Expert Advice: How to recognize if someone is suicidal

Host Amber Smith: Here's some expert advice from Dr. Robert Gregory from Upstate Medical University: how can a person recognize if someone is suicidal?

Robert Gregory, MD: A common indicator of depression is withdrawal from people and difficulty functioning at work or school. There may be a lot of expressions of pessimism and negativity. But on the other hand, many people are very good at hiding depression. So, don't beat up on yourself if you miss it. The most important take-home point is to not be afraid to ask about depression and thoughts of suicide. So many people who are struggling with suicide do not share their pain with others. It's a very isolating kind of condition, and they don't let them know that they're on the edge. And I've known so many people who wish that they had asked their loved one that question. So go ahead and ask the questions: Have you been feeling depressed lately? And then, have you been having thoughts of suicide? If the answer is anything other than a definitive no, please refer them to the many resources available to them. There are 24-hour national suicide hotlines. More locally, there's Contact, which provides twenty four seven counseling by telephone as well as referral to resources. There's always the emergency room. And, thankfully in Syracuse, there's also the psychiatry high risk program.

Robert Gregory, MD: This program was started to meet a need. We were having record numbers of suicides in young people in Central New York and around the country, but there were no programs specializing in the treatment of individuals who were at high risk for suicide. So that's what this program is all about. Our mission is very simple: to save and transform lives. It's a comprehensive outpatient program. And we offer a full range of treatment options, including weekly individual psychotherapy, medications and family and group psychotherapy, as indicated. It's a 12-month program, since it takes a while for transformative healing to occur, enough time for individuals to change lifelong coping patterns and ways of perceiving themselves and others. So we offer up to 12 months of weekly treatment with the goal, not a complete cure by 12 months. But rather our goal is for them to be well enough so that those individuals can continue the process of healing and the recovery without needing to be in the mental health system the rest of their lives.

Robert Gregory, MD: About half of our patients are referred by a hospital or an emergency room, and others are either self-referred -- they just call up our program -- or referred from other healthcare providers. So self-referral is actually very common and very easy. The person just needs to call our intake number. That's (315) 464-3117.

Host Amber Smith: You've been listening to Dr. Robert Gregory from Upstate Medical University.

Host Amber Smith: