Though health experts typically find that the holidays are a time when suicide rates are at their lowest, during this pandemic holiday season, many of the stressors that may lead a person to consider ending his or her life are rising.
The families of more than 300,000 people are grieving the loss of a loved one from the coronavirus. According to polling by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 46% of households are “facing serious financial problems” because of the pandemic. A rise in intimate partner violence and an increase in divorce requests over the previous year demonstrate that COVID-19 is profoundly affecting personal relationships and safety. Alcohol sales are up by more than 20% over 2019, possibly indicating that more people are turning to dangerous and excessive alcohol consumption to cope with stress.
At what is normally the happiest time of the year, and as we transition into a long, isolated winter, the United States is at a precarious point for mental health. This is particularly true for adolescents and young adults, who have experienced rising suicide rates in passing years, and for the veterans, service members, and first responders who end their lives at a rate higher than that of the average population.
Shining light on the darkness of these trying times is Fight the War Within Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps people find the tools to extricate themselves from the pull of suicide.
Miranda Briggs founded the organization in July and intended to focus primarily on helping the Savannah, Georgia, community. Because of the necessity to conduct operations online during the coronavirus, Briggs made connections in the virtual sphere that have helped her organization serve people across the country.
First and foremost, Fight the War Within Foundation connects people with appropriate mental health resources. Similar groups, Briggs said, send those who are struggling “a generic email with links to 50 different [facilities or programs].” Many of those organizations may “have changed their mission or [be] out of funding for the year.” Some may only serve a specific group of which the applicant is not a member.
Asking someone who has finally reached out for help to wade through a laundry list of options adds stress and is “overwhelming,” Briggs said. With its national- and local-level expertise, Fight the War Within Foundation makes “it more personal.”
For those who reach out to her, Briggs offers to help make connections, either through a three-way phone call or an email. Her organization “ensures that there’s accountability,” she said. “Somebody else is going to be there with you while you’re going on the next step of how to get help.”
Though the foundation has close ties with first responders and veterans, it assists anyone struggling with mental health. That “internal war [is one] that people of all walks, all backgrounds face,” Briggs explained. “There’s no comparison chart. Your pain scale is different from the person next to you. It doesn’t mean that his or her pain is less than yours or yours is more. It’s something that we have to get through together.”
Times are difficult, but resources are available. Briggs said that “there’s something for everybody, even if you have to do it virtually” due to the pandemic.
In addition to connecting people with mental health resources and hosting events that support mental health, Fight the War Within Foundation also trains people to help friends and loved ones dealing with thoughts of suicide. Its cost-free course, the Intervene Challenge, is taught in person at Georgia Southern University and is also offered online. The curriculum is based on the Listen, Learn, Lead course designed by Kenneth ‘Lou’ Koon, a chaplain and the founder of Armed Forces Mission. Fight the War Within Foundation is among the first groups certified to teach Koon’s program.
The three-hour course outlines the numerous circumstances, such as financial and relationship concerns, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, grief, survivor’s guilt, substance abuse, and isolation, which may lead a person to consider ending his or her life.
Most importantly, it teaches the effectiveness of asking people directly whether they are considering suicide. Should that person ask for help, attendees are instructed to listen actively, without distractions or judgment, to the other person’s struggles to understand how to lead them through feelings of hopelessness.
By arming people with the skills to help one another, Fight the War Within Foundation is aiming to change the culture that allows suicide to thrive.
The foundation will host its next session of the Intervene Challenge in Killeen, Texas, in partnership with Buddy Watch Walk on Jan. 30, 2021.
In the meantime, anyone who needs help finding resources can get in touch with Fight the War Within Foundation.
The pandemic has increased the stresses placed on millions of people. As with any time of darkness, the pandemic will eventually end. For people who end their lives during this period of struggle, however, the light will never return. This holiday season, let us all be vigilant and help direct more light to those in need.
Beth Bailey (@BWBailey85) is a freelance writer from the Detroit area.
