Active Minds plans to include MU in Suicide Prevention Week
Published Sept. 8, 2008
Speaker's Circle will glow with candles tonight during a vigil for suicide victims as part of a national Suicide Prevention Week.
Active Minds, a mental health awareness student group, plans to spend the week raising awareness about the risks and prevention of suicide. Suicide remains the second highest cause of death among college students, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
"We want students to know that there are resources available to them," said Active Minds Treasurer Salma Ahmed, who helped organize the vigil. "There is a community of people who do care."
At the candlelight vigil, there will be a moment of silence for those who have died by suicide. Speakers will also share their stories.
Today through Thursday, Active Minds members will pass out information on suicide prevention in the Brady Commons walkway from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This is the first year that Suicide Prevention Week has made its presence on the MU campus, largely due to the efforts of Active Minds President Amy Williams.
"I have experienced some mental health issues in my own life, and that is partly why I feel this event is so important," Williams said.
For years, Williams said, she battled bouts of depression caused by bipolar disorder.
After attending a suicide prevention conference this summer hosted by the Missouri Department of Mental Health, she said she was spurred to action. With the help of other Active Minds members, she crafted this week's informational campaign.
"We want to hear everyone's opinions," Williams said. "This is an open conversation."
The conversation began Monday night in Brady Commons with a discussion group focusing on suicide in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning community. The forum was hosted by InsideOUT, a group dedicated to providing a safe space to talk about issues affecting LGBTQ students, discussion moderator Abby Rowe said.
"LGBTQ students often face additional stressors that their straight peers do not," psychologist and Active Minds co-sponsor Pam Darby-Mullins said.
These stressors include concerns about coming out, fears of rejection by family and friends or actual rejection, feelings of isolation and loneliness and difficulties with societal and institutional discrimination and oppression, Darby-Mullins said.
InsideOUT chose the topic of suicide prevention for this week's meeting to coincide with Active Minds' campaign.
The week will end with an hour-long suicide prevention training session on Friday that will teach participants to recognize and respond to a mental health emergency. The program, called "Question, Persuade, Refer," will be held in Stotler Lounge at noon.
Some features of the course are warning signs of suicide, tips for asking if someone is considering suicide and ways to persuade an individual to get help. The free program is open to the general public.
Active Minds organizes other events throughout the year to promote mental health awareness, Williams said. On Oct. 7, the group will host a mental health speak-out where individuals can share their experiences.
"One message we want to get out is that there is nothing wrong with a person because they have had suicidal thoughts," Williams said. "They shouldn't be stigmatized. It is OK to ask for help."
