Suicide Prevention
Are you feeling desperate, alone or hopeless? Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), a free, 24-hour hotline available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Your call will be routed to the nearest crisis center to you.
Preventing Suicide
Suicide (taking one’s own life) is a serious public health problem that devastates individuals, families, and communities. It is one of the leading causes of death among Americans.
Completed suicides are only part of the problem. More people are hospitalized or treated and released as a result of suicide attempts than are fatally injured.
While suicide is often viewed as a response to a single stressful event, it is a far more complicated issue.
Services, Information, and Resources
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
Dial "2-1-1"
Vermont 2-1-1 is a 24/7 live health and human services information and referral service for all of Vermont.
Vermont Department of Mental Health
Suicide Facts (Centers for Disease Control) www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/suicide-overview.htm
Warning signs of suicide
American Association of Suicidology
Suicide Prevention Resource Center
www.sprc.org/stateinformation/statepages/showstate.asp?stateID=45
The Vermont Suicide Prevention Platform
The Vermont Youth Suicide Prevention Platform is the product of a coordinated approach to reducing suicide and suicidal behaviors. The Department of Health, the Department of Mental Health, and a suicide prevention planning team in conjunction with an advocacy group, Vermonters for Suicide Prevention, have developed the goals for this platform:
- Reduce the rates of suicide attempts and other suicidal behaviors.
- Prevent suicide deaths across the life span.
- Reduce the harmful after-effects associated with suicidal behaviors and the traumatic impact of suicide on family and friends.
- Improve mental health of Vermonters through early intervention, crisis treatment, and continuing care.