Those mountains can be moved

With so many people in our community having been touched by suicide, and many people still struggling as we emerge from the pandemic, a local group wants to raise people's awareness of the problem — and to share the importance of having these conversations out loud. "Hope Lives Here: A Series on Suicide Prevention and Healing" consists of several events: ·At 9 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. Sunday, the Rev. Dan Metzger will preach on Christianity and suicide at St. Marks United Methodist Church, 800 S. Main St. ·From 6:30-8 p.m. Monday, a panel of people affected by suicide will speak at the DOCK at St. Marks, with National Alliance on Mental Illness Hancock County hosting. ·From 4-5:30 p.m. Sept. 10, professionals and family members will speak with the goal of helping families know how to respond when they think their child is considering suicide. This is also at the DOCK, and hosted by Family Resource Center. ·At 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. Sept. 18, Nichole Coleman will speak at New Life Assembly of God Church, 3120 Norcrest St. Community resources and information will be available at each event. Metzger, after being involved in several area funerals, reached out to the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services to ask for help in working to educate, and "break some of the silence and the stigma." Around the same time, Blanchard Valley Hospital emergency department staff reported seeing an increased need, said Jennifer Swartzlander, deputy director of the ADAMHS board. Swartzlander said a Family Resource Center suicide prevention grant previously has paid for training events. Agencies are now working to build on that by further informing the community. "I think it's going to be hope and encouragement" that comes out of these upcoming events, Swartzlander said. There were five suicides in Hancock County in 2021, Swartzlander said. Already in 2022, there have been four. Metzger is hoping people will be more willing to talk about it. He said people who die by suicide often think the world would be better off without them. "I have never been at a funeral where I have heard that to be true … It is always devastating," he said. He said people who have lost loved ones to suicide may feel guilt, or want to "protect the dignity of the deceased." He's known families who, when planning a funeral, say they're telling people the person just "got sick." While there may be reasons people don't talk about it, Metzger said a byproduct is that people who do have these feelings may feel there is something "uniquely wrong with (them)." "You are not alone" and there is hope, he said. "The mountains that are in front of you can be moved." It's OK to say something, Metzger said. "In fact, we've got to say something." Monday's panel will include professionals, people who have lost loved ones to suicide and others who have themselves attempted suicide. Coleman said part of moving forward is realizing they are not alone. "Other people have felt suicidal and lived to tell about it," she said. Liana Gott, director of peer engagement at NAMI Hancock County, said many of them may "some days still struggle" but are doing better now. She likened it to having diabetes, where a person has a chronic illness, but can learn to live with it and manage it. Claire Osborne, program manager at Focus Recovery and Wellness Community, said people can create "a safety plan for themselves," and develop coping skills, so when those thoughts do occur they can actively deal with them. Osborne said when she herself spoke about attempting suicide when she was young, sometimes there weren't many follow-up questions. "People get scared," Osborne said. "People hold their breath. But it is OK to talk about it." Brittany Schindler, director of youth engagement and Mental Health First Aid instructor at NAMI Hancock County, said it's a misconception that talking about suicide will put the idea into a person's head. In fact, people may feel relieved that you asked, she said. Coleman said it may feel uncomfortable to have these conversations, but she advises "finding a way that feels authentic to you," and practicing. She said people are often afraid of saying the wrong thing. But the wrong thing is to do nothing at all. "The right thing to do is to listen and to care, and then to call someone," if you don't know what to do beyond that, she said. Gott encouraged people to maintain connections to friends and coworkers and check in that they are OK, "because a lot of us are not." And the pandemic has taken a toll on everyone. "We, collectively, went through a trauma," Schindler said. She said even many people who do not have a mental health diagnosis are "struggling in ways they never did before."' Coleman encouraged anyone wanting to educate themselves to attend both churches' services. She said she wants people to find not only hope, but also "a strategy" — that is, coping skills and tools to help them, along with the hope. In her work with veterans, she tells them "there is an abundance of resources." Osborne noted that anyone could walk into Focus (509 W. Trenton Ave.) or NAMI (305 W. Hardin St.) and talk to someone who can likely relate, and who can direct them to resources. "Your worst day never has to define you," she said. She said her own life is not completely free of challenges, but, today, "I just live my life on purpose, with purpose." Swartzlander said these events will not be the end of this education effort in Hancock County. "We will continue … One suicide is too many," she said. To reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, dial 988. The Hancock County Crisis Line can be reached at 888-936-7116. To reach Ohio's Crisis Text Line, text "4hope" to 741741.