“I recently learned that every 18 minutes in the United States of America someone chooses to end their life. That means that during the course of this program today, 10 individuals will have ended their lives by suicide,” said Deb Pizzimenti, Suncoast Mental Health Center director of outreach, at the start of a World Suicide Prevention Day Symposium.
The event last Friday morning at Tradition Town Hall was sponsored by Martin Health Systems and by Suncoast, which serves the behavioral and mental health needs of residents in Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee Counties.
Art Ciasca, Suncoast CEO, shared statistics from the Center for Disease Control that indicates an increase in suicides across every age, gender and ethnicity. In 2014, more than 1 million Americans attempted suicide and more than 41,000 succeeded, making it the 10th leading cause of death, more than twice the number of homicides.
In Florida alone there were 2,900 suicides; in local counties, eight in Okeechobee, 24 in Martin, 26 in Indian River and 46 in St. Lucie. Among groupings, the largest numbers are among white males and pre-teen females. Women are three times more likely to attempt suicide, but because men tend to utilize firearms, they are four times more likely to succeed.
“By midnight tonight, 11 youth under the age of 24 will end their life by suicide, and that will happen again tomorrow and the next day and the next day,” said Ciasca.
He went on to stress the importance of education and awareness, increased access to care and decreasing the stigma attached to mental health issues. Ciasca said suicide is a sign of extreme distress, not a harmless call for attention, and that often people don’t realize that the pain they live with might stem from an easily treatable condition.
“It does not mean that you or an afflicted loved one is evil or weak or lazy or nuts. Full-blown clinical depression is a real disease like diabetes or heart disease,” said Ciasca. “It is not under the control of the person who has it and it is not amenable to a do-it-yourself approach. But professional help is available and can change your life. Many successful, competent men and women have succeeded in life in spite of debilitating depression. It can happen to anyone at any time and it takes many forms.”
Rep. Gayle Harrell, chairman of the Children, Families and Seniors Committee in the Florida House of Representatives, spoke briefly and said she wants to make mental health and substance abuse a key focus of the legislature.
“We need to talk about mental health in the same way we talk about physical health. Suicide among our young people, 10 to 15, is huge. It is just overwhelming to think that someone that young has no one to turn to,” said Harrell. She added that she would like to see school districts getting involved, training teachers in the signs and symptoms, and destigmatizing the issue of mental health.
Fred Borowicz, LCSW, a retired Army officer who is now a clinician with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs West Palm Beach Suicide Prevention team, spoke about the ways they are working to combat the high number of suicides among veterans, which the latest data indicates is roughly 20 per day. He also discussed components of the training program, Operation S.A.V.E. (Signs of suicide, Asking about suicide, Validating feelings, Encouraging help and Expediting treatment).
“Eighteen percent of all U.S. deaths from suicide were veterans,” said Borowicz. “The VA is doing everything it can to provide education and monitoring for high-risk veterans. There are no quick solutions, but help is available.”
Borowicz stressed the need to open up a dialog and allow people to talk about their feelings, especially men who are less inclined to do so.
“Listen more than talk; let them know that what they have to say is important,” he said, noting that a critical question should be, “Are you thinking about suicide?”
While changes in behavior are often signs of suicidal thinking, and there are some veteran-specific suicidal risks, such as frequent deployments and difficulties readjusting to peacetime, he stated some people show no signs of intent to harm themselves before doing so.
Travis Martin, a decorated St. Lucie County firefighter who took early retirement after 18 years on the job, related his own personal story, sharing that the stress of his position contributed to a downward spiral of alcohol abuse, anger and depression, before he hit rock bottom and almost ended it all with a bottle of rum and a pistol. With help from a therapist, he began to understand that he was not alone in needing help and is now creating a foundation to assist others through mindfulness and alternative therapies such as medication, yoga, art and music.
“Suicides within our public safety communities are on the rise,” said Martin, citing statistics that in the U.S., 112 firefighters and EMTs were lost to suicide in 2014, 129 in 2015 and 90 to date in 2016. “It is time that we work together and recognize that PTSD and suicide is a real thing among our public safety workers.”
Torrey Dalgleish, a mental health therapist at Suncoast, said that while there is no single cause for suicide, some of the leading causes include chronic pain from serious medical conditions, stressful life events, exposure to another person’s suicide and having access to lethal means. She advised opening up the conversation if you notice warning signs such as changes in mood or behavior, comments about being a burden, or self-medicating through drugs or alcohol.
“Open up the conversation. You will NOT increase the chances of someone committing suicide by asking about it,” said Dalgleish.
The very real danger of cyberbullying was also brought up, with Ciasca stressing that even children sitting at home in their living room are no longer safe.
“This is a fairly new issue that we as a society have to deal with,” said Ciasca, adding that unlike schoolyard bullies, who may taunt in front of small groups of children, cyberbullying has the potential to reach thousands of people.
“There is help available, and it’s OK to access that help,” said Ciasca.
For more information, visit suncoastmentalhealth.org.