The increase in suicide rates over the past decade have prompted widespread awareness surrounding mental health problems, resulting in an increased need to address mental health crises that plague our society. My hope is that future generations will be less affected by this epidemic as we further our intent as a society to seek help and improve mental health awareness.

I am honored to be a Mental Health Education Group guest blogger, particularly in September for Suicide Awareness month for a reason that you will learn about in a moment. Suicide is a topic now more than ever that needs to be talked about, de-stigmatized and addressed as a society. Data show how frighteningly common thoughts of suicide and death by suicide are for Americans. 

● Death by suicide increased 30% from 2000 to 2016(Winerman, American Psychological Association, 2019).

● Suicide was the 10th leading cause of death in America as of 2017, with an average of 129 completed suicides per day (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 2019).

● In 2016, Americans most likely to die by suicide were between the ages of 45 and 54 years old (Center for Disease Control, 2017).

● For young Americans ages 10 to 34 years old, suicide is the second leading cause of death, second only to death by unintentional injury (Center for Disease Control, 2017).

A Twenty-Something Faces Suicidal Thoughts

That last statistic about young Americans hit home for me. I am in my mid 20s and recently uprooted my life to begin again in a new state at a job where I knew no one, in a city where I had yet to make any friends. My now ex-boyfriend, whom I met in college, and I spent months planning to move in together in this strange new state. I was excited to begin our life together after the first few months following my move of being apart.

At 6:36 pm on July 26th, he called me seemingly happy enough to talk with me just as he always was. Then he broke down unexpectedly, and I asked him to address what was wrong. I had a whirlwind of negative emotions unlike any other that I had experienced before. He explained to me that he no longer wanted to move, nor be in a relationship with me.

Never before in my life had I wanted to attempt suicide more than after I received his call that night. I was petrified at the thought of him not being there, but even more of being alone.

Prior to our breakup, my ex-boyfriend called me at the end of every day. That call was my silver lining in the isolation I felt living and working in a completely new place. I would usually call him to go to the grocery store because the task of going alone gave me anxiety. I felt like I was constantly in the way of strangers at the store. I had thought that he was my anchor, and the only thing keeping me from going off the deep end.

I expressed to him my grief during that call. I told him about how I didn’t want to live anymore. The terror of being alone with my thoughts quickly set in. I felt like I was drowning in my anxiety. I was hurt, but mostly scared. 

I felt helpless and more than anything, like I would not be capable of receiving help because I did not perceive myself as someone that others would want to help. I was too afraid of putting myself out there because I feared that others would reject me in the same way that I had rejected myself. My suppressed thoughts of severe self-hatred had manifested themselves as me being withdrawn and antisocial. I was terrified of having to confront those thoughts to seek help.

I felt lost in my own mind. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention website states that current data are accurate and that they estimate the numbers to be higher. After my experience in July, I agree that there are more Americans who struggle with thoughts about suicide than we actually hear about. I’d felt in dark places before, but never before was I as close to suicide than in the weeks following that conversation.

Mental Health & Suicide Intervention Resources

One area of focus I was asked to do for this blog post was to look for specific examples of ways people can get help with mental health challenges, including suicide. As we continue to develop research on the impact that mental health problems have had on society, more readily available resources have begun appearing in an effort to fight this ongoing battle. 

One noteworthy step towards improving awareness and increasing access to resources comes from the National Basketball Association (NBA). According to Liz Roscher of Yahoo Sports, all teams are required to follow a list of initiatives starting in the 2019-2020 season including:

● Making at least one to two licensed mental health professionals available to the players per the request of the player. 

● Identifying a licensed psychiatrist (M.D. or D.O.) to be available for players to monitor and assist with mental health issues. 

● Establishing a written plan of action in the event of a mental health emergency. 

● Attending a “mental health and wellness” meeting in Chicago on September 12, 2019 to continue the conversation about mental health awareness with NBA players.

The effort put forth by the NBA to protect their players’ mental health sparks hope that this movement may turn a new tide for the world of national sports leagues and a continued awareness for mental health, in general. The NBA’s intent to prioritize their player’s mental health sets a new standard at which we should hold not only all athletes, but all individuals no matter what profession. The NBA’s decision leaves a forceful impact on the world that points out the importance of mental health in relation to the physical ramifications that it can have on the body if left untreated. Poor mental health leaves overall well-being of an individual at risk.

Another source of inspiration for mental health awareness and improving access to services is a non-profit organization called Crisis Text Line. Founder and CEO of the organization Nancy Lublin speaks about her organization and describes a cell phone as a “lifeline”.

Lublin details how the crisis intervention textline got started in an episode of “The Reboot Podcast”. During this interview, Lublin explains how the Crisis Text Line was inspired by unexpected reactions from users during her time as CEO of a different non-profit unrelated to mental health crises. She emphasized the need for a strong sense of trust between the user and what information they expect to receive in text form. This trust between the user and their text messages existed in her previous non-profit where users were confiding through text with sensitive personal information about their lives, such as sharing details about being bullied or a friend doing crystal meth.

Lublin shared one text message in particular that was her reason for deciding to fully launch Crisis Text Line. Lublin said, “I remember an employee printed out this one message that came from a girl that said, ‘He won’t stop raping me’, ‘It’s my dad’, and ‘He told me not to tell anyone’.” The final message that Lublin said the user wrote was, ‘R u there’. 

The Crisis Text Line’s existence helps illuminate a desperation that we are facing as a society to be known, have a safe place to land when mental health challenges arise, to be heard, to trust. It sheds light on the notion that some individuals feel compelled to message a stranger about the personal details of their life. This anonymity gives a level of comfort, especially when someone’s life may be at risk and they don’t have anyone to turn to. It also highlights a fear some of us face when confiding about our problems in others who know us.

Strong Support System Breaks Stigma

An American stigma remains: to seek mental health help is an admission of a character deficit. Too often a concern of being judged stops those who are struggling from seeking help. Instead, they may feel compelled to bottle up even the most traumatizing events of their life in an effort to maintain this ideal of a strong character for others. I battled these stigmas and stereotypes in the days following my break-up. I didn’t know who I could lean on or turn to for help. 

I was surprised to find the overwhelming love and support system surrounding me in the days following that phone call. I realized for the past six months, since I relocated, that a loving support system had been there the whole time. My own self-hatred and toxic relationships had prevented me from fully seeing and feeling my support system. That is not to say that everything magically got better after the first few days, and I know that I still have an incredibly long road ahead of me in order to heal.

My message in sharing my experience is that no matter how scared or alone you may think you are, you are always surrounded by people who love and support you, even if you do not realize it. The Crisis Text Line is part of that support network of people who love you and want to help. Maybe you are not a professional basketball player, but if you work, perhaps your company has resources like the NBA. 

Sometimes, it may feel like it will never get any better, or you may feel like there is no way out and no one who can understand your pain. The truth is your life matters and it is worth the fight for yourself. You are strong even if you don’t believe it. And please, find help if you are feeling alone. 

Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Resources

24/7 Crisis Text Line: Text “HOME” to 741741 in the US, 686868 in Canada, and 85258 in the UK. https://www.crisistextline.org

The Trevor Project: 24/7 call 866-488-7386 OR Live Chat Fridays 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm EST at https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help-now/

Love is Respect: 24/7 call: 866-331-9474 OR Chat Online with loveisrespect(7 days/week, 5:00 pm to 3:00 am EST) text “loveis” to 22522. https://www.loveisrespect.org/for-yourself/contact-us/

RAINN: Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network: 24/7 call 800-656-4673 or Live Chat with RAINN at https://www.rainn.org

Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: 24/7 call 800-422-4453 

Childhelp National Safe Place: 24/7 Text SAFE and your current location to 69866 https://www.thehotline.org

National Runaway Safeline: 24/7 call 800-786-2929 https://www.1800runaway.org

References

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Suicide Statistics. https://afsp.org/about-suicide/suicide-statistics/

Reboot. “Reboot Podcast Episode #64 - Whole Humans Make Better Leaders - With Nancy Lublin.” Reboot Podcast. 13, July. 2017. Web. https://www.reboot.io/episode/64-whole-humans-make-better-leaders-nancy-lublin/

Roscher, Liz. “NBA Reportedly Expands Mental Health Program For Players.” Yahoo Sports. 8 Aug. 2019. Web. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/nba-mental-health-program_l_5d4c2cd9e4b01e44e476860f

Ted. “Nancy Lublin. Texting that saves lives.” Youtube, 27 Apr. 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiUClSItcy0

Winerman, Lea. “By the numbers: An alarming rise in suicide.” American Psychological Association. Jan. 2019. Web.