Intervention: Mission Suicide Church Let Talk!

When a person dies by suicide, those left behind often find themselves asking the same painful question: “What could I have done to prevent this?” In most cases, there is no answer, and no one individual should hold him- or herself personally responsible for preventing a loved one’s suicide. But as the understanding of suicide and its causes has increased, so too have prevention efforts. When larger communities learn strategies for preventing suicide, it can make a difference in helping reduce the number of suicides.

Any type of adversity in a person’s life can increase risk of suicide, including adverse childhood experiences that occurred 15 to 20 years earlier. But someone with multiple risk factors may never consider suicide, while others with only a few factors at play could be at a high risk. So how can communities help to prevent suicide without knowing how much danger a person is in?

There are certain things we know of that can be quite powerfully protective. These are things that can be beneficial to anyone—whether they are at risk for suicide or not—such as strong social connections, a sense of belonging and purpose, and hopefulness. “These are all things that faith communities [can provide]. They connect human beings into bodies—the body of Christ, the church—and that gives people reasons for living that might counteract the reasons for dying that they are living with.”

Having a strong sense of spirituality, faith in a higher power, and a supportive church community have all been shown to aid in preventing suicide,

  “Whenever I talk to a faith leader, I try to let them know there is more evidence that what they do in a faith community can prevent suicide than what mental health professionals can do,