Why we do we kill ourselves? It's a tough question, but the science writer Jesse Bering says that if we can answer it, we stand a better chance of thwarting a tragic act.
When it comes to suicide, the questions are never easy. What is a suicidal person thinking and feeling? What could we have done to help? Why, in the end, do we kill ourselves? Tuesday, we’re talking about this most human of problems. The writer Jesse Bering is among our guests. He says that if we can tap into suicide’s psychological secrets we stand a better chance of thwarting a tragic act. We’ll also discuss a local effort to address the troubling link between guns and suicide.
GUESTS
- Jesse Berring is a research psychologist and the director of the Centre for Science Communication at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. His new book is Suicidal: Why We Kill Ourselves [Indie bookstores|Amazon].
- Dr. Morissa Sobelson Henn is the Community Health Program Director at Intermountain Healthcare, focused on suicide prevention. She served as a research associate for the Harvard Injury Control Research Center as it conducted a contracted study for the Utah Legislature on deaths by suicide that included firearms.
- Clark Aposhian is a gun rights advocate and a registered lobbyist. He's the chairman of the Utah Shooting Sports Council, and he aided the efforts of Dr. Sobelson and her colleagues as they conducted their study.
If you or someone you know is in need of help, there are many places you can turn for support.
- American Foundation for Prevention of Suicide, www.afsp.org
- National crisis hotline, 800-273-TALK (8255), or text 741741
- Utah Suicide Hotline
Valley Mental Health
Crisis Line, 24 hours / 7 days
(801) 261-1442
https://vimeo.com/175761640">UT Suicide Prevention- Gun Range - from https://vimeo.com/utahsuicideprevention">UT Suicide Prevention Coalition on Vimeo.
