Ashtabula County's suicide rate ranks No. 5 for Ohio September is National Suicide Prevention Month
Sep. 23—This September, many of us are thinking about school, or going to an apple orchard for some cider, or maybe even enjoying the start of autumn weather on a patio. But for others, September is National Suicide Prevention Month, a time to focus on people lost to suicide, as well as on ways to decrease these losses in the future.
September is National Suicide Prevention Month and from 2014 to 2018, the statewide suicide rate in Ohio was 14 losses per 100,000 Ohioans. In 2019, the national suicide rate was 13 per 100,000. During that period, Ashtabula County lost 21 residents per 100,000 people, which was 30 percent higher than the state's average and even higher than the country as a whole.
The Ohio Alliance for Innovation in Population Health found that from 2008 to 2017, Ashtabula County had the fifth highest suicide rate of all 88 counties in Ohio.
"That's a big problem," said Matt Butler, a clinical supervisor at Community Counseling in Ashtabula. "We know that number is not telling the whole story, however."
Dr. Julie Cerel, past president of the American Association of Suicidology, has focused a lot of her research on the question of how suicide loss impacts those within a community. She has been able to show that as many as 118 individuals could need extra support or even clinical intervention of some kind following the suicide of someone close to them.
"That means that more than 2,000 of our friends, neighbors and co-workers might be struggling right now, just from the suicide losses our community experienced in 2020," Butler said. "That isn't counting other sources of trauma that require support. We need to focus much more of our attention and much more of our compassion on those who are suffering right here in Ashtabula County."
One of the ways to do this is by consciously working to change the conversation about suicide, he said.
"We know that talking about our losses more openly makes a big difference in the level of guilt and shame that other survivors experience," he said. "There are a lot of topics that we feel comfortable discussing that were considered a secret just a few years ago, from domestic violence to relationship difficulties to stress. Many of us are open to talking about substance use and mental health struggles, but suicide still continues to be avoided as a topic."
Butler encourages the community to share their pain with others since grieving together is often easier than grieving alone.
It's also important to stay aware of potential warning signs for suicide risk remembering the acronym IS PATH WARM, which stands for:
—Ideation: Is the person saying or otherwise communicating a desire to end their life?
—Substance Use: Is the person using drugs or alcohol more often than they used to?
—Purposelessness: Is the person saying or feeling that they don't have a reason for living?
—Anxiety: Is their anxiety dramatically increased lately, and does this affect their ability to sleep?
—Trapped: Are they having trouble seeing the light at the end of the tunnel?
—Hopelessness: Are they saying that things are never going to get better for them?
—Withdrawal: Have they started withdrawing from family, friends, or their responsibilities?
—Anger: Has their anger become a lot worse lately?
—Recklessness: Are they making much more reckless decisions?
—Mood Changes: Has there been a noticeable change in their mood lately?
"So many of these suggestions come down to one thing: people talking to people. The more positive connections we have, the happier and healthier we can all be," Butler said. "Ashtabula County is full of amazing folks who care about each other. One of our biggest strengths as a community is our people. Let's keep remembering that as we support each other, not just during Suicide Prevention Month but throughout the year."
