Suicide prevention, no shame in talking

Commissioners hear from prevention coalition

ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- Members of the Belmont County Suicide Prevention Coalition visited the Belmont County Board of Commissioners to speak about National Suicide Prevention Month this September and the efforts to raise awareness and provide help for those in need of it.

Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the state of Ohio and the second leading cause of death for individuals ranging from age 15-34, the third leading cause of death for those ages 10-14 and the fourth leading cause of death for those 35-54.

Officially, 12 people committed suicide in Belmont County last year, but coalition members said those numbers do not tell the whole story. They pointed out there are many cases when an individual in a rural area commits suicide and is transported to a hospital in Wheeling, and that is where the death is recorded.

"One of the problems we have in this area is being rural, oftentimes the person will go to Wheeling (hospital) after their attempt, and so if the attempt is completed and they die in Wheeling, that's a statistic for West Virginia rather than Belmont," Earl Smith, elder at the Stillwater Friends Meeting in Barnesville and editor of the coalition's Facebook site, said.

In addition, he said there are other cases such as drug overdoses where it cannot be determined if the overdose was deliberate.

"The result is the same: We have a statistic in the county where they actually die, and a lot of times if it is through overdose - once in awhile it'll be through a one-car auto accident - you can't prove that it was actually a suicide attempt."

"Unfortunately, we don't have the data to pull from because we are such a small rural Appalachian area. That's why we kind of started this coalition in February of 2017. To increase the awareness and education and decrease the stigma around mental health," Erica Krusec, associate director of the Mental Health and Recovery Board and the president of the Suicide Prevention Coalition, said.

They said the goals include raising awareness and recognizing signs of distress, as well as encouraging people to seek help and to be aware of the available resources. Molly Holden, member of the Tri-County Help Center and vice president of the coalition, added that suicide is frequently connected to mental health issues.

"We have such a negative connotation of those illnesses and those behaviors," Holden said.

"People don't want to face that judgment more than they're already judging themselves," she said. "It's OK to have bad days. If your bad days are turning into suicidal days, it's time to get you some help."

They said options include reaching out to loved ones, calling a crisis line or texting. Numerous faith-based organizations are also cooperating.

In cases where the emergency seems immediate, the text line has the ability to pinpoint the location of the data and contact local emergency services.

"Normally they just text back and forth with a trained clinician if there's just texting about bullying or mental health issues," Helms said.

"It was started in Ohio by the Stark County Mental health Board," Smith said. "They found it very successful, and so last year it was expanded statewide."

Smith added that there are several denominations of faith-based organizations involved.

"We're always looking for others to join us," he said.

"Any type of organization or agency," Helms added.

"We realize that a lot of times, a person has anxiety about a particular issue. It might be school, it might be family," Smith said. "A big problem in school these days is bullying. That's always been around, but it seems like it's a little bit more of a problem these days. A lot of times the person will go to their pastor first, when they have a problem with social issues."

Helms said the coalition members are learning more about mental health issues and how to address them constructively.

Belmont County Commissioner Mark Thomas also commented on the importance of remembering those who have committed suicide, supporting survivors of suicide attempts and the family and friends of those who have died by suicide, and working to eliminate the stigma of mental illness.

A suicide awareness tree will be placed at various sites around the county. The ribbons on the tree serve as symbols for people who have committed suicide.

The coalition meets at 1:30 p.m. the fourth Thursday of each month at the Belmont Gymnasium in Belmont, adjacent to former school/municipal building on Third Street.

The crisis number is 800-354-4357, or those in crisis can text is 4hope to 741741.