CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Suicide No. 2 cause of college student deaths

The Jonesboro Sun - 10/14/2017

JONESBORO - Afraid she was going to lose her roommate following a car accident, an upset and intoxicated Arkansas State University student suggested to police she was having suicidal thoughts.

The incident is one of five so far this semester where university police officers reported the possibility of suicidal thoughts or attempts were mentioned.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students. Nationwide, it is the 10th leading cause of death. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention reports, each year, 44,193 Americans die by suicide and, for each suicide, another 25 Americans attempt it.

Philip Hestand, director of A-State's Counseling Center, does not believe the number of A-State students giving suicide serious thought is increasing, but he said faculty, residence life staff and students are more sensitive to the word suicide and are taking action when they think a student or friend is considering it.

He said there are two things to consider: the statistics - 7 percent of college students give suicide serious thought or about 1,000 of A-State's 14,125 students - and the reality of one person affected.

"We are extremely concerned with one person who is suicidal or successfully completes suicide," he said. "That is a huge crisis for us."

The university has not had a successful suicide on campus in several years, although there have been former students who committed suicide at home or elsewhere, he said.

To combat the issue, Hestand has increased efforts to raise awareness and train others. He and his staff members meet with classes and groups, and train faculty and others who work directly with students on signs to look for and how to react.

Last week, the counseling center conducted 40 free depression and anxiety screenings while an online screening is offered 24/7. Last year, 300 people completed screenings.

In some instances, he said there are students who say things like "my life is over" or "I want to die" when they are upset over a breakup or incident that happened. He said that person may not mean it, but their friend or residence life worker is concerned enough to report it.

"Sometime, they do tell us, 'I did not mean that. I was just upset and probably should not have said that,'" Hestand said. "So, we work to develop a relationship and help them learn better ways to cope."

The counseling center also has a person on call at all times. The University Police Department automatically contacts that person when they respond to reports of a person with suicidal thoughts.

For anyone who recognizes the warning signs in someone else, Hestand has recommended speaking up.

He encourages people to be direct in asking if the person is considering suicide and offer to accompany the person to treatment if the person is afraid to go alone. It's important to let mental health professionals know upfront the person is suicidal and it is a crisis so help can be provided more timely.

That help can be provided on campus. All of the counseling center's staff are licensed mental health professionals who can offer individual sessions, group support meetings or, if necessary, referrals for inpatient treatment - as well as help in returning to school.