OK to not be OK: Suicide Prevention Awareness Month offers reminder to check in
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无毛视频淗ow are you doing?无毛视频�
It无毛视频檚 a simple question, but when the issue is someone无毛视频檚 mental health, Nicholas Orlando called it, 无毛视频淭he greatest thing someone can do.无毛视频�
无毛视频淭he trick is to create space that someone feels safe in,无毛视频� said Orlando, a licensed professional counselor practicing in Waynesburg. 无毛视频淚t goes further if they know there is someone who loves and cares about them.无毛视频�
September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and for Orlando, a major part of spreading awareness is making sure people know that having conversations about mental health is important and necessary.
无毛视频淵ou don无毛视频檛 ignore it, and you don无毛视频檛 avoid the topic 无毛视频� One of the biggest misconceptions about mental health is if you talk about mental health, people will become unwell, that you are going to play into a stigma, and that无毛视频檚 not true,无毛视频� Orlando said. 无毛视频淲e need to talk about it.无毛视频�
Wherever you live, it is likely your community has resources available if you are depressed or having suicidal ideation, or know someone else who may be struggling.
In Washington County, the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, which is within the larger human services department, can connect residents with a range of resources.
无毛视频淲e offer both children and adult mental health services. Ranging anywhere from in-home services, residential placements, outpatient therapy, medication management. Most importantly, we do have a 24/7 crisis intervention line,无毛视频� said Jennifer Scott, the department无毛视频檚 administrator.
Earlier this year, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline changed from an 800 number to a more simple, three-digit number 无毛视频� 988.
Since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, however, Scott says the need for mental health services has risen sharply in Washington County.
无毛视频淲e have seen a fairly significant increase, to the point we are starting to have wait lists for services,无毛视频� Scott said. 无毛视频淭he numbers have gotten so high, our current services are not able to meet them.无毛视频�
Part of the reason for that was the isolation, according to Scott.
无毛视频淚t led to some people being depressed because they did not have the social interactions. Sometimes those things that can be identified in schools are missed,无毛视频� Scott said.
Orlando stressed that it is not necessarily the case that the pandemic created mental health issues, but rather made people more aware of those problems.
无毛视频淎 lot more people kind of had to be with themselves,无毛视频� Orlando said. 无毛视频淎 lot of us had mental health experiences that weren无毛视频檛 addressed because of how busy we were. Certain stressors were considered normal. When they return to 无毛视频榥ormal无毛视频� life after the shutdown, what ended up happening was they got a taste of that stress again and said, 无毛视频極h, that无毛视频檚 not normal.'无毛视频�
Scott also said the transition back to relative normalcy has been difficult for both children and adults.
无毛视频淭here are some people who legitimately are afraid to get back into the workforce. It definitely impacted all ages,无毛视频� Scott said.
Fayette County has seen a similar rise in people seeking mental health services. Regina Donkers, a behavioral health program specialist for the county, said part of the issue has been filling necessary positions, and losing people due to retirement or career changes.
Donkers pointed out that part of the increase stems from people being more comfortable discussing their mental health.
无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 not just professionals talking about mental health. Our young people, they are really on the ball talking about their mental health and realizing, 无毛视频業 can无毛视频檛 deal with this,'无毛视频� Donkers said.
Brean Fuller, the director of Greene County无毛视频檚 mental health program, said they have also seen an increase in people seeking help, and while they have also been affected by workforce shortages, it has not been to the degree of other communities.
无毛视频淚f you speak about Greene County specifically, we无毛视频檝e been able to manage,无毛视频� Fuller said.
Orlando无毛视频檚 Waynesburg practice is Orlando Counseling Services. It is located on East High Street as part of a therapy co-op called Therapeutic Healing Services, which houses four other practices.
According to Orlando, how we talk about mental health and our willingness to do so greatly affects those who may need help.
Someone who is trying to express their mental health issues may do so in subtle ways, such as with a comment like, 无毛视频淚 wish something right would go in my life.无毛视频�
Orlando says sometimes these windows to intervene can be small.
无毛视频淭hat could be the thing. We miss the opportunity to say, 无毛视频楧o you want to talk about that?'无毛视频� Orlando said. 无毛视频淭hen, they无毛视频檙e in a good spot. They, 无毛视频榳ent back to normal.无毛视频� Now that person is not verbalizing it. They will not tell it. When someone commits suicide, it can be out of the blue. That无毛视频檚 the reason why we want to capture those moments and say, 无毛视频業 am here for you, and I无毛视频檓 willing to listen to this. I无毛视频檓 OK talking about something hard. I love you.'无毛视频�
What is not helpful, Orlando added, is the 无毛视频渟uck it up无毛视频� attitude.
无毛视频淚 think that is generational. I think there are some cultural factors to that as well 无毛视频� This person has finally come to someone, and they hear, 无毛视频楽uck it up.'无毛视频� That is an attitude and a belief about how we handle things that needs to stop,无毛视频� Orlando said.
Even with that cultural barrier, Orlando praised the work Greene County has done with mental health services and the willingness of community leaders to talk about these issues.
Fuller said that in her five years working for the county, she has made breaking down that stigma a priority and feels they have made progress.
无毛视频淭ypically when someone thinks about a mental illness, we want to flip their thoughts to thinking about their own mental wellness 无毛视频� If they无毛视频檙e seeing signs of depressions in themselves or anxiety, there are services out there that can help them with that. There is no shame in it,无毛视频� Fuller said.
Part of their efforts have been through forming Team Hope, which was started when Fuller was approached by three parents who lost children to suicide and felt that something needed to be done in Greene County.
Fuller said Team Hope has been running for a couple of months, and that they meet monthly.
无毛视频淚n just our short time together, we have a number of awareness events going on in our local school districts, at the (Waynesburg) university, at local sporting events. We无毛视频檝e put signs and banners throughout the community,无毛视频� Fuller said.
One of the parents who helped start Team Hope was Anita Mullen, a pre-K teacher in the Jefferson Morgan School District. At 2 p.m. Sept. 17, there will be a 无毛视频榃alk for Mullen无毛视频� in Mather, in honor of Mullen无毛视频檚 son.
无毛视频淪he has really taken something that is a tragic event for any family to go through, and really brought so much hope and love to the community,无毛视频� Fuller said.
Washington County also has upcoming suicide awareness events. Oct. 2 will be the Walk to Fight Suicide at Wild Things Park. According to Scott, about 200 walkers have already registered. This is the first year for the event.
无毛视频淭he money goes back into services and education in mental health,无毛视频� Scott said.
According to Donkers, a vigil will be held at 6 p.m. Sept. 22 in front of the Fayette County Courthouse. The vigil will be not only for victims of suicide, but for their surviving families and those who have attempted suicide.
无毛视频淲hen there is a death of a person by suicide, that death affects at least six other people,无毛视频� Donkers said. 无毛视频淚t无毛视频檚 not just affecting that one person or family. There are others it is affecting throughout the community.无毛视频�
In addition to the national hotline, Washington, Greene and Fayette County have local numbers that residents can call if they are in crisis.
In Washington, that number is 724-225-3584. There is also a text-only hotline at 724-715-3584. A line specifically for veterans is available at 1-800-273-8255.
Greene residents can call 1-800-417-9460, or text #63288. The local number in Fayette is 724-437-1003.