many worthy causes competing for attention and resources, and I am not trying to say this is a cause that surpasses all others in importance. But I can say with confidence that it is a cause that is worth your time and effort and in which even a small effort can mean the difference in the life of someone in despair.