Last week during National Suicide Prevention Week 2023, Jesuit paid special attention to mental well-being and the impact that mental health has on one’s life.

One of the greatest mental health struggles someone can suffer is the contemplation of suicide. This is why it is so important to raise awareness for the steps to take to prevent suicide, the signs of suicidal thoughts, and to seek help when someone realizes that they are not okay.

Suicide is a difficult topic to discuss. Throughout the years, the topics of suicide and suicide prevention have become taboo. Wellness Counselor Ms. Abby Hollandsworth brings attention to possible reasons for this negative connotation.

“People are afraid to speak up about suicide because there is still a stigma against talking openly about mental health, particularly suicide,” Ms. Hollandsworth said. “There are many reasons why many find it difficult to talk about, from shame and fear to societal pressures and expectations.”

Although the topic of suicide is avoided, breaking through this barrier is imperative to suicide prevention. As Wellness Counselor Ms. Kasey Cardinale emphasizes: preventing suicide starts by talking.

“Suicide prevention is actively talking about suicide in our community to dispel the stigma that surrounds this word,” Ms. Cardinale said. “It means educating our community that we take suicide seriously and it is not a joke. It means looking at each human in our community in the eyes and noticing what others are carrying to school.”

Principal Dr. Michael Wood ’99 echoes Ms. Cardinale’s insights by highlighting the need to be attentive to the well-being of others.

“One of the first things that [suicide prevention] means is teaching our families and our students how to talk about suicide,” Dr. Wood said. “[We can end] the stigma of both suicide and mental health so that we can have conversations in the open. Suicide prevention also then means training professionals on our campus to see the signs of suicide or other forms of self-harm, to recognize them early and learn how to intervene when they recognize someone who’s in pain.”

In recent years, the Jesuit community has lost students and a teacher to suicide. Although time has passed since then, the community still feels the grief and suffering from the loss of our beloved brothers, something no community should ever have to endure. 

“Because we care for students so deeply and care for their families so deeply, when a student or a member of our larger [Jesuit] family dies by suicide, it very much shocks our community,” Dr. Wood said. “Hopefully, [the shared loss] brings us together and helps us to care for each other more, but you never get over the sadness.”

Dealing with suicide can be a difficult process; however, there are steps that can be taken to make the process easier. 

“It’s important that we realize that folks don’t need to grieve alone,” Dr. Wood said. “We have such an incredible faculty and staff here at Jesuit. I hope that each person that needs help and needs to talk, knows who to go to, how to get there, and where to go, whether that’s with our counseling staff, our wellness program, or just a trusted teacher or coach just to say something.”

Dr. Wood also emphasizes the importance of looking out for one another and looking out for the signs of poor mental health in each other.

“Most of all we should keep listening,” Dr. Wood said. “We should all be listening to the students’ experiences. What are the students going through? What do they need from us? Are we actively listening to what they’re saying? We could all be doing more listening.”

Lastly, while helping others is an important aspect of preventing suicide, none of it can happen if you are not taking care of your own mental health.

“First, take the temperature of your own mental health,” Ms. Cardinale said. “If you are not practicing sound mental hygiene, your friends and classmates will notice and get curious. If you are not in a place yourself to offer help, set a boundary with your time and take care of you first. Then, look up and notice the people around you. Say hello before someone says it to you.”

Suicide profoundly impacts the community in negative ways. Even though it may be challenging to stand up against, it is necessary to talk about it, to look around at one’s surroundings, and to reach out to people preventatively. A smile or simple hello can change the course of someone’s day.