Promoting Hope, Preventing Suicide

Research and advice on preventing teen and adult suicide.

by Elana Premack Sandler, L.C.S.W., M.P.H.

Elana Premack Sandler, LCSW, MPH, is a public health social worker specializing in violence and injury prevention and adolescent health promotion. See full bio

Comments on "Can suicide prevention happen after a suicide?"

Can suicide prevention happen after a suicide?

By Elana Premack Sandler, L.C.S.W., M.P.H. on July 13, 2009 in Promoting Hope, Preventing Suicide

A suicide is most definitely a loss and a tragedy. But, the way a community responds following a suicide can be an opening for a prevention response, a beacon built from the heartbreak.

Postvention

Submitted by J.D. on July 13, 2009 - 1:53pm.

So how does effective postvention occur when the community doesn't want to discuss the suicide?

My first year of law school a classmate committed suicide. The school's response was to hold a voluntary meeting with a counselor so we could discuss our "feelings." (Not something soon-to-be lawyers or lawyers are particularly good at). Three people attended, including myself, one professor, and the dead classmate's roommate, who was/is a personal friend. Later that year, the school found some money for a counselor to set up shop in some vacant space in the law school building. No one came so the administration inquired among the student body and found out that because one of the questions asked on the application for admittance to the Bar was directed at mental health, no one dared speak to the counselor for fear of not getting admitted to the Bar. I've been practicing law for 8 years now and recently the American Bar Association has released articles related to a "rash" of suicides among some prominent and not so prominent lawyers as the economy has declined. I can't help but think of my first year of law school and wonder how effective any prevention/postvention response can be where the culture of the community is adverse to "help." I suspect the military community is very similar to the legal community in this instance.

Any thoughts?

Re: Postvention

Submitted by Elana Premack Sandler on July 14, 2009 - 5:13am.

J.D., thank you for your thoughtful comment. First, I'm sorry for the loss of your law school classmate. As I was thinking about your story and the way that you framed it, one of the first things that came to mind was the U.S. Air Force Suicide Prevention Program. (http://afspp.afms.mil/) This program is evidence-based, has been proven to actually prevent suicide, and takes a population-oriented approach.

One of the keys to success for the AFSPP was the complete involvement of Air Force leaders in sending the message that seeking help is acceptable. The issue you raise regarding admission to the Bar seems quite parallel to the issues involved in disclosing mental illness or mental health problems in a military setting.

You are right - a suicide prevention program or postvention response probably has little chance of being effective if the culture of the community, as you said, is averse to help. Changing the culture of a community, from the top down, has been shown to make an enormous difference in suicide prevention outcomes.

Postvention

Submitted by J.D. on July 14, 2009 - 10:08am.

Thank you for your response.

Sadly, I don't foresee a "top down" response from the legal community. It seems that an effective prevention/postvention effort would need to start in law school beginning with reducing the stigma of mental illness or mental health problems in the application process. Persons within the legal community are typically not the touchy feely psychology types, which would make the efficacy of any program difficult. For example, after his death was announced some of my classmates laughed and joked that they had moved up in the rankings (rank based on GPA) or that he couldn't hack it, etc. I now practice in a very small jurisdiction and a local judge committed suicide last month. And so it goes. I think the military community has a better chance of changing its culture because of the control they exercise over servicemembers.

Thanks again for taking the time to respond to my comment.

Re: Postvention

Submitted by Elana Premack Sandler on July 15, 2009 - 11:33am.

J.D., I think you're right about the ability of the military to institutionalize change, so I do wonder what the legal community might do on this issue. If you have the opportunity to write about your experiences and perspective, either on a blog or perhaps to or on a site like Above the Law, I wonder if that might generate some attention. It's a bottom-up approach, but step one is identifying that there is a problem. I think that you articulate very well the challenges and dynamics specific to the legal community and seem to have a solid grasp on reality. Your professional community could really benefit from having a voice like yours out there in the "conversation prism" of Web 2.0. Best wishes, and keep in touch if you wish.

Postvention

Submitted by J.D. on July 16, 2009 - 6:14am.

Thanks for your kind words. I did check out the website you recommended, Above the Law. Below is a link to an article from the ABA Journal, which touches on this subject. Do keep blogging on this subject and I will keep reading.

http://www.abajournal.com/news/perfectionism_psychic_battering_among_rea...

I was shocked to read this

Submitted by Hannah Trautner on August 23, 2009 - 7:32pm.

I was shocked to read this blog and to find my own name and story in it. I am thrilled that my work has made at least some sort of an impact. I would love your email address to talk in a more private sphere regarding these matters. Let me know if that is at all possible.

-Hannah

E-mail contact

Submitted by Elana Premack Sandler on August 24, 2009 - 5:23am.

Hannah, I am glad to share my contact information with you. Please feel free to be in touch via epsandler@edc.org. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Elana