Welcome to Overcoming the Darkness! 

We hope that you will take a few moments to look through our site in order to see if there is a way that we may be able to help you or your organization gain a deeper understanding of the many issues surrounding mental health, mental illness, and suicide awareness and prevention.

MENTAL HEALTH, just like physical health, plays an important role at every stage of our lives. But what comes to mind first when you hear the words “mental health” or “mental illness?” For many, our first response might be “depressed, irrational, crazy, nuts, or violent.” However, approximately 1 out of every 5 people in the United States deals with some mental health related issue, yet the stigmas surrounding the subject continue to do serious harm to those who are struggling.

Similarly, the stigmas surrounding SUICIDE often keep those desperately in need of help from seeking it. The latest statistics from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (www.afsp.org) report:

• Over 36,000 people in the United States die by suicide every year.
• In 2008 (latest available data), there were 36,035 reported suicide deaths.
• Nationally, the suicide rate increased 2.6 percent over 2007 to equal 11.8 suicides per 100,000 people. The rate of suicide has been increasing since 2000. This is the highest rate of suicide in fifteen years
• Currently, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States.
• A person dies by suicide about every 14.6 minutes in the United States. An attempt is estimated to be made once every minute.
• Ninety percent of all people who die by suicide have a diagnosable and treatable psychiatric disorder at the time of their death.
• There are four male suicides for every female suicide, but three times as many females as males attempt suicide.
• Suicide rates are highest for people between the ages of 40 and 59
• Nearly 1,000,000 people make a suicide attempt every year
• Suicide is the third leading cause of death for people aged 10-24
• The most recent data puts yearly medical costs for suicide at nearly $100,000,000.00 (2005)

Sadly, the stigmas surrounding suicide, just like the stigmas surrounding mental health related issues, often keep those desperately in need of help from seeking it. The prevention of suicide can often be as simple as having a caring and compassionate person with the right knowledge being available in the right place at the right time.

In the trainings provided, these issues are approached using a wide range of experience including law enforcement, consumer, faith based, and family.  

It is the mission of Overcoming the Darkness to reduce stigma, increase understanding surrounding the many challenges of mental health related issues, create a culture that openly discusses the topic of mental illness, suicide and suicide related behavior, and above all proclaim that there is hope and that a level of recovery is available to everyone, so that individuals and families will no longer need to suffer in silence.

Again, we hope that you will take a few moments to look through this site to see if there is a way that we may help you, your organization, department, or faith community overcome the darkness and shed light on the very challenging issues of mental illness and suicide.   

Thanks!

Eric Weaver, Executive Director

Overcoming the Darkness

Overcomingthedarkness.com does not dispense medical advice; therefore, the information on this site should not be interpreted as such.  This is an informational site which includes facts and opinions from published and original sources.