By Sophia Mcdermott-Hughes
Content Warning: This op-ed contains mentions of #suicide.
It is terrifying to wake up one day wishing you were dead.
That fear consumed me earlier this semester. I later discovered my #suicidalideation — the wish to be dead, but not necessarily to kill yourself — was a side effect of an antidepressant I had begun taking. I am off that medication and doing much better now. But the couple of weeks during which I cried myself to sleep nightly hoping I would not wake up the next morning continue to haunt me, especially in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide.
I am not alone in feeling particularly raw these last few weeks; many other #students here have experience with suicidal thoughts and ideation or continue to experience them. Others have lost loved ones to #suicide or gone through traumatic periods trying to support loved ones through their own #mentalhealth struggles.
The reality is that we are living in a dangerous age and a dangerous place. According to the #SuicidePrevention Resource Center, “Suicide is the leading cause of death among college and university #students.” Yet, even after losing one of our own to #suicide, why does it seem like no one is talking about it?
Every time I have mentioned my own experiences and trauma with suicidal thoughts in the wake of Yan’s death, my peers have responded in kind. I have walked away from those conversations feeling nourished by the trust and vulnerability of my classmates and the sense of comradery in grief and pain. It doesn’t make the hurt any lighter, but god is it such a relief to shoulder the burden together rather than alone.
I think back to those lonely nights where I wished I were dead and realize these conversations are exactly what I needed. What a difference it would have made for me to know that I was not suffering alone, that there were those around me who were going through the same, or had gone through it and survived. I am so sad and so angry for the Sophia who felt they had no one to turn to, who went to class surrounded by people more like them than they ever knew and yet felt so alone.
We need to seriously think about what gets communicated when we don’t communicate. When the message after a student’s death by #suicide is: “Here are some resources that you should reach out to if you need help,” it puts the onus and responsibility on the person struggling. Suicidal thoughts, #depression and other #mentalhealth struggles are incredibly isolating as is. They tell you that you are alone in your suffering, and weak for it. That no one cares and no one will come to save you.
In those dark weeks, it took all of my energy to get out of bed, to maybe make it to class (oftentimes I didn’t) and to function as somewhat of a human being. Every cell in my body was working in overdrive just to stay alive, and yet I was being asked to make all of these calls and chase after all of these resources and self-advocate time and time again on top of it all. It felt so isolating, unmanageable and deeply, deeply unfair.
If the message when you need help is that you have to search for it yourself, all that many people will hear is that there is no help for them.
Equally damaging is the message, while well-intentioned, to “check in on your friends.” Often, people experiencing suicidal thoughts view themselves as a huge burden on their friends and loved ones. The weight of our own sadness and hurt feels too large to bear, so how could we imagine putting that on the people we care about? When we hear over and over again this message that seems to imply that our friends are the ones responsible for our survival, it only heightens that feeling of being a burden and deepens the #isolation.
The reality is that we are 20-year-olds. We are not equipped to handle our friends’ #mentalhealthcrises on our own, nor can we alone save our friends from the demons (and chemicals) within their own minds.
#Suicide is an institutional failing, not an individual one. We as a community, and certainly Middlebury as an institution, have failed to create a culture where we can talk about #suicide and provide support for those experiencing suicidal thoughts or urges. We have failed to create room for those whose full effort is spent on surviving and celebrate them for doing so rather than punishing them for falling behind on schoolwork or missing classes. And we have failed now, in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide, to show those experiencing similar struggles that we care at all.
We need to change, and we need to talk about #suicide. Before it’s too late.
If you are thinking about suicide, please call the #NationalSuicidePreventionLifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255).
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Sophia McDermott-Hughes
Sophia McDermott-Hughes ’23 is an editor at large.
They previously served as a news editor and senior news writer.
McDermott-Hughes is a joint anthropology and Arabic major and Spanish minor.
Over the summer, they worked as a general assignment reporter at statewide digital newspaper VTDigger, focusing on issues relating to migrant workers and immigration.
In 2018 and 2019, McDermott-Hughes worked as a reporter on the Since Parkland Project, a partnership with the Trace and the Miami Herald, which chronicled the lives of the more than 1,200 children killed by gun violence in the #UnitedStates in the year since the #MarjoryStonemanDouglas #HighSchool shooting in Florida.
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/12/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-notes-from-the-desk-why-we-need-to-talk-about-suicide/
Friday, December 3, 2021
By Sophia Mcdermott-Hughes
Content Warning: This op-ed contains mentions of #suicide.
It is terrifying to wake up one day wishing you were dead.
That fear consumed me earlier this semester. I later discovered my #suicidalideation — the wish to be dead, but not necessarily to kill yourself — was a side effect of an antidepressant I had begun taking. I am off that medication and doing much better now. But the couple of weeks during which I cried myself to sleep nightly hoping I would not wake up the next morning continue to haunt me, especially in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide.
I am not alone in feeling particularly raw these last few weeks; many other #students here have experience with suicidal thoughts and ideation or continue to experience them. Others have lost loved ones to #suicide or gone through traumatic periods trying to support loved ones through their own #mentalhealth struggles.
The reality is that we are living in a dangerous age and a dangerous place. According to the #SuicidePrevention Resource Center, “Suicide is the leading cause of death among college and university #students.” Yet, even after losing one of our own to #suicide, why does it seem like no one is talking about it?
Every time I have mentioned my own experiences and trauma with suicidal thoughts in the wake of Yan’s death, my peers have responded in kind. I have walked away from those conversations feeling nourished by the trust and vulnerability of my classmates and the sense of comradery in grief and pain. It doesn’t make the hurt any lighter, but god is it such a relief to shoulder the burden together rather than alone.
I think back to those lonely nights where I wished I were dead and realize these conversations are exactly what I needed. What a difference it would have made for me to know that I was not suffering alone, that there were those around me who were going through the same, or had gone through it and survived. I am so sad and so angry for the Sophia who felt they had no one to turn to, who went to class surrounded by people more like them than they ever knew and yet felt so alone.
We need to seriously think about what gets communicated when we don’t communicate. When the message after a student’s death by #suicide is: “Here are some resources that you should reach out to if you need help,” it puts the onus and responsibility on the person struggling. Suicidal thoughts, #depression and other #mentalhealth struggles are incredibly isolating as is. They tell you that you are alone in your suffering, and weak for it. That no one cares and no one will come to save you.
In those dark weeks, it took all of my energy to get out of bed, to maybe make it to class (oftentimes I didn’t) and to function as somewhat of a human being. Every cell in my body was working in overdrive just to stay alive, and yet I was being asked to make all of these calls and chase after all of these resources and self-advocate time and time again on top of it all. It felt so isolating, unmanageable and deeply, deeply unfair.
If the message when you need help is that you have to search for it yourself, all that many people will hear is that there is no help for them.
Equally damaging is the message, while well-intentioned, to “check in on your friends.” Often, people experiencing suicidal thoughts view themselves as a huge burden on their friends and loved ones. The weight of our own sadness and hurt feels too large to bear, so how could we imagine putting that on the people we care about? When we hear over and over again this message that seems to imply that our friends are the ones responsible for our survival, it only heightens that feeling of being a burden and deepens the #isolation.
The reality is that we are 20-year-olds. We are not equipped to handle our friends’ #mentalhealthcrises on our own, nor can we alone save our friends from the demons (and chemicals) within their own minds.
#Suicide is an institutional failing, not an individual one. We as a community, and certainly Middlebury as an institution, have failed to create a culture where we can talk about #suicide and provide support for those experiencing suicidal thoughts or urges. We have failed to create room for those whose full effort is spent on surviving and celebrate them for doing so rather than punishing them for falling behind on schoolwork or missing classes. And we have failed now, in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide, to show those experiencing similar struggles that we care at all.
We need to change, and we need to talk about #suicide. Before it’s too late.
If you are thinking about suicide, please call the #NationalSuicidePreventionLifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255).
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Sophia McDermott-Hughes
Sophia McDermott-Hughes ’23 is an editor at large.
They previously served as a news editor and senior news writer.
McDermott-Hughes is a joint anthropology and Arabic major and Spanish minor.
Over the summer, they worked as a general assignment reporter at statewide digital newspaper VTDigger, focusing on issues relating to migrant workers and immigration.
In 2018 and 2019, McDermott-Hughes worked as a reporter on the Since Parkland Project, a partnership with the Trace and the Miami Herald, which chronicled the lives of the more than 1,200 children killed by gun violence in the #UnitedStates in the year since the #MarjoryStonemanDouglas #HighSchool shooting in Florida.
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/?p=7373
Content Warning: This op-ed contains mentions of #suicide.
It is terrifying to wake up one day wishing you were dead.
That fear consumed me earlier this semester. I later discovered my #suicidalideation — the wish to be dead, but not necessarily to kill yourself — was a side effect of an antidepressant I had begun taking. I am off that medication and doing much better now. But the couple of weeks during which I cried myself to sleep nightly hoping I would not wake up the next morning continue to haunt me, especially in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide.
I am not alone in feeling particularly raw these last few weeks; many other #students here have experience with suicidal thoughts and ideation or continue to experience them. Others have lost loved ones to #suicide or gone through traumatic periods trying to support loved ones through their own #mentalhealth struggles.
The reality is that we are living in a dangerous age and a dangerous place. According to the #SuicidePrevention Resource Center, “Suicide is the leading cause of death among college and university #students.” Yet, even after losing one of our own to #suicide, why does it seem like no one is talking about it?
Every time I have mentioned my own experiences and trauma with suicidal thoughts in the wake of Yan’s death, my peers have responded in kind. I have walked away from those conversations feeling nourished by the trust and vulnerability of my classmates and the sense of comradery in grief and pain. It doesn’t make the hurt any lighter, but god is it such a relief to shoulder the burden together rather than alone.
I think back to those lonely nights where I wished I were dead and realize these conversations are exactly what I needed. What a difference it would have made for me to know that I was not suffering alone, that there were those around me who were going through the same, or had gone through it and survived. I am so sad and so angry for the Sophia who felt they had no one to turn to, who went to class surrounded by people more like them than they ever knew and yet felt so alone.
We need to seriously think about what gets communicated when we don’t communicate. When the message after a student’s death by #suicide is: “Here are some resources that you should reach out to if you need help,” it puts the onus and responsibility on the person struggling. Suicidal thoughts, #depression and other #mentalhealth struggles are incredibly isolating as is. They tell you that you are alone in your suffering, and weak for it. That no one cares and no one will come to save you.
In those dark weeks, it took all of my energy to get out of bed, to maybe make it to class (oftentimes I didn’t) and to function as somewhat of a human being. Every cell in my body was working in overdrive just to stay alive, and yet I was being asked to make all of these calls and chase after all of these resources and self-advocate time and time again on top of it all. It felt so isolating, unmanageable and deeply, deeply unfair.
If the message when you need help is that you have to search for it yourself, all that many people will hear is that there is no help for them.
Equally damaging is the message, while well-intentioned, to “check in on your friends.” Often, people experiencing suicidal thoughts view themselves as a huge burden on their friends and loved ones. The weight of our own sadness and hurt feels too large to bear, so how could we imagine putting that on the people we care about? When we hear over and over again this message that seems to imply that our friends are the ones responsible for our survival, it only heightens that feeling of being a burden and deepens the #isolation.
The reality is that we are 20-year-olds. We are not equipped to handle our friends’ #mentalhealthcrises on our own, nor can we alone save our friends from the demons (and chemicals) within their own minds.
#Suicide is an institutional failing, not an individual one. We as a community, and certainly Middlebury as an institution, have failed to create a culture where we can talk about #suicide and provide support for those experiencing suicidal thoughts or urges. We have failed to create room for those whose full effort is spent on surviving and celebrate them for doing so rather than punishing them for falling behind on schoolwork or missing classes. And we have failed now, in the wake of Yan’s death by #suicide, to show those experiencing similar struggles that we care at all.
We need to change, and we need to talk about #suicide. Before it’s too late.
If you are thinking about suicide, please call the #NationalSuicidePreventionLifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255).
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Sophia McDermott-Hughes
Sophia McDermott-Hughes ’23 is an editor at large.
They previously served as a news editor and senior news writer.
McDermott-Hughes is a joint anthropology and Arabic major and Spanish minor.
Over the summer, they worked as a general assignment reporter at statewide digital newspaper VTDigger, focusing on issues relating to migrant workers and immigration.
In 2018 and 2019, McDermott-Hughes worked as a reporter on the Since Parkland Project, a partnership with the Trace and the Miami Herald, which chronicled the lives of the more than 1,200 children killed by gun violence in the #UnitedStates in the year since the #MarjoryStonemanDouglas #HighSchool shooting in Florida.
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/?p=7373
Thursday, December 2, 2021
Photo by Min An on Pexels.com
Nicole Pasia
According to a December 2020 report from the Hawaii Department of Health’s Child and #Adolescent #MentalHealth Division (CAMHD), #suicide was the second-leading cause of death in young people in Hawaii. Experts say the #pandemic and #socialisolation have further stressed #mentalhealth among kids and their families.
Get the latest state-specific policy intelligence for the health care sector delivered to your inbox.
State of Reform spoke with some of Hawaii’s #behavioralhealth experts on what the state, providers, schools, and communities can do to help. Here are a few key issues they brought up:
Major events have profound effects on community #mentalhealth
Kumi Macdonald, executive director for the #NationalAllianceonMentalIllness (#NAMI) Hawaii, said the effects of the #pandemic and other widespread events directly correlate with the demand for #mentalhealthservices.
“Every time there was another spike in #COVID, or shutdowns, … the #BlackLivesMatter movement — things like that really did affect our community, and the calls would rise.”
For kids, the move back to in-person learning after a year of #socialisolation has proven difficult, according to Claudia Crist, CEO at Sutter Health K?hi M?hala, a West Oahu-based #behavioralhealth medical center.
“It’s almost like they’ve had what you could consider a ‘social regression’ … because they were isolated for such an extended period of time, they don’t feel as comfortable now, interacting in person with their own peers. According to our clinicians, they’re noticing this especially among early #teens, and tweens.”
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Importance of peer support groups
Research shows that the use of peer #mentalhealth support from those with similar lived experiences can reduce hospital stays, re-hospitalization rates, and lead to better health outcomes.
Acting CAMHD Administrator Scott Shimabukuro, PhD, said in a statement that the agency is working to expand peer services for children and families:
“We’re working on creating a more robust peer support service array. This would include certifying more youth peers (young #adults who have lived experience in the #mentalhealth system as children or #adolescents) as well as #parent peers (parents with lived experience parenting a child with a #mentalhealth challenge).”
Using telehealth to leverage access to care
With the stay-at-home orders in place during the #pandemic, Macdonald said the use of telehealth was a “silver lining” in increasing access to care. She said #NAMI HI was one of the first agencies in the state to move peer support services online.
At Sutter Health, telehealth is utilized for family therapy sessions, and provides a way for #parents and guardians to visit their in-patient children, even when #pandemic restrictions prevented in-person visits. Crist said:
“Some of the kids that we have are maybe nine years old, eight years old. That’s really young to be away from your #parents. In order to have connections , … We also enable televisits so that they can see their #parents and interact as well.” Some areas of the state still lack telehealth services geared towards family #mentalhealth. One of CAMHD’s upcoming projects, said Shimabukuro, is “providing a form of family therapy via telehealth on Maui that doesn’t currently exist there.”
Addressing the need for more research
To develop the proper initiatives to address youth #mentalhealth, Gerald Busch, MD, a #psychiatrist at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children, said there need to be proper measures in place to identify the highest areas of need. He suggested that #schools and local communities put a higher emphasis on “digital epidemiology,” or the use of online public health surveys that assess how kids are feeling, #mentalhealth-wise.
Integrating physical and #mentalhealth
Crist said there needs to be more resources for primary care #physicians to assess #mentalhealth alongside physical health. These consistent assessments could lead to better health outcomes, she said.
“ integrating funding, partnerships and technology to better equip our primary care #physicians, to help them flag potential red flags for #patients … Helping those primary care providers really have that support so that they can identify #patients earlier can actually prevent a lot of the severe #mentalillness.”
Building community resilience
The most widely discussed issue among experts was the need to improve community resilience in the wake of major crises, such as the #pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this refers to “the ability of a community to use its assets to strengthen public health and healthcare systems and to improve the community’s physical, #behavioral, and social health to withstand, adapt to, and recover from adversity.”
Busch said strengthening community resilience is key in the case of future public crises.
“The community is the basic unit of public health. Building community resilience — it’s very important … members of the community might have differences on various things, but at some point they realize that we’re all members of the same community. We have to work together to make our community work. In Hawaii, we have a lot of different kinds of community centers, and those serve as the basis for activities that build community resilience.”
According to Crist, even more needs to be done to improve community resilience for kids, including focusing services for pregnant people and young families.
“Young families, young mothers, expecting mothers, all the way to when the child is five or so years of age. What are we doing to surround those families with wraparound support systems so that they are feeling supported — that there’s resiliency and that the child grows up and can develop proper resiliency? That is more of a public health concept, but if we were to collectively look at and put more emphasis on that, I think what would make a big difference.”
Photo by Min An on Pexels.com
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/12/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-battling-isolation-and-building-resilience-the-future-of-child-and-family-mentalhealth-in-hawaii/
Nicole Pasia
According to a December 2020 report from the Hawaii Department of Health’s Child and #Adolescent #MentalHealth Division (CAMHD), #suicide was the second-leading cause of death in young people in Hawaii. Experts say the #pandemic and #socialisolation have further stressed #mentalhealth among kids and their families.
Get the latest state-specific policy intelligence for the health care sector delivered to your inbox.
State of Reform spoke with some of Hawaii’s #behavioralhealth experts on what the state, providers, schools, and communities can do to help. Here are a few key issues they brought up:
Major events have profound effects on community #mentalhealth
Kumi Macdonald, executive director for the #NationalAllianceonMentalIllness (#NAMI) Hawaii, said the effects of the #pandemic and other widespread events directly correlate with the demand for #mentalhealthservices.
“Every time there was another spike in #COVID, or shutdowns, … the #BlackLivesMatter movement — things like that really did affect our community, and the calls would rise.”
For kids, the move back to in-person learning after a year of #socialisolation has proven difficult, according to Claudia Crist, CEO at Sutter Health K?hi M?hala, a West Oahu-based #behavioralhealth medical center.
“It’s almost like they’ve had what you could consider a ‘social regression’ … because they were isolated for such an extended period of time, they don’t feel as comfortable now, interacting in person with their own peers. According to our clinicians, they’re noticing this especially among early #teens, and tweens.”
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
Importance of peer support groups
Research shows that the use of peer #mentalhealth support from those with similar lived experiences can reduce hospital stays, re-hospitalization rates, and lead to better health outcomes.
Acting CAMHD Administrator Scott Shimabukuro, PhD, said in a statement that the agency is working to expand peer services for children and families:
“We’re working on creating a more robust peer support service array. This would include certifying more youth peers (young #adults who have lived experience in the #mentalhealth system as children or #adolescents) as well as #parent peers (parents with lived experience parenting a child with a #mentalhealth challenge).”
Using telehealth to leverage access to care
With the stay-at-home orders in place during the #pandemic, Macdonald said the use of telehealth was a “silver lining” in increasing access to care. She said #NAMI HI was one of the first agencies in the state to move peer support services online.
At Sutter Health, telehealth is utilized for family therapy sessions, and provides a way for #parents and guardians to visit their in-patient children, even when #pandemic restrictions prevented in-person visits. Crist said:
“Some of the kids that we have are maybe nine years old, eight years old. That’s really young to be away from your #parents. In order to have connections , … We also enable televisits so that they can see their #parents and interact as well.” Some areas of the state still lack telehealth services geared towards family #mentalhealth. One of CAMHD’s upcoming projects, said Shimabukuro, is “providing a form of family therapy via telehealth on Maui that doesn’t currently exist there.”
Addressing the need for more research
To develop the proper initiatives to address youth #mentalhealth, Gerald Busch, MD, a #psychiatrist at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children, said there need to be proper measures in place to identify the highest areas of need. He suggested that #schools and local communities put a higher emphasis on “digital epidemiology,” or the use of online public health surveys that assess how kids are feeling, #mentalhealth-wise.
Integrating physical and #mentalhealth
Crist said there needs to be more resources for primary care #physicians to assess #mentalhealth alongside physical health. These consistent assessments could lead to better health outcomes, she said.
“ integrating funding, partnerships and technology to better equip our primary care #physicians, to help them flag potential red flags for #patients … Helping those primary care providers really have that support so that they can identify #patients earlier can actually prevent a lot of the severe #mentalillness.”
Building community resilience
The most widely discussed issue among experts was the need to improve community resilience in the wake of major crises, such as the #pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this refers to “the ability of a community to use its assets to strengthen public health and healthcare systems and to improve the community’s physical, #behavioral, and social health to withstand, adapt to, and recover from adversity.”
Busch said strengthening community resilience is key in the case of future public crises.
“The community is the basic unit of public health. Building community resilience — it’s very important … members of the community might have differences on various things, but at some point they realize that we’re all members of the same community. We have to work together to make our community work. In Hawaii, we have a lot of different kinds of community centers, and those serve as the basis for activities that build community resilience.”
According to Crist, even more needs to be done to improve community resilience for kids, including focusing services for pregnant people and young families.
“Young families, young mothers, expecting mothers, all the way to when the child is five or so years of age. What are we doing to surround those families with wraparound support systems so that they are feeling supported — that there’s resiliency and that the child grows up and can develop proper resiliency? That is more of a public health concept, but if we were to collectively look at and put more emphasis on that, I think what would make a big difference.”
Photo by Min An on Pexels.com
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/12/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-battling-isolation-and-building-resilience-the-future-of-child-and-family-mentalhealth-in-hawaii/
Wednesday, December 1, 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMcZBrUnjFE&ab_channel=NAMI
James Donaldson is a NAMI - Seattle Board of Director Member
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/12/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-a-brighter-day-30-online/
James Donaldson is a NAMI - Seattle Board of Director Member
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/12/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-a-brighter-day-30-online/
Tuesday, November 30, 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beNeZCM336k&ab_channel=NAMI
James Donaldson is a Board of Director with NAMI - Seattle
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-a-brighter-day-15-online/
James Donaldson is a Board of Director with NAMI - Seattle
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-a-brighter-day-15-online/
Monday, November 29, 2021
Heather R. Johnson
Although the number of ED visits was lower overall during the #COVID-19 #pandemic compared with the year prior, #suicide-related encounters among youth accounted for a larger percentage of overall youth ED visits during that time.
The number of emergency department (ED) visits for #suicideattempts declined during the #COVID-19 #pandemic among young people aged 10 to 17 years, most likely due to shelter-in-place orders. However, more young #women, more young people with no #psychiatric history, and more young people with a #psychiatric diagnosis at the time of the ED visit presented with suicidal thoughts, according to the authors of a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry.
While previous studies explored the association between #suicideattempts and #COVID-19, the authors of the current study believed the scientific community lacked evidence on diagnosis-based, population-level prevalence of #suicideattempts among youth during #COVID-19.
The retrospective, observational study was conducted at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. The researchers pulled electronic health record (EHR) data for youth aged 5 to 17 years old who sought emergency treatment for suicidal thoughts between January 1, 2020, and December 15, 2020. They compared that data to the same period in 2019. They found 2123 teens with #suicide-related encounters in 2020 and 2339 in 2019.Today’s top picks on the Haymarket Medical Network Is Having an Elevated Risk of #COVID-19 Complications a Disability? Exercise May Improve Child #MentalHealth During #Pandemic White House Announces Plan to Reduce Gun Suicides
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
CONTINUE READING
Although the number of ED visits year over year was lower overall, #suicide-related encounters among youth accounted for a larger percent of overall youth ED visits during the #COVID-19 #pandemic period compared with 2019. Relative to all #youth ED encounters, youth with no history of outpatient encounters associated with #mentalhealth or #suicide diagnoses during the 2 years prior were found to have a 129.4% higher risk of a #suicide-related ED encounter (95% CI, 41.0-217.8) during the fall of 2020 compared with the fall of 2019. The investigators excluded #patients without at least 1 year of continuous health insurance enrollment before their first ED visit.
The researchers note that using only data from the EHR limited the study, as it did not capture information about youth who visited non-Kaiser facilities or those who did not seek any care. Further research is needed to determine whether the results were dependent on the #pandemic or reflected trends overall.
“These results suggest that, despite reduced health care use in the early months of the
#COVID-19 #pandemic, ED use among #youth with suicidal thoughts or #behaviors returned to typical levels by summer 2020,” the researchers concluded. “The disproportionate increase during the summer and fall of 2020 among youth without prior documented #mentalhealth use and with comorbid psychiatric disorders may reflect higher suicidality among #youth without a previous #mentalhealth diagnosis, a shift in new #mentalhealth presentations from outpatient settings to the ED, or vulnerability among #youth with undocumented prior #mentalhealth diagnoses who were not currently engaged with the health care system and may have lost contact with other resources during the #pandemic.”
Reference
Ridout KK, Alavi M, Ridout SJ, et al. Emergency department encounters among #youth with suicidal thoughts or #behaviors during the #COVID-19 #pandemic. JAMA Psychiatry. Published online September 1, 2021. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2457
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-suicide-related-emergency-department-visits-increased-among-youth-during-the-pandemic/
Although the number of ED visits was lower overall during the #COVID-19 #pandemic compared with the year prior, #suicide-related encounters among youth accounted for a larger percentage of overall youth ED visits during that time.
The number of emergency department (ED) visits for #suicideattempts declined during the #COVID-19 #pandemic among young people aged 10 to 17 years, most likely due to shelter-in-place orders. However, more young #women, more young people with no #psychiatric history, and more young people with a #psychiatric diagnosis at the time of the ED visit presented with suicidal thoughts, according to the authors of a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry.
While previous studies explored the association between #suicideattempts and #COVID-19, the authors of the current study believed the scientific community lacked evidence on diagnosis-based, population-level prevalence of #suicideattempts among youth during #COVID-19.
The retrospective, observational study was conducted at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. The researchers pulled electronic health record (EHR) data for youth aged 5 to 17 years old who sought emergency treatment for suicidal thoughts between January 1, 2020, and December 15, 2020. They compared that data to the same period in 2019. They found 2123 teens with #suicide-related encounters in 2020 and 2339 in 2019.Today’s top picks on the Haymarket Medical Network Is Having an Elevated Risk of #COVID-19 Complications a Disability? Exercise May Improve Child #MentalHealth During #Pandemic White House Announces Plan to Reduce Gun Suicides
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
CONTINUE READING
Although the number of ED visits year over year was lower overall, #suicide-related encounters among youth accounted for a larger percent of overall youth ED visits during the #COVID-19 #pandemic period compared with 2019. Relative to all #youth ED encounters, youth with no history of outpatient encounters associated with #mentalhealth or #suicide diagnoses during the 2 years prior were found to have a 129.4% higher risk of a #suicide-related ED encounter (95% CI, 41.0-217.8) during the fall of 2020 compared with the fall of 2019. The investigators excluded #patients without at least 1 year of continuous health insurance enrollment before their first ED visit.
The researchers note that using only data from the EHR limited the study, as it did not capture information about youth who visited non-Kaiser facilities or those who did not seek any care. Further research is needed to determine whether the results were dependent on the #pandemic or reflected trends overall.
“These results suggest that, despite reduced health care use in the early months of the
#COVID-19 #pandemic, ED use among #youth with suicidal thoughts or #behaviors returned to typical levels by summer 2020,” the researchers concluded. “The disproportionate increase during the summer and fall of 2020 among youth without prior documented #mentalhealth use and with comorbid psychiatric disorders may reflect higher suicidality among #youth without a previous #mentalhealth diagnosis, a shift in new #mentalhealth presentations from outpatient settings to the ED, or vulnerability among #youth with undocumented prior #mentalhealth diagnoses who were not currently engaged with the health care system and may have lost contact with other resources during the #pandemic.”
Reference
Ridout KK, Alavi M, Ridout SJ, et al. Emergency department encounters among #youth with suicidal thoughts or #behaviors during the #COVID-19 #pandemic. JAMA Psychiatry. Published online September 1, 2021. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.2457
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-suicide-related-emergency-department-visits-increased-among-youth-during-the-pandemic/
Sunday, November 28, 2021
by: Stephanie Hudson
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — WAVY is turning November into “Movember.” Every Wednesday, we are featuring a story on the importance of men’s health.
This week, we are looking at #mentalhealth and why more #men than #women die from #suicide.
While driving — and lost — we know, many #men won’t stop and ask for directions or help. #Mentalhealth experts tell us that same independent attitude can be dangerous when it comes to #depression.
“Please, please, step back from feeling that you need to do this alone,” said Dr. Mark Cotterell, assistant professor of #psychiatry and #behavioralsciences at Eastern Virginia Medical #School.
Cotterell knows his advice is not easy for most #men to take. #Women ask for help more often than #men and the sad reality is that #men are dying by #suicide three times more often than #women.
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
“#Male suicides are not being prevented by giving people numbers and encouraging them to reach out for help,” said Michelle Peterson, executive director of the Sarah Michelle Peterson Foundation.
The Sarah Michelle Peterson Foundation is training #teens and #adults in Hampton Roads to recognize warning signs and reach out to those in need, which Peterson says can be especially effective for #men.
“Because our studies show that #men accept help when it is offered… but reaching out for it is another story,” she said.
Guns are another reason #men are more likely than #women to die. #Men use firearms more often in their #suicideattempts. Experts suggest when you or a loved one is feeling bad, lock up the weapons and the liquor cabinet. #Alcohol takes away inhibitions and makes you more anxious.
“I’m not saying I’m going to scold you for it, I’m just trying to be realistic its not going to help your #mentalhealth,” Cotterell told WAVY.
If you want to feel better, the #doctor prescribes staying active. #Men who go to church, volunteer, join a sports team, or just socialize usually cope better, he said.
“Step away from the preconceived notion of, you have to be a man,” Cotterell said, adding people should just be themselves. There is never any weakness in fighting for yourself.
The SMP Foundation has a training called “Question, Persuade, Refer,” or #QPR. It is offered for free to community groups, #schools and individuals.
If you want more information on upcoming training events click here.
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-mens-mentalhealth-why-more-men-die-from-suicide-and-how-you-can-learn-the-signs-o-save-someone/
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — WAVY is turning November into “Movember.” Every Wednesday, we are featuring a story on the importance of men’s health.
This week, we are looking at #mentalhealth and why more #men than #women die from #suicide.
While driving — and lost — we know, many #men won’t stop and ask for directions or help. #Mentalhealth experts tell us that same independent attitude can be dangerous when it comes to #depression.
“Please, please, step back from feeling that you need to do this alone,” said Dr. Mark Cotterell, assistant professor of #psychiatry and #behavioralsciences at Eastern Virginia Medical #School.
Cotterell knows his advice is not easy for most #men to take. #Women ask for help more often than #men and the sad reality is that #men are dying by #suicide three times more often than #women.
#JamesDonaldson notes:
Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.
Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.
Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space. #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle
“#Male suicides are not being prevented by giving people numbers and encouraging them to reach out for help,” said Michelle Peterson, executive director of the Sarah Michelle Peterson Foundation.
The Sarah Michelle Peterson Foundation is training #teens and #adults in Hampton Roads to recognize warning signs and reach out to those in need, which Peterson says can be especially effective for #men.
“Because our studies show that #men accept help when it is offered… but reaching out for it is another story,” she said.
Guns are another reason #men are more likely than #women to die. #Men use firearms more often in their #suicideattempts. Experts suggest when you or a loved one is feeling bad, lock up the weapons and the liquor cabinet. #Alcohol takes away inhibitions and makes you more anxious.
“I’m not saying I’m going to scold you for it, I’m just trying to be realistic its not going to help your #mentalhealth,” Cotterell told WAVY.
If you want to feel better, the #doctor prescribes staying active. #Men who go to church, volunteer, join a sports team, or just socialize usually cope better, he said.
“Step away from the preconceived notion of, you have to be a man,” Cotterell said, adding people should just be themselves. There is never any weakness in fighting for yourself.
The SMP Foundation has a training called “Question, Persuade, Refer,” or #QPR. It is offered for free to community groups, #schools and individuals.
If you want more information on upcoming training events click here.
https://standingabovethecrowd.com/2021/11/jamesdonaldson-on-mentalhealth-mens-mentalhealth-why-more-men-die-from-suicide-and-how-you-can-learn-the-signs-o-save-someone/
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