The Warning Signs of Suicide

Since founding Stop Suicide USA in 2012, I’ve conducted more than 2,000 successful suicide interventions. I can’t imagine doing anything else. But this passion can often be stressful. The painful part of what I do, and that which haunts me, are the losses. As an Army and Law Enforcement Chaplain, I have been on the scene of dozens of suicides, completed dozens of funerals and counseled hundreds of individuals and families in their time of loss.

Often, the most heartbreaking words I hear from those left behind are, “We didn’t see this coming.” As an interventionist, I just wish I had known. I wish someone had called me. Unfortunately, survivors often didn’t know what to look for when the risk was present. In some cases, the signs were noted but were interpreted as “a phase,” an attempt at attention or a manipulation maneuver. And a call was never made.