Florida School Toolkit for K-12 Educators to Prevent Suicide

died by suicide traveled a very long road. It was never one thing, it was never one person, and no one is to blame. I have often shared with young people devastated by the suicide of their friend that they didn’t really know much about suicide. They didn’t really think it could happen to someone they knew and cared about. Unfortunately, no one had ever prepared them by providing them with information about suicide prevention and what to do to intervene with their friend. I know, because I lost my own father to suicide, and I missed the obvious warning signs he was exhibiting. I will always second-guess myself for failing to take action to secure mental health treatment and for failing to ask him directly about suicide plans. I have found some comfort in getting involved in suicide prevention and I believe that many survivors of suicide ultimately reach a point where they also get involved in suicide prevention because they just may be able to save the life of someone else’s loved one. I would say to these young people who lost a friend to suicide that, in many ways, this will be something you will always feel sad about, but it’s very important that you give yourself permission to go on with your life and focus on what is in front of you so you can be successful. There will be times when this will be especially difficult for you. This would logically be the birthday that the deceased would have had, or the anniversary of his or her death. Do not hesitate to reach out to your parents and counselors at that time. As months and years go by it will get a little easier but it may always stay with you. Many people who have lost loved ones to suicide decide ultimately that they would like to get in a helping profession as a counselor, physician, and social worker for example. The adults who are reading this question should always be there for the child who has lost a friend to suicide. I’ve been aware that young people have unfortunately been told by well-meaning adults, “Oh, you should be over that by now. You shouldn’t be focusing on that. I’m tired of hearing you talk about the friend(s) you’ve lost to suicide.” Obviously, these are not the correct responses from adults. Instead, the answer should be, “I’m always here to listen to you. Please, know there will be a lot of ups and downs to this and I’m here for you every step of the way. Things will get better and if you feel they are not getting better, we are going to get you professional help. I would strongly recommend that many young people do, in fact, need private mental health counseling as a result of losing friends to suicide. Please, contact the school counseling office and get a referral to recommended providers in your community that are skilled with working with teenagers on trauma and loss issues. 30. Are there times when well-intentioned peer or teacher support exacerbates normal teenage angst? What are the limits on this support, if any? O ur schools and families often underestimate the effect of trauma and loss and especially the effect of suicide on our children and students. I don’t believe that too much support can be offered. We need support in school, support in our home, support in local mental health, and support in our local places of worship. We need to continue to revisit the losses with our affected young people and not hesitate to ask how they are doing. They will quickly let us know if they are doing okay and will probably thank you for asking. As we look ahead, students are going to be aware of the anniversary of the loss, they will be aware of the birthdays the deceased would have had and the graduation ceremony they will not attend. I’m not recommending the school make a PA announcement about the loss of the student a year ago. No. I’m simply talking about parents being aware of that anniversary. Teachers and counselors being aware of that anniversary, and simply sitting down with students and saying, “I 157