Suicide

Helplines

Colorado Crisis and Support Line

• 1-844-493-TALK (1-844-493-8255)

Metro Crisis Line

• 1-888-885-1222

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

• Call 988 (press 2 for Spanish) or visit the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline website: 988 is now the three-digit dialing code that routes callers to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (or 988 Lifeline). On July 16, 2022, the 988 Lifeline transitioned away from the National Suicide Prevention Line reached through a 10-digit number to the three-digit 988 Lifeline. It is funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and administered by Vibrant Emotional Health (Vibrant).

When people call, text, or chat with the 988 Lifeline, they are connected to trained crisis counselors who are part of the existing 988 Lifeline network, made up of over 200 local crisis centers. These crisis counselors are trained to provide free and confidential emotional support and crisis counseling to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress and connect them to resources. These services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, across the United States.

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, TTY 1-800-799-4TTY (1-800-799-4889)
• National LGBT Youth Suicide Hotline, 1-866-4-U-TREVOR (1-866-488-7386)

Colorado School Safety Resource Center Created Suicide Prevention Materials

• Suicide Prevention and Intervention Risk Factors & Warning Signs

  • Created by the Colorado School Safety Resource Center (Updated: August 2022)
  • There is no definitive checklist of either risk factors or warning signs for adolescent suicide. This handout is provided as a guideline. Please consult the Colorado School Safety Resource Center’s: Resources for Youth Suicide Prevention and Intervention for additional information.

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• CSSRC Crisis Response Guidelines for K-12 Schools and Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs)

  • The new CSSRC Crisis Guidelines incorporate recommendations based on lessons learned from school tragedies in Colorado and across the country in an effort to prepare others for the possibility of one of these events. The guidelines also incorporate the input of K-12 and higher education school security experts, mental health providers, and crisis responders. 

• CSSRC Suicide Assessment and Intervention Toolkit

  • Created in 2020 by staff of the CSSRC, this toolkit is based on the seminal text, Suicide in Schools A Practitioner's Guide to Multi-level Prevention, Assessment, Intervention and Postvention, 2nd Ed. Routledge, 2020. This text was written by Drs. Terri Erbacher, Scott Poland and Jonathan Singer and used with their permission. CSSRC would be happy to train any school mental health provider in using the toolkit but it is not disseminated without training. Please contact the Center at 303.239.4534 or CDPS_School_Safety_Center@state.co.us to arrange training. Resources for Youth Suicide Prevention and Intervention "A Guide for Schools CSSRC Risk Factors and Warning Signs (you'll find a copy on the CSSRC Tools and Templates page)

• A Media Guide on the Reporting of School Tragedies

  • Created by the Colorado School Safety Resource Center in October 2014
  • This guide summarizes the copycat effect that media coverage can have on suicides and school shootings. Tips for covering school tragedies responsibly are presented.

• Organizing A School Crisis Response

  • A checklist of considerations for responding to a school crisis event.

• Preventing Suicide: The Role of High School Mental Health Providers

  • As a high school mental health provider, you have an important role to play. You are in a key position to:
    • Observe students' behavior and act when you suspect that a student may be at risk for suicide
    • Provide expertise, support, and information to teachers and other staff, students, and parents/legal guardians who may notice that a student is struggling
    • Determine the next steps to take regarding a student's safety and treatment

• Resources for Youth Suicide Prevention and Intervention - A Guide for Schools (Compiled by CSSRC)

  • This guide includes a variety of resources that address suicide prevention and intervention for youth. It is a compilation of information and not an endorsement of any specific program or services.
  • This guide provides information resources for further investigation by a district and/or school before implementation in their community. Any program should be considered with adequate staff training and available school and community intervention resources. This information were updated in June 2021, and may be subject to change.

• Student Suicide: Best Practice Recommendations Working Group

  • Student Suicide: Best Practice Recommendations Working Group Meeting Notes - Jan. 2018
    • In January 2018, a group of district and community mental health professionals spent an entire day reviewing the suicide protocols within their districts and making recommendations for any schools in addressing suicide. Notes from that meeting including links to resources that the group was willing to share and which the Colorado School Safety Resource Center (CSSRC) identified., If you have any questions about this document, please contact the CSSRC for more information.

• Long Beach Middle School
  • Letter to Parents from Long Beach Middle School regarding 13 Reasons Why Netflix series [Posted with Permission]

American Association of Suicidology

• Developmental Disabilities and Suicide
  • Article from the American Association of Suicidology
  • "Putting Developmental Disability on the Suicide Prevention Agenda"

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)

• It's Real
• More Than Sad
• Model School District Policy on Suicide Prevention
• Teens and Suicide: What Parents Should Know
• Children, Teens, and Suicide Loss
• K-12 School Suicide Prevention
• Stories Written by Pamela Gabbay, Ed.D., F.T.
• Firearms and Suicide Prevention Program
  • Established in 1987, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is a voluntary health organization that gives those affected by suicide a nationwide community empowered by research, education and advocacy to take action against this leading cause of death.
• After a Suicide Loss: A Toolkit for Schools
  • Produced by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) (2011)
  • A free resource to help schools cope in the aftermath of a suicide., Developed in consultation with national experts, this toolkit is a highly-practical resource for schools facing real-time crises, and is applicable for diverse populations and communities., It includes general guidelines for action, do's and don'ts, templates and sample materials, and covers topics such as Crisis Response, Working with the Community, Memorialization, Social Media, Suicide Contagion and Bringing in Outside Help.

Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine

• Recent Victimization Exposure and Suicidal Ideation in Adolescents
  • Published in October,  2012 in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
  • A team that studied the association between victimization and suicidal ideation concluded that it is important to assess young people who are believed to be at risk for suicidal ideation for a history of recent victimization and to assess young people who have histories of recent victimization for suicide risk. The team explored the relationship between victimization over the past year with self-reported suicidal ideation in the past month in children 10-17 years of age.
  • The data analysis revealed that four aggregate categories of victimization experiences by young people are associated with an increased risk of suicidal ideation:
    • Peer victimization
    • Sexual assault
    • Maltreatment by a caregiver (including physical and sexual maltreatment, as well as neglect)
    • Witnessing family violence

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)

• When a Parent Dies by Suicide... What kids want to know? (PDF)
  • Resource when working with a child who is grieving their parent's death specific to suicide.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

• As part of the injury prevention unit, the CDC provides research and information about suicide prevention. Bullying in any capacity-as a victim, perpetrator, or both-and suicidal ideation and behavior are significantly related. This key finding comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s systematic review and meta-analysis of 47 studies published today in Pediatrics. Youth who bully others and who are bullied themselves were particularly likely to report suicidal ideation and behavior compared to youth who were only perpetrators or only victims.
  • The Relationship Between Bullying and Suicide: What We Know and What it Means for Schools (Published April 2014)

Child Trends

• Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that provides valuable information and insights on the well-being of children and youth. For more than 30 years, policymakers, funders, educators and service providers in the U.S. and around the world have relied on our data and analyses to improve policies and programs serving children and youth. Our team of experts brings together a range of educational, work, policy and cultural experiences to provide cutting-edge research on issues affecting children from birth to early adulthood. Our work is supported by foundations, federal, state and local government agencies, and by nonprofit organizations.
• Transitioning to Adulthood: The Role of Adolescent Depression and Suicidal Ideation (Nov. 2014)

Children's Safety Network (CSN)

• Children's Safety Network
• National Resource Center for Injury and Violence Prevention is dedicated to working with state, territorial and community Maternal & Child Health and Injury & Violence prevention programs to create an environment where all children and youth are safe and healthy. We work with states and territories to infuse knowledge, expertise, and leadership to reduce injury, hospitalization, disability and death for all children and youth.
• Suicide Prevention

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE)

• Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention
  • The Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention, on office of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) provides information about programs and activities and public awareness materials to Colorado residents free of charge.
  • Suicide Among First Responders in Colorado 2004-2014: A Summary from the Colorado Violent Death Reporting System
  • Media Response to Suicide Training Guide (Aug. 2011)
    • Provides guidance and support to deliver Suicide Prevention Key Messages in an interview related to suicide
• Office of Suicide Prevention's Document on Suicide Prevention & Equity
  • The Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention, in collaboration with partners across the state and country, works to prevent all Coloradans from feeling suicidal, from attempting suicide, and from dying by suicide and to support Coloradans who have been impacted by suicide, including suicide loss. Experiences of suicide exist on a continuum. The majority of people who experience suicidal despair do not go on to attempt or die by suicide. Effective and authentic suicide prevention must support everyone impacted by suicide.
• Youth and Young Adult Suicide Prevention
  • The Office of Suicide Prevention works to prevent suicide for Colorado's youth and young adults through upstream prevention, prevention, intervention, and postvention. Learn more about the youth suicide prevention work being, done in Colorado through a federal Garrett Lee Smith (GLS) Youth Suicide Prevention Grant

CO Attorney General

• Community Conversations to Inform Youth Suicide Prevention (CO Attorney General)
  • Report from the Colorado Attorney General's Office on a study done of four Colorado counties with high rates of suicide across every age group.

Douglas County Sheriff Office

• Public Safety Videos
  • Released December 2012,by Douglas County Sheriff's Office, Douglas County School District, and Douglas County Government
  • "Signs" and "Tape" for teens
  • "Cowboy" and "Lost" for men
  • "Tug of War" for women

Dougy Center, the National Grief Center for Children & Families

eMed International Inc.

• Recorded Livestream of Dr. Russell Copelan discussing Youth Nonideation Suicidality
  • Recorded October 22, 2013 at the Youth Suicide Prevention and Intervention Symposium in Grand Junction
  • Slides for Dr. Copelan's presentation
  • Article for Dr. Copelan's presentation Adolescent Violence Screening in the Emergency Department

Journal of Adolescent Health

• The Role of Social Support and Social Context on the Incidence of Attempted Suicide Among Adolescents Living in Extremely Impoverished Communities C. Thomas Farrell, Ph.D., M.P.H., John M. Bolland, Ph.D., William C. Cockerham, Ph.D.
• Abstract: Results: "Increased peer support reduced the risk of suicide attempt, and increased perceived inevitability of violence led to an increase in risk among 9-year-old children. As children age, the effect of overall peer support remains consistent, while there is a reduction in the effect of inevitability of violence. Approximately 36% of extremely impoverished adolescents attempt suicide by the age of 19."

International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP)

• Briefing Statement for Educators and Mental Health Professionals on the "Momo Challenge".,
  • Briefing Statement from IASP & SAVE regarding the "Momo Challenge" (Identified as a suicide contagion risk factor)
  • Sample Letter to be sent to Parents

Mayo Clinic

• Reach Out - Preventing Teen Suicide
  • Brief video produced in June 2013.
  • This positive music video encourages troubled teens to communicate with an adult for support and depicts how teens can talk to adults in a variety of situations.
• Teen Suicide Prevention
  • Brief video published in June 2013.
  • Describes common signs that a teen is considering suicide and provides encouragement for communicating directly and immediately for support and safety. It also includes suggestions for what to say to a teen who may be at risk for suicide and ways to keep them safe.

National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)

• "13 Reasons Why" Netflix Series: Considerations for Educators
• Suicide Contagion and Clusters - Part 2: What Can a School Psychologist Do?
• Part 1 of this series (Lieberman, Poland & Niznik, 2019), we discussed the phenomena of contagion and identified adolescents as the most susceptible age group for imitating suicidal behavior. Beyond specifically suicidal behavior, we may be underestimating the full impact of being exposed to a death by suicide - contention supported by Cerel and colleagues (2018), who found that of approximately 135 people exposed to a death by suicide, as many as 30% found it to be a life-changing event. Ultimately, the primary goal of postvention is to identify those now at risk and prevent the next suicide. Part 2 of this series focuses on limiting contagion and highlights the many potential roles of the school psychologist in suicide postvention. Frequently asked questions (FAQ) are addressed in a special section at the end of the article.
• Save a Friend: Tips for Teens to Prevent Suicide
  • Tips for teens from National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) to help prevent suicide and get help.
• Model School District Suicide Prevention Policy
  • NASP partnered with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the American School Counselor Association, and the Trevor Project to update the Model School Policy, a comprehensive guidebook for school administrators and policymakers. The guidebook contains best practices in suicide prevention, intervention and postvention policies for K-12 schools.
  • Watch Webinar
• Read the full Model School Suicide Prevention Policy press release here.

QPR Institute

• Programs for Teens & Suicide
  • teen MENTAL HEATH FIRST AID
  • QPR Training for Youth Guidelines: Policies and Procedures

RMC Health

• Suicide Issue Brief
  • In an effort to prevent suicide, it is important to understand that students can experience suicidality in different ways. Suicidality can increase when a student experiences a painful loss, life event, or change that makes it difficult to cope. Although not everyone who dies by suicide exhibits observable warning signs, the majority of people do express some sign of suicidal ideation to someone else. Learning how to identify warning signs can help prevent suicide attempts. This document is produced in collaboration by Advancing IDEAS for Health and RMC Health with support from The Colorado Health Foundation. Suicide Issue Brief (PDF - 2.2MB)

Second Wind Fund

• Second Wind Fund offers actual treatment services to at-risk children and youth. Second Wind Fund has built an innovative program to urgently match children and youth ages 19 and younger, who are at risk of suicide, with a licensed therapist in their local community.
• Referrals are typically made by school mental health staff (School Counselors, Social Workers or Psychologists) and sometimes by other mental health professionals. Home schooled youth or those no longer attending school are also eligible. If the referred youth is at risk for suicide and does not have adequate insurance or the means to pay for the necessary mental health treatment, the cost of therapy is paid for by Second Wind Fund.
• Eligibility Requirements and Making a Referral

Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide (SPTS)

• The mission of the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide is to reduce the number of youth suicides and attempted suicides by encouraging public awareness through the development and promotion of educational training programs.
• Teens (SPTS). General information about youth suicide prevention. With links to additional SPTS resources.
• FACTS - Warning Signs of Suicide (SPTS) - PDF
• Talking to Your Kids About Suicide
  • From the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide, this guide provides practical information designed to enable parents to be comfortable in communicating with their children on the topic of suicide prevention.

Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC)

• Recommendations for Reporting on Suicide (pdf) | en Español
  • The Recommendations for Reporting on Suicide were developed by leading experts in suicide prevention and in collaboration with several international suicide prevention and public health organizations, schools of journalism, media organizations and key journalists as well as Internet safety experts. The recommendations are based on more than 50 international studies on suicide contagion.
  • Media and online coverage of suicide should be informed by using best practices. Some suicide deaths may be newsworthy. However, the way media covers suicide can influence behavior negatively by contributing to contagion or positively by encouraging help-seeking.
• Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC),Resources for Parents, Guardians & Families
  • This sheet lists a selection of websites and online information sheets that have suicide prevention resources for parents, guardians, and other family members. The resources provide guidance on talking with your child if you think he or she may be at risk for suicide and on coping with a suicide attempt or death. A few of the resources also discuss how you can take action at the school and community level to prevent suicide.

Suicide Prevention | en Español

• Other Suicide Prevention Resources/Materials in Spanish.
  1. National Institute of Mental Health Brochure and Fact Sheet (Spanish)
  2. NASP Preventing Youth Suicide (Spanish)
  3. Colorado Crisis Services Website (In Spanish)
  4. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - Spanish Resource Personnel

• Transforming Tribal Communities: Indigenous Perspectives on Suicide Prevention
  • SPRC is excited to announce the release of a new video series Transforming Tribal Communities: Indigenous Perspectives on Suicide Prevention. This series includes six- to eight-minute webinar clips with expert advice on addressing the root causes of suicide and mental health issues in American Indian and Alaska Native communities by drawing on community strengths. Presenters show how culturally relevant suicide prevention strategies endorsed by community members can lead to long-lasting change.
• Suicide Surveillance Strategies for American Indian and Alaska Native Communities
  • This report summarizes findings and recommendations from SPRC's exploration of suicide surveillance among American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities across the country. If you work in suicide surveillance, we invite you to read the report to learn about the challenges specific to tribal populations and how to address them. Practitioners already working with AI/AN communities can use the report to develop practical and culturally appropriate suicide surveillance strategies tailored to each community.
• Prevention in Practice: Building Life Skills, Connectedness, and Resilience in Youth
  • This success story describes how Native Americans for Community Action, Inc. (NACA),partnered with northern Arizona schools to implement Coping and Support Training (CAST) for Native youth. Learn how this evidence-based program is helping to enhance life skills and resilience and promote social connectedness and support among students -- critical parts of a comprehensive approach to suicide prevention.
• Preventing Suicide in Yup'ik Youth
  • A community-based intervention that promotes culturally generated reasons for life and sobriety may be a useful tool to protect Alaska Native youth from suicide risk, particularly when implemented at a greater intensity (i.e., when youth participated in a larger number of intervention activities or modules). Allen, J., Rasmus, S. M., Fok, C. C. T., Charles, B., Henry, D., & Qungasvik Team.,(2018). Multi-level cultural intervention for the prevention of suicide and alcohol use risk with Alaska Native youth: A nonrandomized comparison of treatment intensity. Prevention Science, 19(2), 174-185.
• Preventing Suicide: The Role of High School Teachers
  • As a teacher, you have an important role to play in preventing suicide. You have daily contact with many young people, some of whom have problems that could result in serious injury or even death by suicide. You are therefore in a position to notice what students say, do, and write, and take action when you suspect a student may be at risk of self-harm.

The Trevor Project

• The Trevor Project operates the only nationwide, around-the-clock crisis and suicide prevention helpline for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. This site has materials and resources for helping youth. 1-866-4-U-TREVOR (1-866-488-7386).
• Model School District Policy on Suicide Prevention: Model Language, Commentary & Resources
  • Released January 2014 by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), American School Counselor Association (ASCA), National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) and Trevor Project
  • This modular, adaptable document is designed to help educators and school administrators implement comprehensive suicide prevention policies. It is research-based and designed for middle and high schools without policies or in need of amendments to their existing policies.
  • Fast Facts: Model School District Policy on Suicide Prevention fact sheet
  • Recorded Webinar on Preventing Suicide and Self-Harm Among Black Youth

• 2020 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health

  • The Trevor Project's 2020 Report - National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health shares new insights into the unique challenges LGBTQ+ youth face every day. It also includes best practices for how to support LGBTQ+ youth and contribute positively to their mental health.

Trust for American Health

• Alcohol and Drug Misuse and Suicide and the Millennial Generation - a Devastating Impact
  • In 2017, more than 152,000 Americans died from alcohol- and drug-induced fatalities and suicide. That's the highest number ever recorded and more than twice as many as in 1999. The largest number of these deaths, almost half, were the result of drug overdoses - more than the peak annual total from HIV, guns, or car crashes. Trust for America's Health and Well Being Trust have called for immediate and sustained attention and investment in a National Resilience Strategy to address this rising death toll.

University of Pittsburgh

• Recommendations for Suicide Prevention and Related Risk Behaviors
  • By Mary Margaret Kerr, Ed.D. Professor of Child Psychiatry, Psychology in Education, and Administrative Policy Studies, Founding Co-Director, Services for Teens at Risk for Suicide (STAR-Center), University of Pittsburgh

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

• Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) Toolkit
  • The Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) Toolkit is a free resource for medical settings (emergency department, inpatient medical/surgical units, and outpatient clinics/primary care),that can help nurses or physicians successfully identify youth at risk for suicide. The ASQ is a set of four screening questions that takes 20 seconds to administer. In an NIMH study, a "yes" response to one or more of the four questions identified 97% of youth (aged 10 to 21 years) at risk for suicide. By enabling early identification and assessment of young patients at high risk for suicide, the ASQ toolkit can play a key role in suicide prevention.

Youth Suicide Report: Data through an Equity Lens (PDF - 2.1MB)

• The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment recently released a new report: "Suicide among Youth in Colorado, 2013-2017: Ages 10-18." The report includes summaries of demographic characteristics, trends, and life and situational circumstances most frequently associated with youth suicide deaths in Colorado. Its purpose is to inform, prevention and intervention efforts by agencies interested in decreasing the impact of youth suicide.

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