tallmantall - Tumblr blog

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - Did TikTok videos inspire a teen’s suicide? His mom says she found graphic evidence

After Mason Edens took his own life, Jennie DeSerio looked for answers. She believes she found them in his TikTok account, where he had liked dozens of graphic videos about breakups, depression and suicide. By Ben Goggin Editor’s note: This story includes graphic descriptions of videos that refer to self-harm. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources. It had been four months since Jennie DeSerio’s son died by suicide. Wracked by grief and wondering what she didn’t know, she picked up his phone and decided to go through his TikTok account. What she found horrified her. Shortly before he died, she found, her 16-year-old, Mason Edens, had liked dozens of graphic videos about breakups, depression and suicide. She knew Mason had recently been through a bad breakup — she didn’t know what he was watching on a platform that he was increasingly engrossed with.  DeSerio said she found at least 15 videos Mason liked that directly promoted suicide, some of which are still on the platform more than a year later. At least five specifically promoted the method he had used.  NBC News reviewed the videos and found that some had accrued tens of thousands of likes. TikTok uses likes as a signal for its “For You” page algorithm, which serves users videos that are supposed to resonate with their interests.  “I completely believe in my heart that Mason would be alive today had he not seen those TikTok videos,” DeSerio said. She’s now part of a lawsuit with eight other parents against several social media companies over what they say are product defects that led to their children’s deaths. The lawsuit alleges that TikTok targeted Mason with videos that promoted suicide and self-harm. Their suit is one of a group of lawsuits pursuing a novel legal strategy that argues that social media platforms like TikTok are defective and dangerous because they are addictive for young people. Advocates hope that can be a way for people to get justice for harms allegedly caused by social media. In at least four other active lawsuits brought against TikTok and other social media companies, parents have said TikTok content contributed to their children dying by suicide. In another lawsuit, filed this month, two tribal nations sued TikTok, Meta, Snap and Google alleging that addictive and dangerous designs of social media platforms have led to heightened suicide rates among Native Americans. Google said the allegations are “not true,” and Snap said it was continuing to work on providing resources around teenage mental health.   Suicide is a complex issue, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it is rarely caused by a single circumstance or event. “Instead, a range of factors — at the individual, relationship, community, and societal levels — can increase risk. These risk factors are situations or problems that can increase the possibility that a person will attempt suicide,” the CDC says on its suicide prevention website.   A TikTok spokesperson said the company couldn’t comment on ongoing litigation but said, “TikTok continues to take industry-leading steps to provide a safe and positive experience for teens,” noting that teen accounts are set to private by default and that teens have an opt-out 60-minute screen time allowance before they’re prompted to enter a passcode.  TikTok has clear policies against content that promotes suicide or actions that could lead to self-harm, but in a sea of billions of videos, some content that glorifies suicide is still slipping through the cracks.      DeSerio said Mason became so hooked on TikTok that he struggled to sleep sometimes, which led to anxiety issues. Friends said he found an emotional outlet on TikTok in particular as he was going through his first heartbreak.   “A 16-year-old boy should never be sent videos like that on TikTok. They’re not going to self-regulate until there’s true accountability,” she said of social media companies. Mason loved sports and the outdoors.  “We were always playing basketball, throwing the football. We were always just outside doing something,” his friend Braxton Cole-Farmer said. “Mason didn’t like just sitting at home doing nothing. If we didn’t have anything to do, we’d just go drive.” “He was always there for everybody. If anybody just needed a friend to talk to, he wouldn’t judge you based on what’s going on in your life,” he said. Cole-Farmer said that Mason would retreat into his phone when he was having a tough time but that it wasn’t a cause for concern.  “I mean, all of us are teenagers. We’re all addicted to our phones. So, like, seeing that, we didn’t really catch a red flag on it, because my generation of teenagers are always on their phone.” In the months before he died, Mason had been in a turbulent relationship that family and friends said ended in a breakup. He was heartbroken, and the fallout rippled through his life at school.  At first, Mason’s parents thought it was normal teenage sorrow. But a few weeks after the breakup, Mason and his mom decided he might need professional help and began actively trying to arrange a therapy visit. DeSerio said Mason knew the breakup had made his anxiety worse and was taking proactive steps to try to feel better. “He was showing some anger that he didn’t usually express,” she said. DeSerio said the family had very open lines of communication, talking about mental health, anxiety and potential treatments in the week leading up to Mason’s death. She said what she heard and saw from him didn’t seem like an emergency.  “There were also a lot of really happy times in those two weeks, too,” she said. What she didn’t see was what Mason was consuming online — videos that included graphic and detailed depictions and methods of self-harm. Mason liked one video in which an audio overlay said, “I wanna put a shotgun to my f------ mouth and blow my brains out,” with accompanying text about depression. The audio from that post was eventually removed, but the video remains up. Another described a plan to die by suicide, along with commentary about relationship issues. One video he liked — it had over 67,000 likes — has text reading “what are your plans for the future?” over slow-motion video of a firearm discharging. That video is no longer available on the platform.  Even though the videos clearly allude to suicide when their elements are taken together, it appears that many of them avoided detection by TikTok’s automated moderation system. According to TikTok, the auto-moderation system is designed to pick up various types of signals that might indicate a community guidelines violation, including keywords, images, titles, descriptions and audio in a video.  TikTok declined to comment on how or why the videos Mason liked evaded its moderation system. In addition to watching and liking the videos that mentioned suicide, Mason posted TikTok content the day he died about a rapper named Lil Loaded. Lil Loaded gained notoriety on TikTok after he reportedly died by suicide following a breakup.  After he died, Lil Loaded became a frequently cited figure among some communities on TikTok, where dozens of videos that are still on the platform glorified his death, some with over 1 million views. Most of the videos use Lil Loaded’s image or name as shorthand for dying by suicide in reaction to a breakup. One video that was still on the platform as of early April and had over 100,000 views included an audio clip saying “oh god, why am I even living bro, why do I live?” along with text over a video reading, “bout to pull a lil loaded.” Mason’s stepbrother, Anthony, 16, said Mason changed his TikTok profile photo the day he died to a photo of Lil Loaded and joked with him before school that he was going to “pull a Lil Loaded.”  Anthony said he asked Mason whether he was suicidal, but Mason said he was just joking around.  That evening, Nov. 14, 2022, DeSerio tried to take Mason’s phone away from him so he could get a good night’s sleep, something she said she regularly did for his mental health. But Mason has just gotten his phone back after having been grounded for fighting at school, DeSerio said. When she tried to take it away from him again, he ran across the room and punched her. DeSerio said she was shocked. He had never been violent toward her, and it wasn’t like the Mason she knew. Mason’s mother and stepfather, Dave, took his phone away.  While Jennie and Dave regrouped, Mason, crying and emotional, went to his room and locked the door without their realizing. When Dave realized that Mason had gone to his room, he ran there and pounded on the door, trying to get him to unlock it. But Mason was already gone. The 16-year-old died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  Social media companies have been immunized from legal responsibility for most content on their platforms by Section 230, a law enacted by the passage of the 1996 Communications Decency Act that says the platforms can’t be treated as publishers of content posted by third parties.  The law has generally insulated social media companies from lawsuits about content on their platforms, but advocates of stricter regulations have recently been pushing to find novel legal strategies to hold tech companies accountable.  DeSerio’s lawsuit and hundreds of others aim to sidestep Section 230 by tying their claims to the legal concept of defective product design. DeSerio’s suit describes TikTok’s design as manipulative, addictive, harmful and exploitative. “TikTok targeted Mason with AI driven feed-based tools,” it says. “It collected his private information, without his knowledge or consent, and in manners that far exceeded anything a reasonable consumer would anticipate or allow. It then used such personal data to target him with extreme and deadly subject matters, such as violence, self-harm, and suicide promotion.” California courts and a federal court are both waiting to begin hearing groups of cases making such arguments, which could open social media companies to a variety of claims around product safety. Matthew Bergman and his firm, the Social Media Victims Law Center, are representing DeSerio and the other plaintiffs in her case.  #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub “It is our contention that TikTok in particular is an unreasonably dangerous product, because it is addictive to young people,” he said.  Bergman contends that Mason took his own life because of what he viewed on TikTok. “TikTok, in order to maintain his engagement over a very short period of time, deluged him with videos promoting that he not only take his life, but that he do so” in a specific way, Bergman said.  Content that promotes suicide and self-harm has been a persistent issue for TikTok and other social media platforms for years.  In November, Amnesty International released a research report that found that teens’ accounts on TikTok that expressed interest in mental health quickly went down a rabbit hole of videos about the topic that eventually led to numerous videos “romanticizing, normalizing or encouraging suicide.”  Suicide rates among young people in the U.S. increased 67% from 2007 to 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2022, suicide rates for young people slightly decreased. Mental health professionals have said the U.S. is in the midst of a teen mental health crisis. Lisa Dittmer, a researcher at Amnesty International, told NBC News that through interviews with teens, the organization found that “there were times they just weren’t in a capacity to actively counter that impulse to seek out depressive thinking. That would amplify the voice in their heads that said ‘life is all pain and pointless.’”   TikTok criticized Amnesty International’s research in a statement, saying its categorizations of mental health-related videos were overly broad. The TikTok app immediately presents users with short-form videos, often from the “For You page,” which uses an algorithm that chooses which videos to serve people next. The recommendation system is one of the most powerful features of the platform. It has been repeatedly characterized as addictive by groups like Amnesty International and the Social Media Victims Law Center and as knowing users better than they know themselves. In a document reportedly seen by The New York Times in 2021, TikTok explained that the algorithm was optimized to keep users on the platform for as long as possible and coming back for more, analyzing how every person who uses it interacts with each video. According to the Times report, the equation considers what videos users like, what they comment on and how long they watch certain videos. NBC News hasn’t verified the document. TikTok has said it has made efforts to try to prevent content rabbit holes, providing tools to enable users to restart their recommendation algorithms and filter out videos including certain words. TikTok also allows parents to oversee teen accounts and further customize screen time and content controls. But Dittmer said teens who tried using the tools described them as ineffective in their interviews.  Dittmer said young people dealing with mental health issues were susceptible to falling into depressive rabbit holes on TikTok. “It’s not so much that your average teenager will automatically turn depressive or suicidal from being on TikTok, but for young people who have that thinking in their head, TikTok will just latch on to your interest and your vulnerability and amplify that relentlessly,” she said.  Megan Chesin, a psychology professor at William Paterson University in New Jersey who has studied the connection between media and suicide, said the primary risk of social media for susceptible people is that the content could be encouraging or instructive. “The risk, of course, is that individuals, like this adolescent that you’re writing about, learn something or are given permission or capability to die by suicide through what they see or understand on social media,” Chesin said. “The more you are exposed to something, the lower your threshold for acting on your own thoughts or desires to die can be.” At a House of Representatives hearing last May, Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., played videos found on TikTok that promoted suicide for TikTok CEO Shou Chew, asking him whether TikTok was fully accountable for its algorithm. Two of the videos included graphic descriptions of suicide via firearms. Chew responded by saying, “We take these issues very seriously, and we do provide resources for anybody that types in something suicide-related.” While DeSerio waits for her own story to be heard in court, she has poured her efforts into bringing attention to how social media can affect children and teens. “Every day I wake up knowing that I need to share the larger message in order to save another child, another mother from this grief,” DeSerio said. DeSerio agreed to be filmed for a documentary about Mason’s story that is in production, and in January, she and Mason’s stepfather flew to Washington, D.C., to be present as Chew testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee along with other tech CEOs about child safety issues and social media. “It’s standing in front of all of society and challenging the ‘norm.’... Sometimes it’s really scary,” she said.  Along with other parents, DeSerio was in the audience, holding a photo of Mason. As Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stood in an unprecedented moment during the hearing, apologizing to parents for their suffering, DeSerio stood, as well, holding Mason’s photo above her head.  The image would be broadcast around the world in photos and videos of the deeply emotional confrontation between one of the world’s most powerful people and the parents who have been trying to get his attention for years. “I thought my purpose as his mom died that night with him,” DeSerio said. “Little did I know that my purpose just transformed.”  Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - Language matters in preventing suicide

Suicide is a public health issue, but it’s often discussed in whispers. Of all the issues in psychiatry, even in all of medicine, suicide may be the most challenging to discuss responsibly in public. Any suicide is a tragedy. We know that language matters, and that using helpful and respectful language reduces stigma, making it easier to talk more openly and safely about suicide and its prevention. Suicide is a public health issue, but it’s often discussed in whispers, as if a death by suicide brings shame to a family or to a person who has died. Our society needs to talk more about suicide, especially suicide prevention, but we need to do it in such a way that we don’t unintentionally make matters worse. The still-common phrase “committing suicide,” for example, is a relic of past legal codes and wrongly connotes criminality. Talking about suicide As a psychiatrist and a suicide prevention advocate who practice, teach and do research in this area, we are committed to supporting the public discussion of suicide and mental health, especially discussion that helps educate people and save lives. We want as many people as possible to develop a broad understanding of how to recognize, assist and refer people who are in mental-health crises and may be at risk. It’s important to destigmatize mental illness and place it, carefully, into its appropriate context as a public health issue. (Sidney Robert Stacey) When speaking about suicide, we should avoid terms such as “committed,” “successful” or “failed attempts at” and instead use more direct language such as “death by suicide” or “suicide attempt.” Using “people first” language such as “person who died by suicide” instead of “suicide victim” is more neutral and inclusive and can reduce stigma. Public discussion of suicide carries risks, though, and it is crucial that discussions are informed, sensitive and alert to the possibility they may unintentionally do the opposite of what they intend and actually promote suicide. The greatest risk is what we call suicide contagion — the idea that focusing on the specifics of how someone has died by suicide may trigger others who are at risk of doing the same. The association between publicly revealing details of how a death by suicide occurred and subsequent “copycat” suicides has long been recognized. Highly publicized suicides, particularly those involving celebrities, are associated with increased risk of self-harm among people who identify closely with the person. Media coverage of suicide The value and the risks of discussing suicide have often come into conflict in the context of news reporting. It’s an especially sensitive area that also happens to represent the threshold where free expression — even sincere, well-meaning expression — can become dangerous. It’s critical to avoid sensationalized reporting that mistakenly glorifies suicide or discloses information about means and methods that vulnerable people may choose to adopt, especially when such reporting does not include context about help that is available and alternatives for people facing challenging circumstances. On the other side of the coin, emerging evidence suggests that hopeful media reporting on how people have successfully overcome a suicide crisis can reduce subsequent attempts. Broadly speaking, journalistic practice has changed and improved over time. Journalists have an important job to do and it’s natural they should question outsiders seeking to limit what they can report. Similarly, knowledge and practice in mental-health care have changed and continue to improve. Getting it right We want as many people as possible to develop a broad understanding of how to recognize, assist and refer people who are in mental-health crisis and may be at risk. (Shutterstock) #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub Like others in our field, we appreciate efforts by journalists to understand and try to accommodate clinical concerns about the potential benefits and consequences of reporting on suicide. The Canadian Journalism Forum on Violence and Trauma created a thoughtful, balanced and well-researched set of journalistic guidelines for covering mental-health issues, including suicide, called Mindset. The World Health Organization published guidelines for reporting on suicide in September 2023 and they’re publicly available. The Mayo Clinic offers a helpful document called Eight Myths About Suicide. The Public Health Agency of Canada offers a document called Language Matters: Safe Communication for Suicide Prevention, which provides great information to draw from. These organizations’ guidelines highlight both the risks of contagion and the benefits of reporting on mental health issues that highlight successful interventions and treatments. Such efforts are part of a broader and very important movement to destigmatize mental illness and place it, carefully, into its appropriate context as a public health issue. Still, we do continue to see articles and reports that do not respect these guidelines. It would be inappropriate to refer directly to them here because we’d be repeating facts that we feel strongly shouldn’t have been reported as they were. Out in the open There is certainly a need to understand suicide, so we must talk about it, and it is critical that we do that out in the open. (Sidney Robert Stacey) We know we lose people because of lack of access to care, lack of reaching out and stigma. We know there’s social and community benefit to using healthy language, dispelling myths and facilitating help-seeking. Getting it right is very challenging. There is certainly a need in society to understand suicide, so we must talk about it, and it is critical that we do that out in the open. People discuss heart attacks, strokes and cancer openly. They work hard to prevent them, raising money, supporting research and changing their lifestyles to reduce risk. Though there is some distance to go, society’s approach to mental health is moving in that direction. We look forward to the day when the mythology and stigma around discussing mental illness, especially suicide, are gone and when suicide reporting in the media is balanced and respectful of its own impact. If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, please contact Canada’s 9-8-8 hotline, which gives people access to suicide prevention services via call or text. Available in all provinces and territories, 24/7 and free of charge, its goal is to prevent suicide. Calls and texts will be directed to a network of partners in communities across the country. Visit Crisis Services Canada for more resources. Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - How do I talk to my child about sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression?

Big Changes and Challenges Learn how to create a safe space for your child to feel comfortable asking questions and expressing their feelings about sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocKoicW0Vas&ab_channel=HappilyFamily Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - Here’s why we need to talk about the suicide-debt link

Miriam Bell Tougher economic times, and worries over financial difficulties and debt, adds to the pressure on people’s mental health. There is a link between financial debt, mental health difficulties, and suicide, but most people do not want to talk about it, a visiting UK debt expert says. Increasing numbers of people in many countries are experiencing mental illness. In New Zealand, almost one in two people (47%) will experience mental illness or distress in their lifetime, according to the Mental Health Foundation. Tougher economic times do not help as financial concerns, and worries over debt, adds to the pressure on people’s mental health. With New Zealand officially in recession, regular reports of job cuts, and the ongoing impact of higher interest rates, debt is only likely to grow. UK debt industry leader Steve Coppard, who is currently in New Zealand, says that is a concern as the connection between debt and mental health conditions is well established. One in four adults will have a mental health problem at some point in their life, research from the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK shows, he says. It also shows one in two, or 50% of, adults with debts have a mental health condition, and one in four people with a mental health problem is in debt. Money & Mental Health Policy Institute research found that while there is rarely one single factor that drives people to take their own life, long-term financial difficulties can drive feelings associated with suicidality by undermining resilience, he says. UK debt expert Steve Coppard says people do not like to talk about debt, and that needs to change. The institute’s research suggests that over 420,000 people in problem debt consider taking their own life in England each year, and more than 100,000 people in debt actually attempt suicide. “The likelihood of a mental health condition clearing up is less likely if someone is in debt, and yet a Yougov poll on Taboo Topics found that only 22% of people are happy to talk about their debt,” he says. “There is shame that goes with debt. People think it is all their fault, and that they are all alone, and they often dig themselves in deeper before they start trying to get out of it.” Coppard, who is group director debt policy and strategy at Arum, says that has to change, and the debt collection industry has a role to play in that. He has a profound understanding of debt, and what it means. Not only has he worked in the debt collection industry for nearly 25 years, but he has personal experience of it, due to the fallout from a bad relationship break up many years ago. He is also the founder of In Debt For Life, which provides debt advice and guidance to the industry, and education to the public, and is visiting New Zealand to work with debt-recovery business DebtManagers. In the UK, there has been a concentrated 10 year campaign around mental health issues, and that has had an impact, with the Yougov poll showing 40% of people will talk about their mental health, Coppard says. “That’s led to more recognition of the link between mental health and debt. Doctors now ask about financial health, and refer people for financial advice, because they see people present with poor mental health because of debt.” For his industry, it has instigated a step change in how debt collection is managed, and the way debt recovery companies work with their customers, he says. Twenty years ago, collection was king in debt outcomes, but the industry has evolved, Steve Coppard says. “When I first started in the VAT debt department of Customs & Excise, I was good at it because I was good at being argumentative, which is what was expected of you 20 years ago when collection was king in debt outcomes. “But over the years, I realized that outcomes should be about debt solutions, rather than debt collection, and that it is all about getting people out of debt, instead of debt out of people.” That means adopting a balanced approach to debt management which involves fair outcomes for those who owe it and for those who own it, he says. “People do deserve to get paid, and you also can’t disincentivize the people who aren’t in debt, and pay their bills, by wiping debt. But it is not a numbers game, it is a people game. “At the same time, it is not just poor debt collection practices, like robo-collection, that can have a negative impact on people’s mental health. “The fear and anxiety associated with having debt hanging over you, and it accumulating over time, can get worse if nothing is done to mitigate the debt.” Coppard advocates that debt management should be based around three pillars. They are that repayment plans should be affordable, free debt advice should be signposted, and that any barriers which should be addressed before talking about debt need to be identified in a timely manner. “Processes need to support this. At Just, our agents use a doorstop vulnerability toolkit to assess whether it is suitable to continue a visit, and we have an informal service to give people breathing space on debt. “Agents are not qualified to address barriers beyond debt, but we have mature, empathetic agents who have the tools to point people towards services which can help, such as free mental health support, for example.” While the debt industry is different to the one he joined two decades ago, and has evolved into a more customer-service focused industry, it still needs better processes in place to ensure no harm is caused, he says. #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub The debt industry in New Zealand can learn from overseas best practice, Debt Managers’ Mark Francis says. “In the UK, the industry has campaigned around this, and while the narrative is not yet where it needs to be, it is moving in the right direction. “We also need more public education around debt, and we need to talk to customers in the medium that best suits them. “But until we have more people like me emphasizing that it is OK to talk about debt, because it is easy for life to get on top of you and for financial issues to snowball, the stigma around it will remain.” Debt Managers general manager Mark Francis says if the Money & Mental Health Policy Institute research is applied to New Zealand, and all else is equal, it suggests around 10,000 people annually will think about attempting suicide due to debt. That is why there needs to be a more concerted focus on best practice in the debt industry here, and why he is looking overseas to learn more, he says. “While the UK is ahead of New Zealand in this space in many ways, New Zealand is on the cusp of change, and we are on a course to make debt management more fair and ethical.” He says while there is currently no New Zealand data similar to the UK data, he understands there is research in the works. Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - 'Alcohol can exacerbate underlying mental health issues': Alcohol use linked to suicide and self-harm, studies find

The study showed that — of people who took their own lives in Cork for whom toxicology reports are available — 50.8% of people under 25 years, 48% of those aged 25 to 54, and 24.1% of those aged 55 or over had alcohol in their system. AMY CAMPBELL ALMOST half of people who died by suicide in Cork had alcohol in their system at the time, a newly published report by the Health Research Board shows. The report, titled ‘Alcohol: availability, affordability, related harm, and policy in Ireland’, published yesterday, looks at the link between suicide and alcohol. It found that younger people who took their own life were more likely to have alcohol in their system. The study showed that — of people who took their own lives in Cork for whom toxicology reports are available — 50.8% of people under 25 years, 48% of those aged 25 to 54, and 24.1% of those aged 55 or over had alcohol in their system. One person affected by the issue, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Echo: “In the end, my breaking point was something very small, but I had been drinking for days and was beginning to sober up and everything I had to do that day just seemed impossible. “At the time, I didn’t see another way out. I knew I couldn’t continue drinking the way I was or I was going to lose my job, my home, and all my family and friends.” “I hadn’t felt happiness when I was sober in a long time, so I didn’t want to live without alcohol, but I knew it couldn’t go on like this much longer either, I knew that there was even more pain in the future if I did,” they said. #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub “Luckily, I did not succeed in taking my own life, and it served as something of a wake-up call, though I had a difficult few months still to face after that, I emerged from it and haven’t had a drink in over a year. “The dark thoughts went away when I stopped drinking, I haven’t thought about suicide once since getting sober, and before it was a constant thought, it was always in the back of my head as a last resort in case things got too bad, it was almost comforting. “Now, I see how messed up that thinking was.” The report by the Health Research Board cites a study which examined 307 cases of suicide that had occurred in Cork, where toxicology was available for 298 of the 307 cases. In 141 of those cases, alcohol was detected in the toxicology, with young people far more likely to have consumed alcohol prior to their deaths. The study showed that among the 298 cases, 50.8% of people under 25 years, 48% of people aged between 25 and 54, and 24.1% of those aged 55 or over had alcohol in their system. It also showed that where the information was available, a history of alcohol or other drug abuse was noted in 61% of the suicide cases. Mick Devine – Clinical Director of Tabor Group, who oversees two alcohol treatment centres in Cork, told The Echo: "Studies have shown that individuals struggling with alcohol abuse or dependence are at a significantly higher risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors compared to the general population. "Alcohol can exacerbate underlying mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, which are major contributors to suicidal ideation. "It's important to note that while alcohol can significantly elevate the risk of suicidal ideation and attempts, not everyone who struggles with alcohol use will experience suicidal thoughts. "However, addressing alcohol misuse is crucial in suicide prevention efforts, as reducing alcohol consumption can alleviate some of the risk factors associated with suicidal behavior and improve overall mental health and well-being." A link between alcohol and self-harm was also found in another study on Cork in the same report, which examined 8,145 cases of emergency department presentations of self-harm in the county. It found that “alcohol was involved in 21% of the self-harm presentations, although the study authors noted an under-recording of alcohol use in case notes”, meaning that the figure is potentially higher. “It is common for people to drink to try to relieve the symptoms of poor mental health, but drinking can also lead to poor mental health,” notes the report. “Alcohol is a depressant; it causes chemical changes in the brain and can lead to anger, depression, or anxiety. “It also affects the brain by slowing down the processing of information, making it more difficult to make logical decisions.” Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - How and when do I talk to my kids about sex, consent, and safety?

Big Changes and Challenges When it comes to sex and consent, you can help your child build healthy relationships and guide them toward making safe decisions. Learn more about being a bridge to good information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnkeRA_Xth0&ab_channel=ChildMindInstitute Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - Youth mental health and happiness are worsening, new report shows

BY ALEXIS BELL CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Happiness in young people in the United States is falling, according to the 2024 World Happiness Report.  What You Need To Know Youth mental health in the U.S. fell by twice as much as older adults over about a 12-year period. Mental health professionals say parents should check in with their children daily and be the experts on their child's behavior and health The Alexander Youth Network says it sees the impacts of worsening mental health on young people in North Carolina and across the country The United States ranks 10th in happiness out of 143 countries for people 60 and older. It ranks 62nd in happiness out of 143 countries for people 30 and younger. When comparing the numbers taken from 2006-10 to those taken in 2021-23, happiness fell by twice as much in young people as it did in older people in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Mental health professionals in North Carolina say they are seeing the impacts of increasing mental health issues in youth. The Alexander Youth Network has campuses in Greensboro and Charlotte, serving children 5 to 17 years old. The nonprofit offers facility-based crisis care, residential treatment and day treatment. Ashley Sparks is the executive director of the Child and Adolescent Facility-Based Crisis Center in Greensboro. She says she is seeing more 7- to 10-year-olds who are having suicidal thoughts and behaviors. "We talk a lot about social media and that instant access. We weren't really designed to carry the weight of the judgments and opinions of everyone around us," Sparks said. "It used to just be your family and a handful of friends, but I think now with social media that's at your fingertips."  Sparks says parents should monitor their children's interactions on social media and check in with them daily. She says consistently sharing good and bad news with each other will make children more likely to speak up when something is bothering them. #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub Alexander Youth Network's Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility in Charlotte houses 41 students for about four months at a time. Executive Director Xavier Dunbar says while their beds consistently stay full, they are seeing an increase in the levels of anxiety and depression their patients are experiencing. "The behaviors we are going to see are going to be verbal aggression, physical aggression, property destruction, suicide ideation," Dunbar said. "Our job is to get those children stabilized and develop coping skills to be able to transition back down to a lower level of care." Dunbar says he has done mental health work for 20 years. "It's important for them to understand that while they may have experienced some adverse childhood experiences, there are adults and other individuals around that care, that want to help," Dunbar said.  Dunbar says they are there to provide support, and they rely on parents to be the expert on their children.  Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - How do I promote my child’s healthy use of technology?

Big Changes and Challenges Expert advice on how to find a good balance between staying connected via technology and ensuring safety in the digital world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1axo8Sz3_g&ab_channel=ChildMindInstitute Read the full article

[tallmantall]

James Donaldson on Mental Health - Managing Stress

Everyone experiences stress. Sometimes it can help you focus and get the task at hand done. But when stress is frequent and intense, it can strain your body and make it impossible to function. Finding effective ways to deal is crucial to living well. How Stress Affects You Stress affects your entire body, mentally as well as physically. Some common signs include: - Headaches - Trouble sleeping - Jaw pain - Changes in appetite - Frequent mood swings - Difficulty concentrating - Feeling overwhelmed When experiencing long-term stress, your brain is exposed to increased levels of a hormone called cortisol. This exposure weakens your immune system, making it easier for you to get sick. Stress can contribute to worsening symptoms of your mental illness. For example, in schizophrenia, it can encourage hallucinations and delusions, while in bipolar disorder, it can trigger episodes of both mania and depression. Knowing what situations cause it is the first step in coping with this very common experience. When You Are Most Vulnerable To Stress People are most susceptible to stress when they are: - Not getting enough sleep - Not having a network of support - Experiencing a major life change such as moving, the death of a loved one, starting a new job, having a child or getting married - Experiencing poor physical health - Not eating well Everyone has his own threshold. Certain things that may upset you out might not even make one of your friends raise an eyebrow. Some people are affected when they experience large crowds and noisy environments, while others react to silence and free time. #James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundationwebsite www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com Link for 40 Habits Signupbit.ly/40HabitsofMentalHealth If you'd like to follow and receive my daily blog in to your inbox, just click on it with Follow It. Here's the link https://follow.it/james-donaldson-s-standing-above-the-crowd-s-blog-a-view-from-above-on-things-that-make-the-world-go-round?action=followPub Ways To Reduce Stress Developing a personalized approach to reducing stress can help you manage your mental health condition and improve your quality of life. Once you've learned what your triggers are, experiment with coping strategies. Some common ones include: - Accept your needs. Recognize what your triggers are. What situations make you feel physically and mentally agitated? Once you know this, you can avoid them when it's reasonable to, and to cope when you can't. - Manage your time. Prioritizing your activities can help you use your time well. Making a day-to-day schedule helps ensure you don't feel overwhelmed by everyday tasks and deadlines. - Practice relaxation. Deep breathing, meditation and progressive muscle relaxation are good ways to calm yourself. Taking a break to refocus can have benefits beyond the immediate moment. - Exercise daily. Schedule time to walk outside, bike or join a dance class. Whatever you do, make sure it's fun. Daily exercise naturally produces stress-relieving hormones in your body and improves your overall physical health. - Set aside time for yourself. Schedule something that makes you feel good. It might be reading a book, go to the movies, get a massage or take your dog for a walk. - Eat well. Eating unprocessed foods, like whole grains, vegetables, and fresh fruit is the foundation for a healthy body and mind. Eating well can also help stabilize your mood. - Get enough sleep. Symptoms of some mental health conditions, like mania in bipolar disorder, can be triggered by getting too little sleep. - Avoid alcohol and drugs. They don't actually reduce stress: in fact, they often worsen it. If you're struggling with substance abuse, educate yourself and get help. - Talk to someone. Whether to friends, family, a counselor or a support group, airing out and talking can help. Consider attending a NAMI Connection Recovery Support Group. Getting Help If the steps you've taken aren't working, it may be time to share with your mental health professional. He or she can help you pinpoint specific events that trigger you and help you create an action plan to change them. Read the full article