Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Suicide Prevention

Take steps to maintain your mental health through the darker months. Stay active, eat and sleep well and stay connected to friends and fun.

Our culture leads us to believe that youth is the best time of our lives. This is just not true. It is a time when we are growing up emotionally and this is a challenge. If you think you are the only one having trouble, be assured, you are not.

Young people think about suicide. Don’t be afraid to talk about it. If you have concerns about a friend, do not be afraid to talk to them about it – this does not cause them to act on it. Non-judgemental listening can bring relief to someone who is troubled.

Young people can be high risk because of school pressures, major life changes, hormone changes, over use of drugs including alcohol and sexual orientation issues.

Some warning sign can be eating disorders, deliberate self harm,
withdrawal from normal activities, exceptional and extreme
mood swings, perfectionistic behaviour or extreme self
critical behaviour.

Talk about it. See Jodie in the Student Success Hub to make an appointment with counselling or Mind and Wellness Services. You do not have to say why you are making an appointment. Many students seek support for a variety of reasons.

Check in with campus health services. These are free and the staff are wonderful. The campus doctor is available for appointments on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons

Keep in contact with trusted friends.

"Learn to recognize the symptoms of suicide. Don’t be
ashamed. Remember feelings are not facts. Suicidal feelings
are a symptom of your illness. You need help and support to
get through them but you will get through them." (from checkupfrom theneckup)

Suicide is rarely a sudden decision but is part of a process. Check out the listed websites for information on how to deal with these feelings or on how to recognize the signs in yourself or someone else.
These sites offer information on myths about suicide, common warning signs and what you can do to help yourself or someone else.


http://www.cmha.ca/bins/content_page.asp?cid=3-101-104&lang=1


http://www.checkupfromtheneckup.ca/Suicide_final.pdf

No comments: