Flame Think

Home

Crisis Issues

CRITICAL INCIDENT AND INTERVENTION TOPICS

FlameThink takes crisis to heart. Future articles will discuss numerous crisis topics.

(Promotion Image from A&E series as found at www.hulu.com)

FlameThink will address two critical areas of concern:
1. Critical Incident Stress Management
2. Suicide Intervention Skills

1. Critical Incident Stress Management information will be addressed in January 2010. Along with discussion articles, it is our intent to establish, coordinate and conduct CISM training opportunities in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

2. Suicide Intervention Skills is a very personal topic for this director. I have taught Suicide Prevention courses for 28 years. Additionally, I have taught Suicide Intervention courses for over five years.

Suicide cuts across ethnic, economic, social and age boundaries. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among teenagers in the U.S. In the D/FW area, suicide has been the second leading cause of death among teenagers two out of the past seven years.

Nation wide, suicide has been on a steady increase for nearly 20 years. In the U.S. military, the number of suicides is at its highest level since records were kept (records date back as far as 1864).

The greatest frustration facing this issue is society's refusal to address it. Suicide is a preventable public health problem, and while we will never eliminate every suicide attempt, communities can take steps to reduce them.

Suicides will not decrease if our communities continue to ignore them. On the contrary, the rates will continue to sky rocket until society addresses the issues of suicide. Currently, the following issues are found among individuals who commit suicide.

1. Bullying - in my years of experience I have found that this is the number one reason why students commit suicide. Survivors of suicide tell us they felt there were no recourses left except for extreme measures to eliminate the torment of being bullied. As a result of this harassment, bullied children some times fall into the "homocidal-suicidal" category being determined to take their tormentors with them. In many cases, the bully evades the attack and other "unintended" individuals become victims. Some suicide survivors reveal they chose drastic actions because parents and the education system simply refused to correct the actions of the bully and offered no form of self-esteem/self value support.

2. Isolation - some "at risk individuals" simply felt unwanted and trapped in an undesirable situation.

3. Family Abuse - mental, physical, drug and alcohol abuse are factors in driving an individual toward "at risk behavior."

4. Family Issues - divorce, blended/mixed family issues, and critical health issues among family membes have been cited as reasons for "at risk behavior."

5. Financial Hardship - economic instability and lack of a foreseeable resolution is a factor in suicides.

6. Experiencing traumatic events - for some, experiencing traumatic events can lead to a sense of hopelessness and helplessness thus propelling the person toward "at risk behavior."

7. Seeing no reason for living - having a lack of and/or no sense of self value or purpose is another factor causing "at risk behavior."

Suicides damage more than the families who loose a loved one. Suicides damage communities and reveal the glaring short comings of how we operate as a community.

Another reason suicides rates are high is the lack of adequately trained indiviudals who can perform basic intervention. While most communities and schools offer some form of Suicide Prevention Programs, relativley few incorporate a Suicide Intervention Program. Suicide Prevention and Suicide Intervention are not the same!

It's time for the Dallas/Fort Worth areas to understand and grasp this fact. It's time for the D/FW area to address the Suicide issue, and it's time for our communities to declare war on the plague of suicide.

For interested individuals, organizations and/or schools, this director intends to coordinate and conduct Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST). Please log-on and email me if you are interested in finding out more.

Military Suicide Prevention Efforts Inadequate

Wednesday, 25 August 2010 21:50 | Author: Flame Think |

The following article was found at www.truth-out.org. (Reprinted with permission).

Task Force: Military Suicide Prevention Efforts Inadequate
Tuesday 24 August 2010
by: Barbara Barrett

Washington - A Defense Department task force devoted to preventing suicide in the military presented a grim picture of the trend Tuesday, with suicides rising at a near steady pace even as commanders apply various balms to soothe a stressed, exhausted fighting force.

The military has nearly 900 suicide prevention programs across 400 military installations worldwide, but in a report released Tuesday, the task force describes the Defense Department's approach as a safety net riddled with holes.

Last year, 309 men and women slipped through. In 2008, 267 service members committed suicide. In 2007, the number was 224.

However, the task force also gave a message of hope: Prevention efforts can work, members said, and suicidal behavior after combat deployment isn't normal.

"Having any of our nation's warriors die by suicide is not acceptable — not now, not ever," said Army Maj. Gen. Philip Volpe, a physician and co-chairman of the Department of Defense Task Force on the Prevention of Suicide by Members of the Armed Forces.

What is Suicide Intervention

Thursday, 19 August 2010 22:14 | Author: flamethink |

I am an advocate and trainer of Suicide Intervention Skills. I have trained over a thousand individuals in basic intervention skills. Many of my students, using these skills, have saved others who were “at risk” for suicide.

There is a significant difference between Suicide Prevention and Suicide Intervention and it is best understood by comparing it with the following analogy.

Crossroads - Jekyll or Hyde

Monday, 26 July 2010 20:19 | Author: Flame Think |

During medieval times, it was considered an unmentionable evil and disqualified an individual from being buried in sacred soil. Law and popular practice sanctioned the desecration of the corpse. The body (decapitated and with the heart removed) would some times be buried in the center of an intersection; a supposed remedy to quiet the wayward, ambivalent, haunted and wandering spirit. Likewise it was deemed appropriate to confiscate the decease’s property for having died in such a way.

Paralyzed by Perception

Wednesday, 23 June 2010 13:50 | Author: Patrick Steiert |

This article is courtesy of Reverend Philip Byler, founder and director of CTTM Ministries International out of Epworth, GA.

Last month I wrote about fighting the dragon - the dreaded "black dog" of depression. I was greatly encouraged to receive numerous words of appreciation for that timely message. I sincerely pray the Lord will encourage you to take your stand against the enemy in those times you feel like you're a failure or defeated.

Fighting Dragons and Tilting at Windmills

Wednesday, 09 June 2010 09:58 | Author: Patrick Steiert |

This article is courtesy of Reverend Philip Byler, founder and director of CTTM Ministries International out of Epworth, GA.

Sir Winston Churchill called it the “Black Dog.” That was his name for the recurring depression he dealt with. The nickname seems to imply two things—familiarity with the problem and a determination to master it. Though the dog sinks his fangs into one’s person now and again, it is only a dog. At times, it can be “sweet talked.” At other times, it needs to be chained.

Churchill was not alone in his struggle. Others were plagued with a common aliment—Martin Luther, Leo Tolstoy, Franz Schumann, even Charles Haddon Spurgeon, to name a few. Each of these great men suffered from recurring bouts with depression.

More Articles...