Suicide and attempted suicides affect more people than you might realize, and when the economic downturn results in upheavals, such as lost jobs and homes, the numbers rise. According to a SAMHSA press release,

“This is a critical situation – calls into suicide crisis centers have substantially increased during the past year – 54,054 calls in the last recorded month alone — with between 20 to 30 percent of calls being specifically linked to economic distress,” said SAMHSA Acting Administrator, Eric Broderick, D.D.S., M.P.H. “These funds will help provide desperately needed assistance to those on the front lines, responding to this urgent public health need.”

Suicide is a permanent solution answer to a temporary problem and that’s what economic crisis are. No-one is saying it’s easy to get through this type of crisis, but it is do-able.

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• In the United States, please call 1-800-273-TALK if you feel yourself sliding to the edge and considering suicide.
• In Canada, check out the Centre for Suicide Prevention to find what number you should call.
• In the United Kingdom, Suicide.org lists numbers for you.
• Australia’s Suicide.org lists their prevention organizations as well, as does New Zealand’s Suicide.org.
• Internationally, for a list of many other countries and their help lines, go to Worldwide Suicide Crisis Hotlines.

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Photo courtesy PhotoXpress.com

Post from: Blisstree

U.S. Suicide Help Calls Rising

This post is part of Celebrity Health Week at the b5media Health & Wellness Channel. For more information about Celebrity Health Week posts here at Mental Health Notes, visit Introducing Celebrity Health Week: Celebrities And Mental Illness.

We’ve taken a look at famous people who have attempted suicide, as well as celebrities who committed suicide, so let’s now look at suicide itself: some of the causes of suicide, warning signs of suicide, and resources for people considering suicide.

Please keep in mind that this post is just an overview – and a brief one at that – and by no means meant to act as a substitute for medical professional advice.

Read on.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, three years ago, in 2004, suicide was the eleventh leading cause of death in the United States, and it’s estimated that per every completed suicide there are at least 8 to 25 attempted suicides.

Back in May 2008 I posted Suicide Warning Signs: In Light Of Deborah Jeane Palfrey. Within that post are:

• Suicide warning signs, as well as questions you can ask yourself and observations you can make regarding your loved ones who may be contemplating suicide.
• Suggestions on what to do if you think or know for sure a loved one is planning suicide, i.e. get help.
• Web sites and organizations to check out for help with suicidal situations.

I also highly recommend checking out the following:

• Suicide: You Are Not Exempt – Marijke Durning shares the experience of her brother’s suicide with Mental Health Notes.
• The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance’s very thorough section on suicide prevention which aims to help you better understand suicidal thinking, offers suggestions on how to cope with and get help for suicidal thoughts, helps you better recognize suicide warning signs, and describes how you can respond to a suicidal situation. The DBSA also provides a round up of suicide hot lines and Web sites.
• The National Institute of Mental Health’s section Suicide in the U.S.: Statistics and Prevention, which also covers risk factors and what roles age, gender, and ethnicity play in suicide statistics.
• Two sections from the National Alliance on Mental Illness Web site: The Emergency Department Resource Toolkit, which provides downloadable versions of informative brochures for consumers, families, and providers, and their intensive section covering resources, organizations, and discussion and support groups.

If you are contemplating suicide, please get help. If you so much as suspect someone you know is contemplating suicide, please get help. There are resources available to you, and there are people out there trained and willing to give you the help you need.

Image: morgueFile

Post from: Blisstree

Tell Me More About Suicide: Risks, Warning Signs, and Resources