Teen Suicide Prevention: Josh Platzer Society Blog

According to a national poll conducted for and on behalf of Your Life Counts by Harris Decima, an astonishing 83 per cent of Canadians did not know suicide was the second leading cause of death among our youth and one third (34 per cent) thought it was a small problem or not a problem at all. Conversely, 96 per cent of Canadians believe that in order to help reduce youth suicide in Canada, the topic should be freely discussed without fear or shame.What drives me in all of this is that I am survivor. If it were not for my wife I would not be here today. I am living proof that intervention works. I was not suffering from mental illness, I simply was faced with overwhelming loss and grief at the time and was not coping well with the circumstances. It is instructive, in the context of youth, for us to understand that *evidence based research shows that just 60% of youths who die by suicide have a pre-existing mental health issue.  (*Dr Antoon Leenaars; YLC Clinical Advisor among others). My point is that suicide is not always a mental health issue. The consideration of suicide needs a new pigeon hole –  it cannot all be hammered into the mental health pigeon hole.In the quest for understanding just why suicide is the second leading cause of death among our youth and how we need to increase awareness and attract investment in prevention I felt we needed to find out what Canadians think across the country.The Your Life Counts Poll shows very clearly that Canadians have given us permission to talk about suicide as an issue and to talk about prevention.For those of us who have lost a loved one to suicide may we find strength, courage and hope that the Your Life Counts Poll is helping us take a sledgehammer to the wall of silence.

Our website at www.yourlifecounts.org will be substantially enhanced in time for WSPD on 10^th September. For those who want to help / get involved/ learn more about our work please visit our website or email me directly at rbutler@yourlifecounts.org

Posters and Info for World Suicide Prevention Day are on display at the Bruce Hutchinson Library in Victoria, BC.

“According to 2006 figures from Statistics Canada — the latest available — 31 children (18 of them girls) between the ages of 10-14 committed suicide that year; 152 aged between 15 -19 (40 females) and 265 between 20-24 (46 females). These are recorded suicides. The actual figure is likely higher.”

Amy Minsky and Danielle Bell, Canwest News Service/Nanaimo Daily News: Friday, June 11, 2010

An effort by a Canadian woman to reach out via Facebook to an apparently suicidal illegal immigrant in the United States has become a mini online sensation, garnering support from tens of thousands of people in only a few days. 

The online discussions demonstrate how social media can serve as the nexus of deeply emotional and political issues, and how widely used sites such as Facebook are considerably more powerful in connecting people than specialized websites, such as those run by anti-suicide groups, says one expert.

Kimberly Furnell of Nanaimo, B.C., created the Facebook group “please don’t jump,” after she saw a message online from an anonymous poster claiming to be an illegal alien that detailed plans to jump off San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. 

“I just didn’t feel I could brush my teeth and go to bed,” said Furnell. “It was horrible.” 

She saw the message on postsecret.com, a blog that each week displays secrets anonymously sent in on postcards. 

The postcard that prompted Furnell to start the Facebook group featured an image of a globe, each continent identified by a bright colour. 

Pasted on top of the globe were lines of typed words cut from a larger sheet that read, “I have lived in San Francisco since I was young . . . I am illegal . . . I am not wanted here. I don’t belong anywhere. This summer I plan to jump off the Golden Gate.”

On Saturday at 11 p.m., Furnell created the group, hoping the individual would see it and reconsider, and for anyone who felt as if they did not belong. 

The page has since exploded, with nearly 47,000 members from across the globe as of Friday afternoon, with an outpouring of support. 

“Particularly with what’s going on in the United States, and especially in Arizona, with the criminalization of illegal immigrants, the suicide note is as much a personal statement as it is a political statement,” said Lisa Lynch, an assistant professor of journalism at Concordia University in Montreal and a social-media expert. 

“It’s as much a political act to say you’re going to kill yourself because you’re living in a country illegally and feel unwanted, as it is a cry of despair.” 

While “slacktivism” — a term used to describe the growing trend in taking political stand without looking away from a computer screen — is easily criticized, this is an example of how it can be effective, she said. 

“You can’t create a page and democratize Iran, perhaps. But here’s and instance where, if this person is authentic and they see it, it may actually have an impact on their life.” 

The Facebook page has elicited thousands of positive messages.

“Strangers everywhere love you and want you to keep living. When it gets hard, come here. Reach out. We’re waiting to help shoulder the burden,” writes one girl from Maryland. 

Another girl, this one from Texas, offered her phone number and said, “Don’t jump . . . if i could drive i would sleep on the bridge until i saw you.” 

Even if the individual in San Francisco who inspired the group doesn’t see the page, it has proven effective as a forum for people to discuss their own brushes with depression and suicidal thoughts, Lynch said. 

“That’s what’s unique about Facebook, is its ability for over 40,000 people to find each other in a few days,” she said, noting that few people go to support group websites unless they are directly implicated. 

But already, Furnell said she has received hundreds of e-mails telling her the group helped save their lives in dark moments.

On December 21/09, The Toronto Sun posted and article written by Amy Chung called:  Suicide’s Unholy Trinity.

Definitely worth a read!

What’s in a Word? the Language of suicide
The following information is to increase awareness of the need
to change the language used around suicide and suicide prevention
with the goal of reducing the stigma. Language that instills a caring,
understanding and non-judgmental viewpoint offers hope for
family members and communities grieving a death by suicide
of a loved one.

Each year more than 400 people die by suicide in Alberta. Suicide
claims more lives annually than motor vehicle collisions. As a
result, many Albertans have been impacted by losing someone
to suicide.
Survivors, people who have lost someone to suicide, indicate
the language used to describe suicide deaths further stigmatizes
a tragic situation for those grieving and coping with the suicide
death of a loved one. This stigma makes it more difficult for people
to reach out for help or for others to reach in to assist them.

The terms “committed suicide” or “completed suicide” have
been used to describe these tragedies. The word commit
presents a particular problem since it is also used for criminal
offences such as homicide and assault. Suicide is not a criminal
act. Death by suicide, died by suicide or suicide more accurately
describe the reality and respect the needs of those left behind.

The term “successful” used to describe a suicide death does
not reflect the reality. Every suicide is a tragedy. Likewise, to
describe a suicide attempt that does not result in death as a
“failure” is also misleading. Suicide, death by suicide and
died by suicide more accurately reflects what has occurred.
Changing the language used to describe suicide is not easy.

For such change to occur, the involvement of many stakeholders
to help lead and support this change is essential. The outcome
is well worth it – helping to reduce the stigma and barriers to
supporting survivors through the tragedy of a death by suicide.

Copies of A CALL TO ACTION: The Alberta Suicide Prevention Strategy
are available at www.amhb.ab.ca. simply type “a Call to action” in the website search menu.

Over 60 people attended a special event  to promote World Suicide Prevention Day.( Sept 10th)

Jude spoke about her work in the schools and in  the community and the documentary You, Me and the Kids was shown. Following the movie there was a Q & A session  with Jude, a local psychiatrist and members of the local community