Listen to Dr Braccio & Dave Akerly discuss new guidance from CDC on self-harm and the rise in suicide as the pandemic drags on.

CDC(CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION)STUDY SHOWS INCREASE IN SUICIDAL THOUGHTS IN AMERICANS FROM 4.3% IN AUGUST OF 2018 TO 11% IN AUGUST OF 2020. These are not the results a country is looking for from a mental health perspective. In fact, they are very painful and disheartening. They also are predictably enhanced by the COVID-19 PANDEMIC we are all experiencing. Approximately 50,000 persons commit suicide in the United States yearly. Every imaginable grouping of persons is vulnerable to suicide. Over the years all of us experience a family member, close friend or someone we know who committed suicide. I have personally had this happen myself. It is devastating for the persons left behind who will try to understand why this happened and often, unfortunately, have inappropriate guilt, shame, depression, anxiety, PTSD and feelings of hopelessness. It is important as a society that we talk about suicide and try to be helpful to persons who we know are going through difficult times. An unfortunate aspect of suicide prevention is that there are persons who are able to hide their pain from those around them who love and care for them. It also is true if a person determines to commit suicide, over time they will do it in spite of the most loving and caring attempts to prevent it. Again, I am personally aware of this happening in my own life and professional experiences. The following are some suggestions for what we can do when we believe someone we know and care for is going through a particularly hard time and are concerned suicide is a possibility: 1.Talk to the person in a caring but straight forward manner to understand where the person is emotional. 2.Ask if the person has had or has suicidal thoughts and has a plan to do it. 3.Ask if the person has any weapons in the home. if yes, ask if they were recently purchased. 4.Ask if the person is doing such things as calling persons for a last call, giving away personally important things, putting important life matters in order, social withdrawal, preoccupation with death, risky and atypical behaviors such as excessive alcohol consumption and/or drugs, and personality changes from extreme serenity to extreme agitation. 5.If your concerns merit it, try to convince the person to seek professional support including the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255. 6.If the person is clearly suicidal and in need of immediate help, you can call 911 or if the situation merits it, take the person to the hospital yourself.