Suicide Prevention

**Important Disclaimer**
This page is for informational purposes only. BVA does not recommend any specific therapy modality, any provider, or course of treatment.

This page should NOT be used as a substitute for medical advice, counseling, or as a replacement for the services of a trained medical or mental health professional. If you are feeling suicidal, thinking about hurting yourself, or are concerned that someone you know may be in danger of hurting him/herself, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1.800.273.TALK (8255). If you feel that you are in a crisis or an emergency, or are at risk for suicide or other harm or injury, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room immediately.

Wellcast - How to Help Someone Who is Suicidal

Wellcast - For Those Considering Suicide

General Information

MYTH 1: "Teens who threaten to commit suicide are just looking for attention"

Teens are usually very good at hiding problems, especially from adults. A teen who is talking about suicide needs to be listened to carefully and taken seriously - seek professional help immediately.

MYTH 2: "Asking teens if they have had thoughts about suicide increases their risk"

Sometimes parents fear that bringing up the subject of suicide will increase risk. Asking direct questions about suicide increase risk - it will allow you to get them help.

MYTH 3: "Teens who aren't successful in completing suicide weren't serious"

A teen that attempts suicide is trying to stop their pain. Teens who make an attempt are at much higher risk of trying again, and their second attempts are much more likely to be lethal.

MYTH 4: "Teens who commit suicide always act sad beforehand"

Depressed teens might not appear sad or depressed. They may appear irritable or withdrawn, and may be happy at times. Suicide may be a rather sudden response to a major stressful event.

MYTH 5: "Teens who commit suicide spend a lot of time planning it"

The decision to commit suicide may be planned – but it could also be somewhat of an impulsive one. Suicide may feel like the best way to escape pain. A teen who has been humiliated, rejected, or subjected to bullying, for example, may think suicide is the only way out.

MYTH 6: "Suicide among teens is rare"

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in teens. Suicides don’t usually make the news and many families keep a teen’s suicide as private as possible.

MYTH 7: "A suicide plan doesn't mean a teen is actually at risk of following through"

A teen with a specific plan for how and when to commit suicide is a teen in serious trouble. When a mental health professional assesses a teen for suicide risk, meeting this criteria means the teen is potentially in immediate danger and steps need to be taken to ensure safety.

Let's Talk Facts

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in the United States among young people aged 12 to 18 (CDC WISQARS, 2020)
More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung disease combined (Jason Foundation, 2023)
In a typical day in the United States, there are an average of 3,703 suicide attempts made by middle school and high school students (CDC WISQARS, 2020)
Far more children think abotu killing themselves than those who actually attempt suicide - this is called suicidal ideation
4 out of 5 individual considering suicide give some sign of their intentions, either verbally or behaviorally (Jason Foundation, 2023)
LGBTQ youth are four times more likely to consider suicide than their peers (The Trevor Project, 2021)

Risk Factors

What is a Risk Factor?

Behaviors or conditions that might increase the likelihood of attempting suicide

Risk Factors

Previous suicide attempts
A recent loss, such as a loved one, relationship, job, recent parental separation or divorce
Being bullied at school or elsewhere
Depression and other mental disorders
Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI)—a person cutting or injuring themselves without any intent or plan to die

Warning Signs

Direct

Indirect

“I’ve decided to kill myself”
“I wish I were dead”
“I am going to commit suicide”
“I’m going to end it all”
“If (such and such) doesn’t happen, I’ll kill myself”

“I’m tired of life, I just can’t go on”
“My family would be better off without me”
“Who cares if I’m dead anyway”
“I just want out”
“I won’t be around much longer”
“Pretty soon you won’t have to worry about me”

Examples

Previous suicide attempt
Acquiring a gun or stocking up on pills
Depression, moodiness, hopelessness
Putting personal affairs in order
Giving away prized possessions
Sudden interest or disinterest in religion
Unexplained anger, aggression, irritability
Drug or alcohol abuse, or relapse
Recent disappointment or rejection
Sudden decline in academic performance
Increased apathy
Physical symptoms: decline in personal hygiene or grooming, eating disturbances, changes in sleep patterns, chronic headaches, stomach problems
Sudden improvement in the mood or optimism, or making of grandiose plans

Virtual Calming Room

The Virtual Calming Room has sections for Sound & Music, Videos, Live Animal Cameras, Mindfulness, Guided Meditation, Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Deep Breathing, Yoga & Stretching, Arts & Creativity, Puzzles & Games, Journaling, Humor, Virtual Tours, Virtual Rides, and Inspirational & Motivational.

Helpful Apps

There are many free and paid apps that help with depression and suicide prevention.

Smartphone Apps Page

Other Resources

National Institute of Mental Health - Teen Depression booklet

NIH - Teen Depression

Erika's Lighthouse

Parent Handbook

Parents & Guardians

Information on this page is from the Safer Homes Suicide Aware website. See here for more information. Safer Homes, Suicide Aware is a public health campaign focused on saving lives lost to suicide. Our goal is to help you learn practical skills that will help change public behavior on locking and limiting unauthorized access to firearms and medications.

When individuals are acting suicidal, the safest option is to make sure that someone is always with them.

85% of youth under 18 who died by firearm suicide used a family member's gun

Safer Outside the House - reduce access to a firearms by temporarily removing them

Ask a trusted friend or relative to hold on to your firearms temporarily

Ask a local firearm dealer or gun range if they would store the guns

Look at storage facilities - some allow unloaded guns to be stored

Keeping Safer At Home - if removing the guns is not an option, there are steps you can take to help reduce the risk

Firearms are stored unloaded and ammunition is stored separately from firearms.

Safes

A firearm safe is the most secure option. A safe can range from $35 to $1,000+. The price will depend on the type of safe. The keys to a safe should always be secured and NOT be kept in an obvious place!

There are small digital lock boxes that are easily accessible to the owner, but not to someone at risk. The code should not be one that would be easy for a person at risk to guess!

Trigger Locks

Trigger locks prevent firing the trigger on a gun.

Trigger locks can come with keys or with a digital option. Be sure and keep your keys safe and not on the same key ring as your house or car keys.

The trigger locks that look like bicycle locks are the simplest and cheapest, but are also the easiest to break. A more expensive trigger lock fits into the trigger mechanism of a handgun or rifle.

Medications are (by far) the most common method of nonfatal suicide attempts for all ages and all genders

Limit, Lock Up, & Dispose

Limit

Do not keep lethal doses of any medication in the house. Even some over-the-counter medications, such as Tylenol, can be lethal when taken in high enough doses!

Keep only small quantities of alcohol in the house. Alcohol can greatly increase the lethality of a drug overdose. It also lowers inhibition making a person more likely to make impulsive choices such as a suicide attempt.

Lock Up

Always lock up prescription painkillers such as oxycodone or methadone. They are lethal and addictive.

Consider locking up all medications (prescription and over-the-counter). Medication lock boxes are available online and from many pharmacies. Some are simple lock boxes while others dispense daily doses of pills at programmed intervals while keeping the remaining pills locked.

Dispose

Dispose of medications that are outdated or that you no longer need.

Drug Disposal Locations

FDA Safe to Flush List

FDA Do Not Flush List

When someone is at increased risk for suicide, they need increased support from family and friends. Ongoing expressions of care and concern are critical!

Show the Love

Kids need to hear over and over again from you how much you love and care for them. It’s not good enough to just say, “You know I love you.” Let them know how important they are to you.

Express Empathy

It’s important to validate your child’s feelings. Make statements that express empathy for distress: “It sounds like that was really difficult” or “I know how painful that can be” or “I know what that’s like. I’ve felt that way.”

Avoid saying things such as "you shouldn't feel that way" or to “pull it together,”

Prioritize the Positive

Prioritize interacting with your child in positive ways. Some times we get into a sort of vicious cycle with a child. The child does something concerning; the parent gets critical; the kid does something more concerning; the parents get more upset. Interacting in positive ways means doing fun things together, hanging out and chatting about things that aren’t difficult.

Minimize Conflict

Choose your battles wisely. It’s part of normal development for adolescents to rebel. Carefully choose what you’re going to set limits about, and the rest of the time you want to focus on the positive connections. Your goal is to reassure your struggling child that they won’t feel like this forever, and you can help do this by promoting positive experiences. When kids feel suicidal it’s often because they feel hopeless and can’t imagine things being better.

Monitor

Monitor your child’s whereabouts when they aren’t with you - whether online or out of the house. Monitor their social media presence as well.

Talk Openly

If you think your child might be suicidal, talk about it, ask about it! People are afraid that if they talk about suicide it is more likely to happen. The truth is the opposite. It's critical that your child feels there is someone safe in the family to talk to about everything, including suicidal ideation. Your child will feel validated, understood, and cared for. Being open and honest also gives you an opening to talk about treatment such as psychotherapy and/or medication.

Find a clinician who is a good match

There is no "one size fits all" for mental health counseling. There are many theories clinicians can use. If the theory or approach one clinician uses isn't work for you or your child, find another clinician. It's critically important that you choose someone who both you and your child feel comfortable with. If your child says, "I can’t connect" or " I don’t feel comfortable,” you need to find a new clinician.

**Important Disclaimers**

Suicide assessments are a tool to determine the urgency of the need to seek professional help. The accuracy of the assessment depends on how honest the child is.

The counselor will give you their risk assessment and resources to follow up with outside mental health and/or medical professionals. Even a "low" suicide risk is still a risk! It is always recommended to schedule an assessment with an outside mental health professional.

What to Expect

Arrival

Approach the main desk and tell them why you need help
Be certain to use the word suicide
Don’t expect them to want to know very much- their job is to assess urgency & direct next steps
- If there has been physical injury, you will be escorted to a bed or cubicle;
- If there is not an injury, you will be moved to a clerical station or sent back to the waiting room
- Patience is necessary!

Treatment Room

Initial Care

Expect to be known as the person in Bed 3 or cubicle A-4. It protects your identity.
Be prepared to repeat information many times to different hospital staff
A nurse responsible for your location will begin the assessment - their job is to ascertain what brought you in, establish whether or not there are immediate medical concerns and decide if you need to be referred for more intensive examination by psychiatry emergency staff.

Information Gathering

Be as accurate as possible!
The doctor may order tests/assessments to make sure there is no immediate medical concern. This may require going to other sites in the hospital.
The staff is trying to decide what the problem is and what has caused it. This may all seem obvious to you but it isn’t to them.

Recommendations Provided

Communication Resources Recommendation

The assessment outcome and treatment recommendations will be presented to you. It can be very frustrating to wait and then be told the best source of help is in another place that may not be available for days or week.
If you believe that the assessment has failed to understand the life-threatening nature of the situation, restate your concerns until you feel they are adequately understood. Do not hesitate to ask questions!
The outcome should be a workable safety plan that can be followed and a referral to a community mental health provider before leaving the ER! It should offer some relief from current distressing situations and provide immediate action to ensure safety.

Further Examination Needed

Staff may recommend further specialized examinations by mental health caregivers. These professional caregivers are experienced in making a more detailed review of suicide risk and in developing complex safety plans.
You may be offered medication or to move to a quiet place out of the ER
You will be asked many of the same questions again
A mental health assessment can take from 15-90 minutes. It is an in-depth examination of your mental state and your present and past history. Some questions may feel uncomfortable but be as honest as possible.
The assessment is determining whether or not you are safe to leave the ER, whether a mental disorder is contributing to your current problem, and planning interventions
It may take several hours to gather all the information needed

Admission

A plan for admission to a hospital or another care facility means that there is a significant concern about present safety.
The ER doctor has the legal responsibility to make sure you stay safe so you will not be allowed to leave. This can be unpleasant but ensuring a safe space for you is the primary goal.

School Contact

The school counselor will contact you to report safety concerns

Information & Resources

The school counselor will let you know about the results of the suicide assessment, why the counselor is concerned, and a parent resource pack.

Assessment

Immediately take your child to the Emergency Room for a safety assessment. The hospital will a recommendation:

They might recommend outpatient care where your child will come home with you.

They might also recommend inpatient care where your child is admitted to a mental health facility.

Home Changes

Review and implement safety recommendations for your home - see the Safety Starts At Home: Preventing Access to Means tab

Communication

If your child is going to be inpatient let BVA know. We will coordinate with teachers and staff.

Once your child has been released or is ready to work on schoolwork again, let the us know so we can coordinate reentry.

School Contact

The school counselor will contact you to report safety concerns

Information & Resources

The school counselor will let you know about the results of the suicide assessment, why the counselor is concerned, and a parent resource pack.

Recommended Assessment

Hotlines & Textlines

Immediately schedule an assessment with a mental health professional

Even a "low" suicide risk is still a risk! It is still always advisable to schedule an assessment!
You can bring your child to the Emergency Room for an immediate evaluation
See Hotlines & Textlines for a partial list of local providers

Home Changes

Review and implement safety recommendations for your home - see the Safety Starts At Home: Preventing Access to Means tab

Communication

Once your child has been assessed by a mental health professional, let the us know the recommendations.

Counseling Department

Bethel Virtual Academy

Suicide Prevention

General Information

Let's Talk Facts

Risk Factors

What is a Risk Factor?

Risk Factors

Warning Signs

Direct

Indirect

Parents & Guardians

Limit, Lock Up, & Dispose

Limit

Lock Up

Dispose

What to Expect

School Contact

Information & Resources

Recommended Assessment

Home Changes

Communication