PSCP Social Action

Philadelphia Society of Clinical Psychologists Provides Service to the Community

 

TEAM PSCP


Join us on May 5, 2012 as we

Walk with Pride!

TEAM PSCP will walk
with pride, dedication, determination,
and lots of water, as they help raise funds for

NamiWalks
(National Alliance on Mental Illness)
Sunday, May 5, 2012

We're getting ready to create awareness and stomp out stigma of severe mental illness. Another fun-filled day is being planned for Sunday, May 5 when we have our Greater Philadelphia NAMIWalk at Montgomery County Community College. We're looking forward to having everyone join us!

Registration begins at 8 AM
Walk starts at 10 AM
Montgomery County Community College
340 DeKalb Pike
Blue Blell, PA 19422
We had a great time in 2010 and raised $$$ for this wonderful organization. Plan on joining us...bring your friends and family, too!
Join Team Leader Andy Offenbecher
Sign up to walk by...

click below or copy and paste into your browser:
http://www.nami.org/namiwalks12/phi/TEAMPSCP

TEAM PSCP looks forward to a wonderful and successful walk!
Can't walk that day?
Sign up to support TEAM PSCP with a donation at
the same website address.
Need more information?
Contact the PSCP Office at 215-885-2562.

TEAM PSCP will meet at the starting line at 10 AM prepared with comfortable sneakers and a positive attitude for the 5K mile walk.   With a feeling of camaraderie and enthusiasm for the event, PSCP participants will be easily recognizable in their unique PSCP logo
t-shirts.

More details will be forthcoming...

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  SUICIDE:
LIFTING THE MASK

Norman C. Weissberg, Ph.D.*

When I was growing up, the word “cancer,” if mentioned at all, was spoken in a whisper; it was too scary to say the word out loud.  Fortunately, that is no longer the case.  But another word has taken its place and that word is “suicide.”  The word itself is fraught with strong negative emotions: fear, guilt, shame, profound sadness, anger, regret, confusion, etc.  So it is easier to ignore suicide than to confront it, to minimize its frequency, and to distance oneself from those who are suicidal by dismissing them as “mentally ill.”  Suicide is also a phenomenon that is encased in misinformation, myths, and confusion. On this web page, I hope to dispel the myths and provide accurate information about this major health problem.

MYTH: People who talk about suicide are just trying to get attention.
FACT: People who talk about suicide are in enormous psychological pain—no less real than excruciating physical pain.  To dismiss or
trivialize their pain is a serious mistake.  People who talk about suicide frequently attempt suicide.
MYTH: Talking with someone about suicide increases the likelihood that he/she will attempt suicide.
FACT:  Talking with someone about suicide does not plant the idea in their head or fertilize a thought that is already there.  To the contrary, talking about one’s suicidal thoughts with someone who cares and is both compassionate and nonjudgmental is often a welcome relief. 
MYTH: Suicide can’t be prevented.
FACT: Most people who attempt suicide are ambivalent about ending their life.  What they want is for the pain to go away.  Moreover, many exhibit warning signs (More on this later).  Recognizing and responding appropriately to these signs can prevent a suicide.
MYTH: If someone has attempted suicide but was unsuccessful, that individual is unlikely to try again.
FACT: A prior attempt is a major risk factor for a subsequent attempt.
MYTH: Parents and teachers are usually aware of the fact that their child or student is deeply troubled and may be harboring suicidal thoughts.
FACT: Teens are quite skilled at hiding their problems.  Their outward behavior (laughing, joking, enjoying being with their friends) often masks their inner turmoil and pain.

DID YOU KNOW THAT:

• Of the 15 leading causes of death, suicide ranks number 11     (Homicide ranks number 15).  However, among 10-24 year
       olds, suicide is the third leading cause of death.

• In the United States in 2007 (the latest available data) there were 34,598 deaths by suicide. This translates into one person killing him or herself every 15.2 minutes.  Since 2000, the age-adjusted death rate for suicide increased 8.6%.  Of the 50 States and the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania’s suicide
  rate ranks 32nd.

• The three most commonly employed methods of suicide are firearms (50.2%), suffocation/hanging (23.6%) and poisoning (18.4%).

• Men take their own lives nearly 4 times the rate for women but women attempt suicide 2-3 times more often than men.  The
  disparity between attempted and completed suicides is largely a function of the means employed.  Men more often use firearms—which are almost always fatal—while women more often employ poisoning.

• Male adults age 75 and older have the highest suicide rate; among adult women, those between 45-54 have the highest suicide rate.  However, irrespective of sex, 45-54 year olds have the highest rate.
• In 2008, 8.3 million adults (3.7% of the adult population) acknowledged that they had serious thoughts of suicide in the past year, 2.3 million had made a serious plan, and 1.1 million made an attempt.

SUICIDE WARNING SIGNS:

• A previous attempt or gesture
• Talking or writing about suicide
• Appearing depressed most of the time
• Expressing feelings of hopelessness and helplessness to effect any change in one’s life.
• Expressing feelings of worthlessness and believing one is a burden     on one’s family and friends.
• Despite a surface appearance of being connected to one’s family and friends, an internal belief, revealed either verbally or behaviorally, that one is isolated, alone, and not bonded to others in one’s life.
• Giving away prized possessions
• Getting one’s affairs in order
• Dramatic mood swings
• Suddenly seeming happier and calmer after weeks of feeling depressed and/or agitated.

WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP?

If you observe any of these behaviors in a friend or family member,
tell him or her about your concerns.  Listen compassionately and non-
judgmentally to what it is she/he is feeling and saying.  Don’t give advice or come up with simple solutions and don’t minimize, trivialize or dismiss his/her problems with statements like “You’ll get
over it.”  Encourage your friend or family member to seek professional help.  If you believe he/she is imminently suicidal, strongly encourage him/her to call the NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION LIFELINE: 1-800-273-TALK (8255).  In the five county Philadelphia area, the hotline (which is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year) is staffed by volunteers from CONTACT OF GREATER PHILADELPHIA. For more information about CONTACT, go to their web page:  contactgreaterphiladelphia.org.

*Dr. Weissberg is the Director of Training for Contact of Greater Philadelphia. 

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For more information contact:

Philadelphia Society of Clinical Psychologists
Executive Director: Sandi Greenwald
601 Summit Avenue
Jenkintown, PA 19046
Phone: 215-885-2562
Fax: 215-885-1797
Email: sandi.greenwald@philadelphiapsychology.org