Suicide Awareness and Prevention
Warning signs
- Most people who think about suicide do communicate this to others in some way. Commonly this will be verbal - your friend may say that "life is too much bother" and that "others would be better off without them".
- withdraw from people and things the person has been interested in.
- less care in hygiene or personal grooming.
- changes in sleeping or eating patterns - either sleeping or eating more than usual or not sleeping or eating well.
- preoccupation with death.
- Giving away personal possessions suddenly
- You may note that your friend is suddenly cheerful even though the situation still looks the same. This may indicate that a decision has been made to commit suicide.
Campus and Local Resource Phone Numbers
- Local 24 hour crisis line: 610-252-9060
- Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK
- Counseling Services-- 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday - Friday: 610-861-1510
- Campus Safety and Police Services: 610-861-1421
Some of the reasons why people consider suicide:
- Want relief from painful circumstance that the person feels helpless to change.
- Feel that something huge has to be done in order to be taken seriously.
- The person may feel no hope that things will change, they will always feel bad, and that nobody will ever understand.
- The person may want desperately to control the loss of a relationship.
- The suicidal person may not recognize any options or that this crisis will end in time.
The situation may be that the person has:
- Lost a significant relationship or status
- Been rejected by someone you really want to be in your life.
- Had a real blow to your self esteem.
- Been telling yourself that you're bad and want to punish yourself.
- Strong reactions to change in your family, in where you live, in status.
- Lost a friend or family member through illness, accident, or suicide.
- Feelings of worthlessness, alienation, loneliness, homesickness, anger.
- Confusing thoughts which interfere with life, with sleep, with school.
How to help?
- Listen carefully and ask. Sometimes the cues are quite subtle and easy to miss if you aren’t really listening. Don’t be afraid to ask someone if they are thinking about suicide. It won’t give them ideas.
- Take your friend seriously - even if they are talking about it flippantly.
- Offer support, but don’t try to handle this on your own.
- Try to persuade your friend to get professional help. If they won’t - ask a professional for advice yourself. Don’t allow yourself to be "trapped" by promises of secrecy. Where someone’s life is in danger confidentiality must come second.
- Show the person you care. Sometimes just some thoughtful gestures or words - or even a hug helps.
- Acknowledge that things are difficult for them. Don’t try and cheer them up or tell them to "snap out of it."
- Suggest that if they are willing to let others help, that there may be some really good, new solutions to the problems which currently seem insurmountable.
Most people who think about suicide are so overwhelmed by the enormity of their problems that they can’t see any other way out. However, there are other ways of dealing with things. Only by being alive can one put them into practice. Most people welcome alternatives that work, but it may take some time and some talking to discover them.
Campus and Local Resource Phone Numbers
- Local 24 hour crisis line: 610-252-9060
- Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK
- Counseling Services-- 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Monday - Friday: 610-861-1510
- Campus Safety and Police Services: 610-861-1421
Suicide Prevention Resources