Over 90 people commit suicide in the USA everyday.
A message from ISP (International Suicide Prevention)
FACTS ON SUICIDE
More people die by suicide than murder or HIV/AIDS.
For every suicide there are 25 attempted suicides.
It is estimated that 80% of all in home suicides are being cleaned up by a family member due to a lack of funds, or because of the guilt and shame they feel, they can not bring themselves to include one more person in their very personal tragic situation, including an insurance adjuster.
Once a person cleans up a suicide scene of a loved one, they are in the highest risk group for future suicides.They are now 75% more likely to commit suicide later on in life than the general population.
Of all suicides, 75% of them have told someone of their intentions.
Know "WHY" about suicide!
If you learn "WHY" you will save more lives than "CPR" or the "Heimlich Maneuver".
"WHY" stands for the three rules to prevent a suicide:
W - Warning signs of suicide.
H-How to help someone that is suicidal.
Y - You will personally make a difference.
The two main reasons for people to attempt suicide are because of romance problems and/or financial issues.
So, if you know someone that has just recently experienced a breakup of a relationship, or the loss of a job, following three simple rules called, "WHY" can save a person's life.
Human beings have a tendency to associate their self-worth & identity with their possessions and positions in life.Romance and finance can give individuals a false sense of control, power or security.When either one, romance or financial, situation changes drastically, some individuals will experience a feeling of being out of control, powerlessness, and in an identity crisis.
The top warning signs of someone that is contemplating suicide are:
They tell you that they want to die, or simply say that they can not do it anymore.
They give away prized possessions.
They are suddenly happy after a long period of depression.
In youth, 10 to 18 years of age, depression is mostly expressed through apathy.
Help:
If you know that someone is suicidal, and you do not know what to do, call 911.It is better that someone be mad at you for awhile than for you to be attending their funeral in a few days.
Watch:
If you know that someone just found out that they are breaking up from a relationship, just be fired, laid off, lost money in the stock market, etc., the first forty-eight hours is crucial for them to process the change in their value, status, and self image.It is imperative that you do not leave individuals alone during this process as they my act out in a knee jerk reaction to a major life change, such as already stated.If after forty-eight hours they are not accepting the change, then you need to get them professional help.
Listen:
Listen to what people have to say without wanting to fix them.By allowing someone to verbalize the thoughts in their head, without judgment, will allow them to see that there is another way.
Questions:
We have control over two things in this life: what we focus on and the intensity of what we are focusing on.Getting an individual to change their focus off of a suicidal thought is easily changed through questions.Asking a person a question will immediately redirect their focus to a new thought, requiring considerable effort to return to thoughts of suicide.
Looking forward, not backwards:
Those that are suicidal tend to live in the past, not able to see tomorrow without their identity.We can only have one thought at a time, so getting another person to set a goal is a good way to move their focus off of what is, to what will be.
Learn how to save a life today, before it is too late!
Developed by: ISP (International Suicide Prevention), a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity.
Do you have a habitual emotion that is holding you back from experiencing happiness?
Do you know that how we feel on the inside, at any given time regardless of what our outward situation or circumstance maybe, is a choice?
I'm a trauma scene specialist, helping those in extreme emotional distress, so I have to get results fast, and so can you.
How would you like for me to share with you a technique I use to help the traumatized within minutes feel better?
FOCUS –
What you are thinking about will determine your emotion.Controlling your thoughts is the first step to changing how you feel.The first question you have to ask yourself is, "Do you want to feel better?"
If the answer is, "yes", then we can proceed.
At any given time you can change how you are feeling by recalling an experience that was pleasant.You can do this by asking yourself a question.
Here are some examples; have you ever taken a vacation?Do you remember your first kiss?What was the funniest movie you have ever seen?What is your favorite fruit?
Once you have an answer to one of these questions, start to RELIVE the experience with all of your senses.Close your eyes and see, taste, smell, touch, feel the whole experience. While you are still in the pleasant experience, touch your fore finger to your thumb.Anytime you want to return to this experience, from now on, all you have to do is close your eyes and touch your fore finger to your thumb.
Start making a list of experiences that you have had in your life that were pleasant.Carry this list with you at all times.When you find that your focus is on unpleasant things, pull out your list and close your eyes.Change your mind!
Suicide scene cleaning - Special report.
Category: News and Politics
July 21, 2008
Hello,
This is Matthew Dovel, president of ISP.
We are in need of immediate funding and if you take the time to watch the following video links, you will begin to understand the importance of the work we are doing. I've been doing this work for over twenty years now and haven't ever seen what I've been seeing lately!
Please forward this message to someone that you think can help.
Suicide scene cleaning - Special report.
Category: News and Politics
July 21, 2008
Hello,
This is Matthew Dovel, president of ISP.
We are in need of immediate funding and if you take the time to watch the following video links, you will begin to understand the importance of the work we are doing. I've been doing this work for over twenty years now and haven't ever seen what I've been seeing lately!
Please forward this message to someone that you think can help.
Step one you say we need to talk He walks you say sit down it's just a talk He smiles politely back at you You stare politely right on through Some sort of window to your right As he goes left and you stay right Between the lines of fear and blame And you begin to wonder why you came
Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life
Let him know that you know best Cause after all you do know best Try to slip past his defense Without granting innocence
Lay down a list of what is wrong The things you've told him all along And pray to God he hears you
Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life
As he begins to raise his voice You lower yours and grant him one last choice Drive until you lose the road Or break with the ones you've followed
He will do one of two things He will admit to everything Or he'll say he's just not the same And you'll begin to wonder why you came
Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend Somewhere along in the bitterness And I would have stayed up with you all night Had I known how to save a life
500 to 700 different special skills and abilities!
Your brain can store 100,000,000,000,000 facts! (100 trillion)
Your mind can handle 15,000 decisions a second!
Your noose can detect up to 10,000 different odors!
Your touch can detect an item 1/25,000 of an inch thick!
Your tong can taste 1 part quinine to 2,000,000 parts water!
We are thoughts that have manifested the physical machine, the body.
We are impulses of intelligence in a larger universe of intelligence that have learned how to create physical matter. We create the mind and we create the body.
We make a new body once a year! The body is in a constant state of renewal.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, the chemical and mineral composition of the average human body breaks down as follows:
65% Oxygen
18% Carbon
10% Hydrogen
3% Nitrogen
1.5% Calcium
1% Phosphorous
0.35% Potassium
0.25% Sulfur
0.15% Sodium
0.15% Chlorine
0.05% Magnesium
0.0004% Iron
0.00004% Iodine
Additionally, our bodies contain trace quantities of copper, zinc, fluorine, silicon, manganese, aluminum, and arsenic. Those amounts of elements total less than one dollar.
However, the average person owns approximately 14 to 18 square feet of skin. If you base the skin's value on the selling price of cowhide, which is about $0.25 per square foot, the value of an average person's skin is a whopping $3.50!
We prefer this Answer!
Below is another opinion from the Indiana University School of Medicine :
How much is a human body worth? When broken down into fluids, tissues and germ fighting our bodies are worth more than $45 million.
This price tag on the human body is based on a survey published in Wired magazine. It found that vital organs are no longer the most valuable body parts. Rather, bone marrow heads the list…priced at $23 million, based on 1,000 grams at $23,000 per gram. DNA can fetch $9.7 million, while extracting antibodies can bring $7.3 million. A lung is worth $116,400, a kidney $91,400 and a heart $57,000.
Women's eggs are costlier than men's sperm. The survey found that a fertile woman could sell 32 egg cells over eight years for $224,000; however, for a man to earn the same amount, he would have to make 12 sperm donations a month for 20 years.
The prices are based on cost estimates taken from hospitals and insurance companies, and are based on projected prices only in the United States. Of course, the prices also assume that all these substances can be extracted from living tissue for sale.
Although this break down is illegal, unethical and also impossible, you should not feel like you are worth just a mere $4.50. You can feel like $45 million, instead!
Pass this on to those that think they don't matter or, that they think they are worthless!
Well, these issues are all are contributing to a higher suicide rate!
It is a fact; over a million people commit suicide every year!
Some would say, "What difference does it make? It's the law of nature!It's a thinning of the herd!"
What difference does it make?
The day, after a hurricane, an old man was surveying the damage to his coastal home.As he did he noticed a small boy on the beach scurrying about in a frantic manner, and he decided to investigate.As the old man got closer to the boy, he could see that the little boy was picking up starfish that had washed onto the beach as a result of the hurricane.The boy was taking the starfish one at a time back to the waters edge, and throwing them back in the ocean.
The old man looked up and down the beach seeing a million starfish that had washed ashore, and he new that within a few hours the hot sun would kill them all.Such was life the old man thought to himself.After watching the little boy for a few minutes he finally asked the boy, "Hey boy!What are you doing?"
The boy responded, "Can't you see?I'm saving these starfish!If they stay on the beach they will die!"
The old man said, "Can't you see?There are a million starfish on the beach!There are too many for hundreds of people to save, much less one little boy.What difference will it make if you save a couple of starfish? Why don't you just give up?You can't possibly make a difference!"
The little boy just stood still for a few minutes thinking about what the old man had just said, and then he reached down and picked up another starfish, ran to the waters edge, and threw it back into the ocean.Then, looking at the old man one more time, the little boy shouted back to the old man, "It makes a difference to that one!"
Please help us make a difference by making a contributory donation to ISP today!
Magazine interview Las Vegas City Life - a weekly publication distributed throughout Las Vegas, Nevada May 8, 2008 http://lasvegascitylife.com
Distributed throughout Las Vegas, Nevada.
Dying for attention
One man's campaign of raising suicide awareness has state officials raising eyebrows
by ANDREW KIRALY
PHOTO BY BILL HUGHES Matthew Dovel, president of International Suicide Prevention
WHAT QUALIFIES former cokehead, alcoholic and drug courier Matthew Dovel as a suicide prevention expert? Not a counseling degree. Not a psychiatry background. Not a marriage and family therapy license. Nothing like that.
His credentials: Dovel tried to kill himself in 1987 with three bottles of sleeping pills and a fifth of Beefeater gin. He's spent his life since then talking to people about the warning signs of suicide, counseling relatives of victims and connecting devastated families with resources.
"I work on an experiential level," says Dovel, president of Las Vegas-based International Suicide Prevention and author of My Last Breath. "I didn't come from UNLV over here, saying, 'It says here you're hiccupping so you must be suicidal.' You know what? I come from the heart when I talk to people and they know that. They learn more from my classes I teach, knowing I'm not there to get a paycheck, but to help them learn to detect the warning signs better. It's not a clinical class." Clinical or not, Nevada can use all the help it can get. According to the latest statistics by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nevada has the nation's second-highest annual suicide rate at about 20 per 100,000 people, second only to Montana. The state's suicide-prevention office only formed in 2003 and wasn't funded until 2005.
At a recent interview about his suicide prevention campaign, Dovel is wearing a pressed white shirt and slacks, but there's little that's fastidious about his straight-talk approach to suicide. At a Dovel presentation -- he says he's presented to everyone from soldiers to students -- he talks about his hard-partying days in Anchorage, Alaska, where in the '80s he developed a $1,000-a-week cocaine habit. He talks about how a side gig running drugs for a bike gang led to a plunge into addiction, despair and his suicide attempt. He talks about how his near-death experience took him to hell -- complete with demons, lightning and thunder.
He puts his hands to his chest. "I forgot to wear my pin."
Oh, the pin. The logo pin. International Suicide Prevention's logo is a noose with a slash through it. It's provocative and eye-catching -- and it's certainly caught the eye of state suicide-prevention officials. To them, it's not just insensitive. They say the logo, just one part of Dovel's blunt style, threatens to backfire and perhaps send someone contemplating suicide over the edge.
"We have no problem with Mr. Dovel's efforts and his concern for preventing suicide," says Misty Allen, suicide prevention coordinator with the Nevada Office of Suicide Prevention. "But there are evidence-based protocols for doing this safely. People who are suicidal are vulnerable, and we want to protect them from images or media stories that might increase the risk of following through. When you see a pin with a noose, that puts not only people who are suicidal at risk, but people who have experienced the suicide of a loved one -- it sends them reeling. Not to mention the racial implications. The noose just went too many places for me." Indeed, many suicide-prevention organizations, such as the Massachusetts-based Suicide Prevention Resource Center, warn against depicting methods of suicide in campaigns. They say research shows it can spur on a suicidal person to do the deed.
In a March 2007 letter, Linda Flatt of the Office of Suicide Prevention even urged Dovel to abandon his noose image. "The image of the noose is very insensitive to survivors of suicide loss -- especially those who have lost a loved one by hanging," she wrote. "This seems to violate your mission to provide family support to those who have lost a loved on by suicide. In addition, I strongly sense that the pin would be considered a form of suicide contagion." Flatt is on vacation and was not available for comment.
Months later, Dovel fired back a letter -- copying the mayor, the attorney general and the governor -- alleging the state office had "embarked on a malicious slander campaign" against him. Dovel and state officials have since been politely ignoring each other, not making referrals and not attending each others' events.
Dovel stands by the noose. "They claim the nooses we have are propagating suicides," he says. "My take on it was, 'Hey, I wear this pin as a way to initiate a conversation about something no one wants to talk about.' People say, 'What the hell are you wearing a noose for?' It has a slash through it and it says 'Stop suicide,' so it's not like I'm wearing a noose."
The skirmish between Dovel and state officials is brewing over more than just his controversial logo. His other methods might be considered unorthodox as well. His "Happiness is a choice" workshop, which covers alcohol abuse, drug addiction and suicide, draws heavily on concepts such as neurolinguistic programming, a style of mental pep-talking that's big with personal-power gurus (think Anthony Robbins).
"When people see things in a certain light, we use words to have them to start to see things in a different light," explains Stephen Jenkins, a "subconscious retrainer" who advises Dovel. "Then you see that a-ha moment in their head, that there's another way out of this than suicide."
Former clients -- some of them now volunteers for International Suicide Prevention -- have nothing but rave reviews of Dovel's methods.
"He doesn't sugarcoat anything [in his presentations]. He's very explicit and blunt, and you have to be when it comes to suicide," says Lena Ocasio, a mortgage broker whose fiance killed himself in August. Ocasio says the police referred her to Dovel for counseling after the death of fiance. "He was amazing. He's a great listener, and he's very compassionate. You can feel it in the tone of his voice." Ocasio has since volunteered at events as a supporter of the group.
She also supports Dovel's recently launched campaign to start up a charity fund for suicide scene cleanup, as Dovel contends that families are stuck with the trauma -- and the bill -- of cleaning up the scene after a family member commits suicide. Ocasio says she herself had to pay. "After the police left, I was by myself. They gave me a list of biohazard cleanup crews, and it cost me $1,700 just two have two guys in white suits dispose of all the blood. Nobody offered to help pay. Then I had to pay for the side of the house [to be repaired]. It was almost $3,000 in damages." (A Metro police spokesperson insists that in Clark County, suicide scene cleanup is covered in the budget of the responding officer's department; family members don't pay a dime.) In other cases, International Suicide Prevention volunteers themselves have taken up mop and bucket in the wake of a suicide. Volunteer Geoff Gallo says he's helped Dovel clean up two different suicide scenes in the past three years.
"I think his cause is very noble," says Gallo. "I've seen him on the phone for hours when we're out having a cup of coffee, and he's on the phone the whole time. He's talking someone out of killing himself."
Like Dovel, Gallo dismisses state anti-suicide efforts. "They're pretty useless. I've watched them for years, and they don't do anything as far as I'm concerned. They have issues with him because he tells it like it is. He speaks his mind."
That may be changing. Last year, the state launched a six-year suicide prevention plan that hopes to lower our state's rank with an aggressive awareness and training campaign. Allen suggests our high suicide rate might have less to do with gambling and free-flowing alcohol than with Nevada's legacy of rugged individualism. "Nevada is a very independent, tough state," she says. "But I think that prevents people from reaching out for help and also giving help."
As for the independent-minded Dovel, he's appreciative but skeptical of the state's plan. "I teach from a practical perspective," he says. "They teach from a book perspective."
Cutting is nothing new, even though it has come to the media’s attention just recently, cutting has been around since recorded time.
Once you understand the point to why people cut, you can start the healing process.
Someone can be introduced to cutting like you would introduce someone to drinking, or drugs.This is not important!What is important is that those that are cutting get help.
Cutting changes the state of a person thinking one thought to another thought immediately!
Once someone cuts themselves, they have one present thought, "Ouch, I’m bleeding!"All other thoughts are gone at that moment bringing temporary relief.They are in the "NOW"!
Why would someone feel the need to be in the now this drastically?
Emotions are very powerful for some, and cutting is a way to control these strong emotions that can make a person feel out of control!
Here is an example of an emotion that someone would want to change: Let’s say that a person was molested as a child by a parent.After the child reached an age of awareness, if they witnessed a parent and a child, they could relive the abuse causing emotions that are unacceptable.They would in turn cut themselves in order to bring themselves back to the present.The behavior can become compulsive, involuntary, and addictive. Now this is an extreme example of why people cut, but I hope you get the point.
What can be done?Contact ISP at http://www.supportisp.org , or call 702-743-4340 and ask for Matthew.
One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."..
I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friend's tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes...
My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived...
As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid..
I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends He said yes. We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again..
I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!" He just laughed and handed me half the books..
Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends.. When we were seniors we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football scholarship..
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak..
Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous! Today was one of those days..
I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. " Thanks," he said..
As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends...I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story."
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.
"Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize its depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better, or for worse!
God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in others. "Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly." There is no beginning or end.. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift.
2,740 people everyday lose hope, give up, and take their own lives!
Maybe, just one smile, a hello, can I help you, one simple little act of kindness each day, and we would put an end to the need for providing post-suicide family support.
How can you help ISP?
Money!Without the publics support, ISP can not continue to provide awareness, prevention and support to those that are in need now.
Tell others!Get the word out about the facts on suicide.When you know someone that might be suicidal, it is you that will make the difference between going to their next birthday party, or their funeral.
Support ISP! When we hold events it is very important that you show up to show your support for what we do.Suicidal thoughts are a community issue and by participating you are telling others you care if they live, or die!
touched
ecstatic
peaceful