As we’ve discussed before, the 988 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline plays a critical role in the continuum of care needed to prevent deaths by suicide. 988 provides immediate help to people at immediate risk of dying by suicide and refers them to appropriate resources for longer-term care and recovery. However, the Lifeline only works if someone is there to pick up the phone every time someone calls.

We feel a deep concern that, in our own state of Texas, there hasn’t been sufficient allocation of resources to maintain a fully staffed Lifeline. As the Texas Tribune recently reported, a $7 million funding deficit has led to thousands of abandoned calls—and abandoning Lifeline calls can literally be a matter of life and death.

Limited funding in Texas leaves thousands of calls transferred out of state

Because of the lack of resources allocated to the Texas call centers, over 15% of Lifeline calls are routed to out-of-state call centers that serve as backups. While the backup system is necessary, overusing it is a huge problem: the more a caller is transferred in and out of state, the more likely that caller will hang up instead of reaching a crisis counselor. That’s why the national 988 administrator has set a benchmark for 90% of calls to be answered in-state; Texas falls well short of that standard.

While call centers do manage to answer over 80% of calls, the rates of response to text messages are much lower. At the Houston crisis center, for example, staff were only able to respond to 335 of the over 7,000 texts received last September, according to the Texas Tribune article. The remainder were handled by backup centers.

According to the 988 administrators, running Texas’s five call centers would cost $21 million; however, the state has only allocated $14 million, leaving staff stretched quite thin. And the funding situation is on track to get much worse: right now, the call centers are paid for by federal funding that will run out in 2026, and the state government has not taken action to fill in the gap, either by allowing Medicaid to pay for 988 services or by setting up a trust fund.

Policymakers and healthcare providers need to prioritize suicide prevention

It’s absolutely imperative that more resources be allocated to the 988 Lifeline, both in Texas and other struggling states across the country. Contrary to popular opinion, suicidal urges don’t last forever; they will pass in time, and intervention in the moment when someone is most vulnerable can make all the difference. A fully staffed, fully funded 988 Lifeline has a critical role to play in suicide prevention. So, too, do investments in mental health and suicide prevention throughout the healthcare system.

We are committed to preventing deaths by suicide by fighting for accountability in the healthcare system and justice for families of victims.

If you have lost a loved one to suicide completion, we would be honored to listen to your story and explain your options. Contact the Law Offices of Skip Simpson for a free, confidential consultation. We’re based in Texas and represent families nationwide.

Understanding the Hidden Connection

It’s well-known that veterans have a higher risk of suicide than the general population, but the causes are complex and often unclear. However, research has indicated that one significant contributing factor is traumatic brain injuries (TBI).

That’s the focus of a recently introduced bill in Congress, as Military.com reported. The proposed legislation called the Precision Brain Health Research Act, would direct the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Academies of Science to conduct a 10-year study on the ways brain injuries affect veterans’ mental health, including suicide risk and explore ways to improve diagnosis and care.

How service members experience traumatic brain injuries

A traumatic brain injury is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. Most TBIs are closed-head injuries, meaning they are caused by a blunt impact or violent movement of the head. A concussion is a type of mild closed-head injury, but “mild” is a relative term when you’re talking about TBI—no brain injury is truly minor.

The other type of TBI is a penetrating head injury, in which an object, such as a bullet or piece of shrapnel, pierces the skull and directly damages the brain.

Members of the military can suffer TBIs in combat, often due to explosions and other head impacts during combat. However, according to Military.com, approximately 80% of brain injuries happen outside deployments. They can occur in vehicle accidents, during training exercises, or even just from being close to the discharge of a big gun or artillery piece.

Moreover, service members can experience the cumulative impact of many concussions over time, leading to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)—a phenomenon that is perhaps best known in professional athletes but affects many veterans as well. Studies have shown that veterans are at an elevated risk of CTE, and it often co-occurs with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Traumatic brain injuries in veterans are one part of a larger story

The last point above bears repeating: often, neurological injuries such as brain injuries co-occur with psychological issues such as PTSD. And those conditions are in turn layered on top of the various stresses that military life puts on service members, such as frequent relocations and long deployments away from family and friends, not to mention the often-difficult transition from military to civilian life.

In other words, there are many interconnected causes of suicide risk in veterans, and each of those causes merits close study and attention. Ultimately, getting our nation’s veteran suicide crisis under control will require an all-hands-on-deck approach, including efforts by friends and family members, advocacy organizations, and the healthcare system. In particular, medical professionals who treat patients at risk of suicide should take veteran status into account when assessing suicide risk and recommending treatment and interventions.

Our law firm proudly stands up for grieving families

Deaths by suicide have many causes, and the better understood those causes are, the more effectively we’ll be able to save lives. However, understanding is only one piece: medical professionals need to take appropriate steps to prevent their patients from dying by suicide. When they fail to follow standards of care, we hold them accountable.

If you’ve lost a loved one to suicide completion, we will listen to your story and explain your options. Our law firm is based in Texas but serves families throughout the United States. Contact the Law Offices of Skip Simpson for a free, confidential consultation.

Study shows shame may increase suicidality among trauma survivors

It’s well known that people who have experienced trauma and developed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are at increased risk of suicide. As with all suicide risk factors, however, PTSD is one among many, and other factors can either increase or decrease the risk of dying by suicide. A recent study examined one of those additional factors: the role of shame in suicide risk among people with PTSD.

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health condition caused by being exposed to an extremely stressful or terrifying event, according to the Mayo Clinic. PTSD is perhaps best known as a condition that affects combat veterans, where it has historically been known by names such as “shell shock” and “war nerves.” However, PTSD can occur in people who have experienced any traumatic event, including but not limited to:

• Child abuse
• Sexual assault
• Violence
• Accidents, such as car crashes
• Natural disasters

Symptoms of PTSD include intrusive memories—that is, flashbacks, reliving the traumatic event, or having nightmares about the event—as well as negative changes in thinking and mood, avoidance behavior, and physical and emotional reactions such as being easily startled or always on guard. People with PTSD are also at elevated risk of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts.

The study results

In the study, published in January 2025, researchers examined nearly 1,500 college students who had experienced at least one traumatic event. The study participants filled out questionnaires that assessed their PTSD symptoms, suicidal ideation, and degree of shame, including feelings of inferiority, helplessness, or vulnerability.

The results were striking. Students who experienced shame tended to have more severe PTSD symptoms, and they also tended to have higher suicidal ideation and suicide risk.

According to the authors, the study findings “highlight the need to continue suicide prevention efforts on university campuses, particularly among students experiencing PTSD symptomatology.” While this particular study focused on college students, it seems probable that people with PTSD in the general population are likewise more vulnerable to dying by suicide if they experience shame.

Shame, isolation, and suicidality

In large part, the link between shame and suicidality seems to be driven by isolation. People with PTSD may struggle to form and maintain healthy relationships and spend a great deal of time alone, ruminating on their thoughts. Numerous studies have shown that social isolation has a significant causal relationship with death by suicide and, conversely, that social support has a protective effect.

The study findings highlight the need for social connection, especially among people who have experienced trauma. Friends and relatives of people at risk of suicide need to prioritize staying connected to help reduce risk. They also need to know the warning signs and take appropriate prevention measures when necessary.

If you’ve lost a loved one to suicide completion, we can help

The study findings also highlight the special responsibility that falls on medical professionals who treat patients who have experienced trauma. Suicide screenings and similar steps need to be conducted, and doctors need to make appropriate referrals for mental health services. When those steps aren’t taken, lives can be lost. We fight for accountability.

If you have lost a loved one to suicide, we would be honored to listen to your story and explain your options. Our law firm is based in Texas but serves families throughout the United States. Contact the Law Offices of Skip Simpson for a free, confidential consultation.

A new federal law will require the U.S. Department of Defense to include information on the occupational specialties of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on military suicide deaths, according to Air & Space Forces Magazine.

This provision is part of the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which Congress passed last month. According to advocates, this data should help military officials understand stressors that affect specific jobs. “Anecdotally, we know [suicide rates are] really bad in certain career fields,” said retired Air Force Master Sgt. Chris McGhee. “I consider this to be a starting point to investigate what is going on within those career fields that is driving those suicide rates.”

It’s well-known among suicide prevention advocates that job-related factors can have a significant impact on suicide risk, in both military and civilian careers. However, more data is always needed to understand why certain jobs are associated with higher risk of suicide and how those risks can be mitigated.

How job-related factors can affect the risk of dying by suicide

In 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published a report on (non-military) suicide rates by industry and occupation, based on 2021 data among U.S. persons of working age. According to the CDC report, the industries with the highest suicide rates include:

– Mining

– Construction

– Other Services (a catchall category that includes personal care, laundry, dry cleaning, pet care, death care, equipment repair, and many other service jobs)

– Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation

– Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting

The CDC report also discussed several job-related factors that can directly affect the risk of suicide, including:

– Work-related access to lethal means

– Job stress

– Poor support from supervisors and colleagues

– Low job control

– Job insecurity

That said, job-related factors are only one reason why certain jobs have higher suicide rates than others. Other demographic factors, such as age, race, ethnicity, educational attainment, and socioeconomic status, also affect suicide risk, and some occupations are disproportionately made up of people with those non-work-related risk factors. Still, it’s important to recognize the role that job-related factors play in increasing suicide risk among both military and civilian workers.

Both employers and medical providers need to make suicide prevention a priority

Especially in fields with high suicide rates, employers should make suicide prevention a top priority. Some steps employers can take to help mitigate the risk of suicide include:

– Providing ample time off that can be used to access mental health services.

– Providing an employee assistance plan (EAP).

– Distributing information on suicide prevention services, including the 988 Lifeline, in the workplace.

–  Changing workplace cultures to reduce job stress, promote flexibility to the extent possible, and ensure employees are supported.

– Immediately addressing bullying, harassment, and discrimination in the workplace.

Just as importantly, medical providers need to incorporate screening for work-related factors in their assessments of suicide risk, including job stress and access to lethal means at work. Overlooking this key element of suicide prevention can have devastating consequences.

We fight for accountability for families

Suicide is preventable, and in too many cases, a death by suicide is caused by negligence on the part of medical professionals who failed to know how to assess for suicide risk; that covers a great majority of clinicians in hospitals, emergency rooms, and in outpatient offices. They simply do not know what they don’t know. Our job is to help teach providers how to become competent in suicide assessments, and/or hold clinicians accountable for deaths by suicide and pursue justice for grieving families.

If you have lost a loved one to suicide completion, The Law Offices of Skip Simpson would be honored to listen to your story and explain your possible legal options. Give us a call or contact us online for a free, confidential consultation. Our firm is based in Texas and serves families throughout the United States.

Suicide prevention has many facets. It includes informal support from friends, family, employers, teachers, and others who interact with people at risk of suicide. It also includes formal mental health care, and unfortunately, a lack of access to care can dramatically increase the risk of dying by suicide.

That’s why we applaud the hard work of organizations that work to fill gaps in care and address unmet needs. CBS News recently reported on one such organization in Colorado, the Hope Institute, which seeks “to provide care in between general therapy and hospitalization.”

“Looking at our statistics, Colorado also has one of the highest rates of death by suicide in the country,” said Dr. Benjamin Finlayson, Clinical Director at the Hope Institute. “Us being here is really taking a proactive look at treating and addressing why suicide is so much higher in the state of Colorado.”

Closing gaps in services is critical to prevent deaths by suicide

Unfortunately, lack of access to mental health services plays a significant role in suicide deaths across the United States.

One recent study found that up to 80% of children and adolescents who die by suicide had at least some involvement with the healthcare system in the year prior to their deaths, but less than a third were actually able to access mental health services. Most ended up going to the emergency room, where overworked and undertrained staff weren’t able to meet their mental health needs. The study authors recommended training emergency department staff and prehospital clinicians in childhood mental health disorders and suicide prevention, as well as increasing the availability of mental health clinicians in schools and community settings, according to SafeSide Prevention.

A research review by RAND found that studies have consistently shown a correlation between greater access to mental health services and lower suicide rates, and at least two studies have shown causal effects between increased access to mental health services and reduced rates of death by suicide. The implications are clear: we need more access to competent mental health services, particularly in areas where suicide rates are above the national average.

Suicide prevention needs to be fully integrated into the healthcare system

While increasing access to mental health services is critical, it’s also important to strengthen suicide prevention resources across the continuum of care. That means training health care providers and others who interact with at-risk individuals to spot the warning signs of suicidality and make appropriate referrals to more specialized resources. The emergency department is a prime example: ED physicians and nurses must refer patients at any suicide risk to a competent mental health specialist. It is also vital to check prior ED visit records to see why the patient came to the ED. It may be because the patient was at risk for suicide on an earlier visit. If so, appropriate screening for suicidal thinking MUST occur.

Our law firm fights for accountability for families

Suicide is preventable, and a death by suicide is often the result of negligence on the part of medical professionals who treated the suicidal person. Our law firm works hard to hold those medical professionals accountable.

If you have lost a loved one to suicide completion, give us a call or contact us online for a free consultation. We’re based in Texas but represent families throughout the United States.

Losses come in many forms, all of which can have a deep and profound psychological impact on those left behind. One important element of the grieving and healing process is finding a sense of closure. However, that sense is harder to find in some situations than others.

Decades ago, family therapist Pauline Boss, Ph. D., coined the term “ambiguous loss” to refer to a type of loss that lacks certainty, which can freeze the grieving process and prevent resolution. Ambiguous losses can be incredibly stressful, and only by recognizing them in ourselves and others can we find ways to cope and heal.

What is ambiguous loss?

Put simply, ambiguous loss is loss without closure, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Boss categorizes ambiguous loss into two main types:

• Type One ambiguous loss means a loved one is physically absent but psychologically present. The end of a relationship through a breakup or divorce is this type of ambiguous loss, as is loss of contact due to immigration. A Type One ambiguous loss also occurs when a person goes missing due to kidnapping, war, terrorism, or natural disaster.
• Type Two ambiguous loss is just the opposite: a loved one is physically present but psychologically absent. Usually, this is associated with cognitive disabilities and mental or physical illnesses that take away a loved one’s mind, such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, traumatic brain injury, addiction, or severe depression.

What makes both types of ambiguous loss difficult is the lack of closure. A confirmed physical death is certainly difficult, but that difficulty is concrete. The mind can process what happened, and there are rituals associated with it: the wake, the funeral, support from friends and family during a period of grieving, and so on. When a person is missing and presumed but not confirmed dead, or when they are physically present but unrecognizable, the sense of closure isn’t there.

Finding ways to cope with ambiguous loss

Coping with ambiguous loss means naming what has happened, recognizing it as a loss, finding meaning, and developing resilience. Dr. Boss has identified six pillars of coping with ambiguous loss:

• Finding meaning: making sense of the loss and finding a new purpose in life. For instance, some people who have experienced ambiguous losses channel their grief into advocacy,
• Adjusting mastery: recognizing your degree of control in the situation and learning to live with things beyond your control.
• Reconstructing identity: coming to understand your new identity following the ambiguous loss.
• Normalizing ambivalence: coming to terms with conflicted feelings, such as wishing for closure versus wishing for the person’s’ return.
• Revising attachment: carrying two contradictory ideas in your mind at the same time. “She may come back, or she may not.”
• Discovering new hope: finding a reason to carry on, often by helping others to avoid suffering the same ambiguous loss.

It’s critical for people who have suffered an ambiguous loss to get support and, when necessary, mental health treatment from a provider who has the right training and experience to help navigate these complex emotions. Ambiguous loss is, unfortunately, part of life, but with the right support system, it’s possible to develop resilience and find the resolve to keep moving forward.

Our law firm is honored to stand up for families

Unfortunately, the link between ambiguous loss and suicide is self-reinforcing. Suicide itself can cause a type of ambiguous loss: while someone who dies by suicide completion is definitively gone, losing someone to suicide can still create a psychological ambiguous loss because it’s so difficult to make sense of what happened. And experiencing ambiguous loss may increase the risk of suicide because someone who becomes frozen in the grieving process may become overwhelmed and unable to move on.

Ambiguous loss is one of several contributing factors to preventable deaths by suicide. If you have lost someone to suicide completion, we will listen to your story and explain your rights and options. Contact the Law Offices of Skip Simpson for a free, confidential consultation. We’re based in Texas but serve clients across the United States.

“Skip Simpson was my attorney regarding a mental health treatment team. I became the first person in the country to win a lawsuit against treaters who practiced recovered memories. That was 30 years ago. Skip was an amazing attorney for me and still is. He is the best in dealing with mental health issues. First a client, still a life long friend.”
— Laura P.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

As a wave of laws targeting transgender and nonbinary young people sweeps across the nation, a new study shows a corresponding spike in their already-high suicide rates.

In an era when LGBTQ young people are already experiencing dangerously high levels of suicide risk, these laws are the equivalent of pouring gasoline on a fire. Lawmakers need to understand the human cost of this legislation and do their part to protect America’s most vulnerable youth.

When laws targeting trans and nonbinary teens pass, suicide increases follow

The study looked at the period from 2018 to 2022, during which a total of 48 anti-transgender laws were enacted across 19 U.S. states. Such laws included bans on trans-specific healthcare procedures, access to bathrooms, participation in sports, and laws against updating identification to reflect a person’s true gender.

According to the study, there was no increase in suicide attempts while these bills were merely being considered in state legislatures. However, after these bills became law, there was a statistically significant increase in suicide rates among transgender or nonbinary people aged 13-24 in those states, especially among those aged 13 to 17.

The study authors believed that, rather than directly prompting suicide attempts, the new laws added to the level of stress that trans and nonbinary young people were already experiencing. “So laws restricting access to gender-affirming bathrooms, ending participation in sports activities that align with one’s gender, may lead to experiences of rejection, social isolation, bullying,” study co-author Dr. Ronita Nath told CNN.

New legislation may drive bullying and harassment towards LGBTQ youth

October is National Bullying Prevention Month, and as we’ve written before, bullying is a key driver of suicide risk among young people. Unfortunately, bullying in schools and online often tracks with broader societal trends. Just as Black youth experienced elevated levels of bullying in the wake of the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor four years ago, LGBTQ youth may be experiencing more bullying and isolation as anti-LGBTQ laws are passed, with corresponding political and cultural rhetoric, in their home states.

In addition, certain laws may directly expose LGBTQ youth to bullying and harassment. For example, laws that prohibit updating identification may lead directly to being hassled at places where ID must be shown, such as airports. And laws restricting participation in sports have led to bullying and abuse related to sporting events—not just directed at trans and nonbinary youth, but any athlete who is perceived as transgender, as the controversy around Olympic boxer Imane Khelif showed. 

Our law firm stands up for families of youth who die by suicide

Nothing is more tragic or painful for a family than losing a child to suicide. Our law firm is honored to stand up for families in these dark moments and fight for accountability and justice. If you have lost a loved one to suicide completion, we will listen to your story and explain your rights and options. Contact the Law Offices of Skip Simpson for a free, confidential consultation. We’re based in Texas but serve families nationwide.

As September comes to a close, we’re reminded of the loss too many families have felt when loved ones died by suicide. We’re thinking of the communities that have been affected by preventable deaths by suicide. And we also recognize the progress that has been made in identifying and implementing suicide prevention methods that save lives.

September is National Suicide Prevention Month, an opportunity to reflect on the challenging but important work of suicide prevention and the critical role individuals, families, and communities play in saving lives. We’re participating in this effort because we have seen over and over again the devastating impact that deaths by suicide can have.

Know the warning signs

Suicide prevention starts with recognizing that someone is at risk of dying by suicide. Unfortunately, too often, these warning signs go unaddressed. Key warning signs of suicide in adults include:

• Anxious, agitated, or reckless behavior
• Talking about feeling trapped, hopeless, or like a burden to others
• Changing sleep patterns (too little or too much)
• Withdrawal or isolation
• Increased substance use
• Extreme mood swings or overwhelming rage
• Talking about or making plans for suicide

In children and youth, the warning signs often manifest differently:

• Displaying overwhelming emotional distress
• Expressing hopelessness about the future or talking about plans for suicide
• Significant behavioral changes, such as withdrawal from social connections or unusual anger and hostility
• Giving away prized possessions
• Significant increase in agitation or irritability

If someone displays signs of suicide risk, immediate intervention is critical. The QPR model (Question, Persuade, Refer) provides a useful framework for friends, family, and others who interact with at-risk individuals to help prevent suicide. And It’s critical to connect at-risk individuals with suicide prevention resources, including the 988 Lifeline.

Dispelling myths about suicide

• Myth: If someone wants to commit suicide, there’s nothing anyone can do. In reality, suicide is usually an impulsive decision or can seem that way. At times, people can think about a plan, shelve the idea, and then pick up the suicidal thinking and act on the shelved plan when some stressor or thought appears to your loved one. Either way, intervene with keeping the conversation about suicidal thinking going until you feel better about your loved one. However, it is really a good idea to take the QPR course for your own confidence and peace of mind. Eliminating access to lethal means and taking immediate steps to intervene can and does prevent deaths by suicide.
• Myth: Talking about suicide increases the risk of suicide. In fact, talking about suicide or directly asking if a person is thinking about suicide is one of the most important steps to help the person find help.
• Myth: Access to firearms has nothing to do with suicide risk. As we’ve written before, access to firearms can dramatically increase the risk of dying by suicide because guns are much more deadly than other commonly used suicide means like pills and cutting.
• Myth: People who die by suicide are selfish or weak. Far from it. Any kind of killing is hard to do. Suicide isn’t a choice; it’s a reaction to severe emotional pain and feeling that there’s no way out of a bad situation. Many people who die by suicide suffer from psychiatric illnesses like depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or substance abuse disorder. People become so overwhelmed that cognitive abilities are weakened severely.
• Myth: Treatment doesn’t work. Effective mental health treatment, including talk therapy, medications, and more, can absolutely reduce suicide risk. The key is to identify and implement the right interventions for a particular person’s needs.

If you have lost a loved one to suicide completion, we’d be honored to help

An important part of suicide prevention is holding medical professionals accountable when they fail to diagnose, manage, and treat suicide risk. Not only do we enforce patient safety rules when we must, but we teach clinicians and hospitals how to avoid being in a malpractice trap by being competent and what that means.

That’s what we do at the Law Offices of Skip Simpson. If you have lost a loved one to suicide, we are here to listen to your story and explain your options. Our law firm serves families throughout the United States. Give us a call or contact us online today.

New data released by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) shows a disturbing trend: among children aged eight to 12 years old, the suicide rate has steadily climbed over the last 15 years. As the Washington Post reported, there seems to be no single reason for this increase; rather, it’s a multifaceted problem that will require myriad solutions.

The NIMH data shows a steady increase since 2008

According to the data, there were 2,241 total suicides among preteens aged eight to 12 between 2001 and 2022. From 2001 through 2007, the suicide rate in this population was decreasing; however, since 2008, the suicide rate increased by about 8 percent each year.

Within this demographic, the largest increase came among preteen girls. Boys have always had a higher suicide rate than girls, but a disproportionate increase among girls has narrowed that gap. Between 2001 and 2007, the suicide rate among preteen girls was about 1.25 per 1 million; by 2022, that rate increased to 4.15 suicide deaths per 1 million.

The most common suicide method among preteens is hanging or suffocation, but firearms have played a significant role in the increase and are now the second-leading cause of death.

An ongoing mental health crisis among America’s youth

So what’s changed since 2008? Again, according to experts quoted in the Washington Post article, there are several causes, including the increasing role of technology and social media in preteens’ lives, as well as increasing access to firearms.

In 2008, social media was still relatively new; today, teens and preteens are using social media more than ever. Unfortunately, social media is known to increase suicide risk among young people. One study found a significant link between social media use and suicidal ideation in vulnerable adolescents, citing the rise of “cyberbullying,” exposure to substance abuse via social media, and social media’s role in body image concerns, especially among adolescent girls.

Another key factor in the increase in suicide rates is increased access to firearms. As we’ve discussed before, access to guns can dramatically increase the risk of dying by suicide because guns are much more lethal than other commonly used suicide methods. An access to a gun increases the risk of a suicide attempt, and it greatly increases the probability that an attempt will result in death.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic accelerated the mental health crisis in myriad ways: kids were home from school, watching loved ones get sick and even die, and dealing with a highly disrupted and uncertain future. However, it’s important to note that this is an ongoing mental health crisis that preceded the pandemic and did not improve with the widespread availability of vaccines and return to normalcy.

Parents, teachers, and medical professionals need to do their part to prevent suicide in preteens

In short, America’s preteens need help, and the adults in their lives need to step up and take action to prevent deaths by suicide. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, warning signs of suicide risk in children include:

• Talking about suicide
• Talking about feeling like a burden or having no reason to live
• Depression
• Anxiety or agitation
• Increased substance use
• Withdrawal from family, friends, and activities
• Sleeping too much or not enough
• Giving away prized possessions

All adults in the lives of children need to be on alert for changes in behaviors. If adults see these changes, question the child for more information. Ask directly about thoughts about suicide. QPR is the best training for adults to help children. Just like CPR, QPR is an emergency response to someone in crisis and can save lives. QPR is the most widely taught Gatekeeper training in the world. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone (including children) to help. See qprinstitute.com for more information and courses on how to save those around you from suicidal behavior.

Medical professionals who care for children need to recognize these warning signs, conduct suicide assessments, and refer their patients to the appropriate resources to help prevent suicide. When they fail to do so, lives can be tragically cut short. That’s why a key element of youth suicide prevention is accountability for victims and their families.

If you have lost a child to suicide completion, we can help

The Law Offices of Skip Simpson is dedicated to representing families and holding medical professionals accountable when they don’t protect patients. If you have lost a child to suicide, we would be honored to listen to your story and explain your legal options. Our firm is based in Texas and represents families throughout the United States.

Suicide prevention is a key part of preventing maternal deaths

It’s well-known that the United States has the highest maternal mortality rate of any developed country. Many of those maternal deaths are caused by physical health conditions related to pregnancy or complications during childbirth. However, maternal deaths by suicide also play a significant role, and a new study sheds light on the risk factors and possible prevention methods.

The risk of suicide is often elevated during stressful and transitional moments in life, and pregnancy is no exception. Medical providers, as well as partners and family members, need to do their part to protect women from suicide during this vulnerable time.

The study identifies key risk factors during the perinatal period

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, looked at 1,150 women and girls who died during pregnancy or the post-partum period, either of suicide or of unknown causes. According to the researchers, key risk factors included:

• Intimate partner problems
• Depression, including postpartum depression
• Substance abuse
• Physical health problems
• Death of a friend or family member

Some demographic factors also played a role in the suicide risks examined by the study. The authors noticed that single mothers were more likely to die by suicide compared to married women. The authors also noted that low income and low educational attainment are correlated with an increased risk of intimate partner violence, which in turn increases the risk of suicide.

“This work suggests that pregnancy is a period of transition in people’s lives when preexisting factors that contribute to suicide risk can come together in various ways, in addition to social, psychological, and biological risk factors that are part of the perinatal period itself,” said study co-author Briana Mezuk, professor of epidemiology and director of the Center for Social Epidemiology and Population Health at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

Loved ones and medical providers need to do their part to prevent maternal suicide

According to the 988 Lifeline, loved ones can help to reduce suicide risk in pregnant women and new mothers by:

• Asking and listening. Many mothers are afraid to speak up about their mental health symptoms or are so focused on the baby that they are unable to take care of themselves. They may also experience stigma and shame around mental health. That’s why it’s important to check in with loved ones, listen empathetically, and tell them it’s okay to talk about how they’re feeling.
• Know the facts. Mental health symptoms are the single most common childbirth complication, and they’re not the woman’s fault: they can be caused by biological, psychological, and social factors. Friends, family members, and professionals alike need to know the facts about maternal mental health when interacting with pregnant women and new mothers.
• Get help. Just like CPR, QPR is an emergency response to someone in crisis and can save lives. Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) is the most widely taught Gatekeeper training in the world. QPR is the best source you can find to help a loved one (including our moms or moms-to-be) who may be at risk for suicide. See qprinstitute.com for more vital information on how to be a helpful friend, spouse, brother, or sister. Resources such as the 988 Lifeline, mobile crisis teams, and outpatient and inpatient mental health services are available to help mothers stay safe. These resources are the “R” part of QPR, but you have to know there is a problem first. You know there is a problem by asking (Q) questions. Asking someone about suicide will not put the idea into their head; they will be relieved you asked.

If you lost a loved one to suicide completion, we’d be honored to hear your story

In the aftermath of a preventable death by suicide, families deserve answers. The Law Offices of Skip Simpson holds negligent medical professionals accountable when they fail to protect mothers and other patients at risk of dying by suicide. If you have lost a loved one to suicide, our legal team would be honored to listen to your story, free of charge. Our firm is based in Texas and serves families throughout the United States.