Pictured, from left, are Russell Curtis, lead engineer ranger for the Miami River area, Trent Snitely, a Harsha Lake park ranger, and Lance Hopkins, park manager of Stonelick State Park and East Fork State Park.
Pictured, from left, are Anne Wise, director of Mobile Crisis Services, and Doug Jackson, 988 administrator for the state of Ohio.
Parks offer the peace and quiet we sometimes so desire; it can be refreshing to escape the daily demands of life and blot out the hustle and bustle and noises of traffic, construction, and people in motion. Though parks are beautiful, peaceful respites for hundreds of thousands of visitors nationwide, some of these folks may be experiencing an emotional crisis that may result in an attempted suicide. Some folks specifically seek out remote areas so as not to be found by family or friends. It is sobering to think that a police officer or a park ranger will most likely encounter a suicide in a state park at some point in their career.
The Clermont County Mental Health Recovery Board, the Clermont County Suicide Prevention Coalition, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the United States Army Corps of Engineers joined forces to help ensure that those individuals in emotional crisis have access to support, in remote areas.
Marcie Keith, Community Engagement Manager, for the CCMHRB, says the suicide prevention campaign has been a “labor of love.” The launch took place Sept. 10 at Harsha Lake. The first sign was mounted on the fence next to the Tailwater Shelter. It is the first park in the state of Ohio to get signage.
Anne Wise, director of Mobile Crisis Services, says the project has been in the making for two years. Community posts on Facebook in response to a park suicide, saying that something needed to be done to help prevent suicides helped push it to completion push the project to completion. The slogans were discussed at meetings, and “You Are Not Alone” followed by “Let’s Talk,”, resonated with the team members.
All the folks who answer the calls are mental health professionals and continue to receive ongoing training. In addition to listening and engaging in conversation with the callers, the staff will do follow-up calls, and refer them to local providers and services.
Wise says the veterans line may be staffed by a veteran, as it is often more comfortable to relate to a peer. The VA medical records are accessible in helping with referrals.
Denny Moll, assistant director of CCMHRB, says some folks will seek isolated and remote areas to contemplate suicidal thoughts, and also that particular place may hold a special meaning to them. Moll says family and friends often mean well when giving advice to someone who is in emotional turmoil, but often the advice is seen by the person struggling as overwhelming. They may already feel like their life is spinning out of control, and being advised to do x, y, and z, when they are already feeling engulfed with just getting through a day, can add more stress. Moll says folks in emotional pain want to be heard, to be understood. Caring family members want to be fixers and may not realize how anxiety-provoking it can be, to advise what they should be doing.
The hope is that folks in need call the hotlines before they contemplate suicide. The mental health professionals are there to listen and help them forge helpful connections. The goal is to help normalize mental health, as part of managing one’s health.
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