24
Thursday LOVELAND REPORTER-HERALD/Health Line of Northern Colorado May 19, 2011
Suicide prevention and mental health resources
Taking
Strides
CRISIS/SUICIDE HOTLINES
TO SAVE LIVES Annual suicide awareness walk seeks to educate and honor lives lost Jennifer Lehman Special Sections Reporter
T
he tenth annual “Taking Strides to Save Lives” awareness walk, candelight vigil and fundraiser for the Suicide Resource Center of Larimer County is taking place in downtown Fort Collins on June 12. The goal of the annual walk is threepronged, said Lori Daigle, Executive Director of the Suicide Resource Center of Larimer County: To raise awareness about suicide prevention, mental health and the programs offered by the Resource Center; honor those lost to suicide and raise money for the center’s programs. “Raising awareness and honoring those lost is really our focus first and foremost.” “We want to be there as continual support for families who have lost loved ones to suicide,” Daigle said, “It gives those loved ones a chance to walk together and remember. I really like that part of it.” The walk this year will be more focused on awareness and outreach than in year’s past, Daigle, said. “We are making it one of those events this year where people can get information, enjoy music and really become a part of what we do.” To draw people in, several fixtures in the Fort Collins music scene will perform for the first hour before the walk starts including Liz Barnez, Cary Morin, Marty Rein and Steve Amedée. They will be performing beginning at 6 p.m. (registration time) and
ending at 7 p.m. (the start of the walk). “They want to give their time, because they believe in the cause,” Daigle said. “(The music) will create this feel that you almost won’t be able to describe before we start walking,” Daigle said. Daigle hopes this approach will reduce the stigma surrounding discussion on suicide and mental illness and get the community more involved in the organization. “Suicide has such a negative connotation to it, — what I say is it doesn’t have to. That’s when we’re being reactive instead of being proactive. We’re trying to save some lives, let people know that we’re here, we care, have services, there’s people to listen.” “The more people talk about mental health and mental illness, the more they can receive the help that they need, and we can have them on this planet to enjoy as long as possible.” There is a myth that talking about something bad makes it happen, Daigle said, but it’s occurring regardless. The Suicide Resource Center is not a crisis center but focuses on education, suicide prevention as well as offering support programs for those grieving the loss of a loved one, those dealing with a mental illness like bipolar disorder and depression and support for their families. Ninety percent of people who complete suicide are suffering from undiagnosed depression or bipolar disorder, Daigle said. Fifty-one individuals in Larimer County took their lives last year — that is almost one person a week, she added. Compared to 2009, when 59 people in Larimer County completed suicide, 2010 was an improvement, Daigle said, “but gosh, I want it to be less.” The Suicide Resource Center is hoping 125-200 people will be in attendance at the awareness walk with fundraising goals of $10-$15,000.
If you go: What: “Taking Strides to Save Lives” Walk and Candlelight Vigil When: Registration and music begins at 6 p.m., walk begins at 7 p.m., June 12 Where: Old Town Fort Collins Cost: Pre-registration is $25, $30 the day of, kids 12 and under are free. Contact: 970-635-9301 or www.suicideresourcecenter.org
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) Larimer County Mental Health 24-Hour Emergency Services: 970-221-5551 Emergency Services: 911
SUPPORT GROUPS/EDUCATION Suicide Resource Center of Larimer County: 970-635-9301 or www.suicideresourcecenter.org Larimer County Mental Health: www.larimercenter.org; Loveland, 970-494-9870; Fort Collins, 970-221-5551
INFORMATION ON MENTAL ILLNESS National Institute for Mental Health: www.nimh.nih.gov
“That’s the powerful part when people say you changed my life, you’ve given me hope —
that’s why we’re here.” — Lori Daigle, Executive Director of the Suicide Resource Center of Larimer County Money raised will go to sustain the resource centers educational programming and support services. Part of the education programming for youth and adults is teaching them how to recognize when an individual may be in trouble and what to do about it. If you and I were in a restaurant and I was choking, you would help me or get someone to help me, Daigle said. “When someone is in need of help, we should be able to help or know who to point to to help,” she said. Statistics aren’t kept on the number of individuals at risk of suicide who get the help they need, but for the 51 lives lost last year, there are so many more times that people are getting help, Daigle said. “That’s the powerful part when people say you changed my life, you’ve given me hope — that’s why we’re here.” School counselors get close to 200 referrals a year, when students refer a distressed friend to seek help, Daigle said. “It’s really a sweet process to see that light go off in someone, to be like, wow, I might be able to get some help.”