When there’s no way out

Rome Lester, Marriage and Family Therapist at the Counseling Center, readily admits to something that every Tech student already knows.

“Georgia Tech is a very, very stressful environment,” she said. But she then added, “And sometimes, I guess, the stress can be so severe that someone might choose to think that their only way out is to contemplate suicide.”

Stress is not the only cause of suicide on campus, but it does contribute. Ten to 24 suicides are attempted every year at Tech, with two or fewer successes per year on average, depending on the source of the statistics.

While more women than men attempt suicide, more men usually succeed because they use more violent means. Tech is predominantly male.

“We’ve had...straight-A students who have chosen to take their lives,” Lester said. “It’s an interesting phenomenon that somebody who has their whole life in front of them would choose to take [it].”

The issue is not limited to the student body. Tech has also lost faculty and staff members to suicide.

Suicides have grown into a national concern over the past few decades. Over 30,000 people commit suicide each year, with an average of one attempt every 45 seconds and one success per 10 attempts.

This concern has extended to college campuses, for while the groups most susceptible to suicide are still divorced, unemployed, middle-aged ,white men and the elderly, rates of student suicides have been rising. Students with suicidal desires use guns, alcohol, drugs, jumping from heights, asphyxiation and a variety of other means to end their lives.

“Sometimes one of the masked suicides, or I call ‘autocides’, is [the] one-person single car accident,” Lester said. “People don’t really know because it appears to be an accident, but sometimes it could actually be a suicide.”

Suicide now ranks as the third leading cause of death for college students, behind car accidents and death by violent means (although it has dropped from second place in recent years). College students are more likely than their non-college peers to commit suicide.

Depression is the most common cause of suicide. Not every suicidal person is depressed, but most are, and this is a condition which may be exacerbated by Tech’s stressful environment.

The depression itself may be rooted in that stress or may stem from personal trauma, such as the death of a family member, the end of an intimate relationship or a sexual assault or similar violation. A family history of suicide, mental or physical illness or drug or alcohol abuse are also linked to suicides.

“Sometimes the person confuses ‘wanting to die’ with wanting to get away from the awful pain from having lost a loved one,” Lester said.

Determining why students choose suicide instead of finding some means of assistance is more challenging. “That’s the age-old question,” said Karen Boyd, the Senior Associate Dean of Students for Student Life. “If you could answer that, we wouldn’t have suicides.”

Students with suicidal tendencies may not realize that Tech has assistance in abundance.

The Counseling Center is the most popular option, with many professional counselors available throughout the day. After hours, students may call the Center’s hotline (404-894-2204) to get in touch with the counselor on call that week. A psychiatrist who works in concert with the other counselors is also available at the Health Center.

Students can also contact the Link Counseling Center, which helps people whose lives have been impacted by suicide. They offer individual or group counseling and a support group, Survivors of Suicide (S.O.S.), at Sandy Springs (404-256-9797) and Cobb County (770-541-1114). The Center can also be found online at www.thelink.org.

In addition, depressed students can contact their mental health association, or even, if they are religious, their clergy.

Lester and Boyd also encourage student involvement and networking to recover from or fend off suicidal feelings. Institutions such as Tech’s religious organizations or the Wellness Center can help students broaden their support network and seek comfort in others.

“A lot of people who come to college have a really difficult time separating from family, so they feel pretty lonely or depressed,” Lester said. “So getting involved, I think, can really be helpful.”

Furthermore, Boyd added, “If you have people at your back, [you] feel like a community...Take care of each other.”

To that end, students should be aware of suicidal warning signs in their peers.

“Here are a few helpful hints: people who start giving away their things, people who have had great stress, and you’ve been worried about them...[people who are] suddenly finding great peace,” Boyd said.

Students suffering from depression may also exhibit lifestyle changes. They may not eat, sleep, bathe or socialize.

“Are they going to class? Are they isolating themselves?” Lester said. “Don’t be afraid to ask about suicide. Asking them will not cause them to decide to do it.”

Lester emphasized the importance of listening with a sympathetic ear and acknowledging their feelings without analysis, argument or reason.

Encourage them to get help, she said, which can prevent suicides in most cases, as suicide attempts are often an indication that the person is reaching out for help. Students who commit suicide are generally not in counseling.

But, Lester said, don’t be sworn to confidentiality.

“If they tell you they plan to kill themselves, get help from the Dean’s Office or a Housing official or somebody,” she said. “If you try to handle that yourself, it’s too big for you.”

The Dean’s Office in particular has the power to intervene on the student’s behalf. While a counselor will not visit a suicidal student without the student’s personal request, a dean has the power to perform a security check to see how the student is doing.

“I think that nothing is more painful than a student dying,” Boyd said.

Students can learn to help themselves by leading a healthy lifestyle, which reduces the risk of depression and suicidal desires. A nutritious diet, exercise and adequate sleep are necessary for good mental health, as is maintaining a strong network of support.

Students should also avoid alcohol or drug abuse. According to Lester, nearly half of suicidal youths use alcohol or drugs shortly before their deaths. Even some people who normally avoid alcohol, she said, use it just prior to their attempts.