Guests: Meghan Henderson, Clinical Program Supervisor for Adult Psychiatry, UnityPoint Health-Meriter and leader of the Zero Suicide Initiative; Amy Nolden, survivor of two family suicides
Why do some people think death makes more sense than life? When we see celebrities like Robin Williams, Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spade choose death by their own hands, we wonder why. These are people who, from afar, have everything that would make life worth living. Then there are those whose names do not have celebrity status who choose to end their lives. And, in the midst of their personal grief, families and friends ask the same question: Why?
This program presents a professional and personal perspective on not only the WHY of suicide but the WHAT and HOW of committing the act and the important role they play. Meghan Henderson, Clinical Program Supervisor for Adult Psychiatry at UnityPoint Health-Meriter and leader of the Zero Suicide Initiative talks about the basic reasons people commit suicide: they feel they are a burden; they have lost their sense of belonging, and they have acquired the capability.
Amy Nolden, who experienced suicide twice in her family, opens up about her father’s suicide in 2011, her brother’s suicide in 2016, and shares her battles with her own feelings of suicide.
Suicide occurrences are in the news far too often. We need to talk about them, increase our emphasis on diagnosing and treating mental disorders, and remove the stigma and shame attached to suicide. These are the tools of prevention.
