September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month
My thoughts and prayers are with anyone who has lost someone to suicide or is experiencing inner turmoil. Below are some take aways I wanted to share from recent articles and statistics:
Colorado consistently ranks among the top 10 states with the highest suicide rates in the U.S
Men account for roughly 77% of suicide fatalities in Colorado, with white males facing the highest risk across age groups.
“Decades of research shows that unemployment, low income, high debt, unstable housing, and food insecurity make people more likely to kill themselves. Conversely, things that bring down people’s cost of living — such as increasing the minimum wage, providing food assistance, offering tax credits, and expanding health insurance coverage — are linked to lower suicide rates.”
The most recent data on contributing factors, from 2024, found 66% of people who died by suicide in Colorado had some sort of crisis in the two weeks before killing themselves. More than half had a diagnosed mental health problem, and a similar share had a known history of suicidal thoughts.
Sometimes people experience a rapid onset - looking out for a rapid change in behavior rather than just feeling worse; a red flag could be an unexplained mood improvement in someone with longstanding depression
How to talk and listen to someone with suicidal thoughts?
The National Alliance on Mental health has a great resource page
It is important that we ask questions in a thoughtful, non-judgmental manner, listen, show genuine care and connection, and support them in connecting with proper care (a therapist or taking them to a hospital)
https://www.nami.org/blog/how-to-talk-(and-listen)-to-someone-experiencing-suicidal-thoughts/
If you or someone you know is in crisis:
Contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting 988 or using chat services at 988lifeline.org to connect to a trained crisis counselor
Colorado Crisis Services: Call 1-844-493-8255
The Trevor Project's 24/7 Suicide Hotline for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth: Call 1-866-488-7386 or text START to 678-678.