Veterans Services offers suicide prevention resources
The New Mexico Department of Veterans Services is letting military families know that resources are available for veterans who are having suicidal thoughts during the holidays and beyond.
“Suicide prevention is a yearround campaign,” Jemia Warner, the agency’s health care division director, said during a Facebook presentation Friday.
“This is something that has to
The New Mexican
Who you’ve helped this year: A woman fled an abusive relationship in Montana and settled in Santa Fe. She had to throw out her couch and most of her clothes because of a bedbug infestation. The Empty Stocking Fund helped her buy household goods and paid her rent.
How it works: Applications for funding are carefully vetted. Members of the Empty Stocking Committee review requests and meet with each qualifying applicant to examine records of outstanding bills or other needs, and to verify the applicant’s income. If a request is approved, the committee sends a check directly to the service supplier. The cap for most requests is $1,000.
2020 goal: $275,000
This holiday charity project of
began in 1981 and is jointly administered by the Santa Fe Community Foundation, Enterprise Bank and Trust, the Salvation Army, Presbyterian Medical Services, The Life Link, Habitat for Humanity, Esperanza Shelter, the Housing Trust and two private individuals.
To donate: Make tax-deductible donations online at santafenewmexican.com/ empty_stocking or mail a check to The New Mexican’s Empty Stocking Fund c/o the Santa Fe Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1827, Santa Fe, NM 87504-1827. Donors may choose to remain anonymous.
To provide a service such as roofing or home repairs, contact Habitat for Humanity at repairs@ santafehabitat.org. To contribute food, clothing, toys, furniture, or other items or services, call the Salvation Army at 505-988-8054.
DONATIONS
Anonymous: $740 Anonymous, in memory of Edmund Alarid: $100
Mark and Christine Hickman: $200 Chuck Noble and Kate James: $100 Jacinta and Phillip Kehoe, in memory of Raymond Daniel Richardson-Hart: $250
Diane Lotti: $500
Evan Mackinder, in honor of Santa Fe: $50
Ed and Jayne Nordstrom: $100 Carlos and Janet Ortiz, in honor of Deana Ortiz and Colleen LaPorte: $500
Karl and Lisa Ray: $100
Billie Blair and Gene Weisfeld: $150 Total: $2,790
Cumulative total: $193,467.46
be talked about always,” she said.
Warner and Christina Camacho, the department’s suicide prevention case manager, said they are trying to keep the community focused on a problem that has plagued veterans for years.
Not that the holiday season is one in which suicide rates go up, Warner said. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics has long reported that the suicide rate is at its lowest in December. It peaks in the spring and summer.
Still, based on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 2020 National Suicide Prevention report, the number of veterans taking their own lives has been around 17 to 18 per day since 2005. In 2018, the most recent year covered in the report, that rate was 17.6 per day, for a total of 6,435 veterans.
Warner said the holidays can bring about feelings of anxiety, depression, hopelessness and loneliness among some veterans, especially if they are dealing with trauma.
That doesn’t mean those signs will translate into thoughts of suicide, she and Camacho said. But those feelings may “trigger” a discussion about suicide for veterans or those around them, they said.
Camacho said thoughts of suicide can suddenly become “intrusive” with little warning, catching veterans, loved ones and friends off guard. Loved ones and counselors should listen in a nonjudgmental way and ask questions that make veterans want to “voice their concerns or talk about these triggers,” she said.
Warner said there is still stigma around talking about suicide. Many fear the discussion itself will lead to someone taking their life.
“We have to break down that stigma,” she said, by allowing veterans the freedom and comfort to talk about what is traumatizing them.
“It’s not always easy,” she said. Camacho said simple acts such as stretching, breathing and drinking water (dehydration often accelerates stress levels) can help calm someone in a moment of crisis.
“Somebody’s always there to listen. Somebody’s always there to help,” Warner said.