More than 100 people gathered in the auditorium of Westwood Elementary School in West Jefferson on Monday, March 22, as guest speaker David Opalewski - a grief recovery expert who teaches at Central Michigan University - gave a lecture on the myths surrounding teen suicide and the best ways to work towards preventing it.

Opalewski noted that there are no textbook ways to combat the issue - it's subjective on a case-by-case basis - there are general dos and do nots. He opened the discussion with a note regarding the open discussion of teen suicide.

"Talking about suicide does not make it happen," Opalewski told the audience, later adding that talking about the subject is actually the number one preventative measure. He later noted that the act "is not about death, [but] about ending pain."

According to Opalewski, it's likely that three students (two girls and one boy) in any typical classroom has made a suicide attempt in the past year. He noted that although more females think, plan and attempt suicide, males are more likely to go through with it.

After discussing the reasons behind teenage suicide - including relief from problems, ending a burden or revenge - Opalewski outlined the warning signs that can be used to recognize a potentially suicidal individual including poor self esteem; antisocial or introverted behavior; excessive use of alcohol or other drugs; change in habits of appearance, especially a sudden lack in hygiene; someone giving away prized possessions; poor communication with family and friends; and a history of prior acts of suicide.

Opalewski said that people can also look for signs of previous suicide attempts, such as scratching or superficial cutting of the body. Other factors might also be warning signs, such as themes of death or depression in talk, writing or art; a sudden decline of academic performance; verbalization of intentions; or a sudden loss of interest in things someone was once passionate about, such as music or sports. 

Opalewski also discussed ways to help, but first noted that one must "approach things from the perspective" of the potentially suicidal individual and to never make them feel guilty. Ways to help that were discussed included being a good listener, accepting every feeling the person expresses, asking them directly about suicide, not leaving the person alone and seeking further counsel. 

He noted that under no circumstance should someone suggest the individual "go ahead and do it" because reverse psychology is a bad, and potentially tragic, approach to helping someone.

For parents, Opalewski discussed many ways they can help including removing guns from the home (because teens are more likely to act on impulse); detecting signs of substance abuse at an early stage; and attending therapy sessions as a family. He noted that they should try to maintain as normal a relationship as possible, acknowledge the person is suffering and to not expect the person to "snap out of it" and to be wary of complete recoveries over very short time spans.

Tara Miller, the family support coordinator for Ashe County Schools, said the event was held in order to "get our community involved with our schools and ask for them to be a part of what we're doing, [both] as a part of awareness and a part of prevention for teen suicide.

"We really want our communities and schools to come together on this," Miller added. "The more we can do as a community and a school system the more our kids are going to see that we care and are trying to prevent them from doing this."

Miller also said that anyone who is worried about a student can contact the school administrators and counselors.

"We'll go from there and see how we can help," said Miller. 

For more information about how to help prevent suicide in Ashe County, contact the Ashe Suicide/Depression Awareness and Prevention (ASAP) Task Force at (336) 846-0781.

If you are concerned that someone is in immediate danger, do not hesitate to call emergency medical personnel.