September is National Suicide Prevention Month, as this week is identified as National Suicide Prevention Week. September was first declared as National Suicide Prevention Month in 2008. This month is a time to acknowledge those affected by suicide, raise awareness and connect individuals with suicidal thoughts to treatment services.
Lacey Schmitt-Monson is a therapist with Senior Life Solutions at Franklin General Hospital in Hampton and tells RadioOnTheGo News there’s one portion of the population she is concerned about as it relates to National Suicide Prevention Month; farmers.
“They are known to be 3.5 times more likely to complete suicide than the average population. So we’re talking about over 49,000 Americans in 2022 completed suicide. That means 590 Iowans with 49 per day for the year. Add to that how much higher the rate is for farmers. And we’re looking at a serious issue. And I think part of that comes from the fact that farming is a gamble. You never know what’s going to happen day to day. And on top of that, we’re tough people. We work the land. We do what we’re supposed to do. We get through with the hard things. We don’t complain about it. We don’t talk about it. We just do what has to be done to survive. And that’s where our problems come in is where we don’t feel like we can talk about hard things.”
According to the CDC, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death among adults in the U.S. and the 2nd leading cause of death among people aged 10-24. Schmitt-Monson says there are a few signs to look out for if someone is struggling with mental health issues.
“One of the first signs that something is wrong would be we are not as active or as engaged in the activities that we used to be. That should be a first sign for anybody. Next comes low motivation, irritability, not wanting to socialize with people like they used to, not wanting to go places anymore. So this is not something that just happens as we get older. That is a myth. People live very full lives at any age. But one of the things that we do look for once we’re talking about suicide prevention is if we start giving away our belongings out of nowhere and all of a sudden our mood is uplifted and we’re doing great, that could be a sign that we’re ready. We’ve made a final decision and we’re ready to take that next step into actually attempting something.”
For information on what services Senior Life Solutions provides, call 641-456-5935. The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which was launched in 2022, is 9-8-8.
