MENTALHEALTH
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‘Not another Aggie’ — breaking the silence on suicide
Via caps.tamu.edu
Aggies Reaching Aggies is a peer gatekeeper training focused on creating meaningful connections and conversations among students. Email afranzetti@caps.tamu.edu for more information.
CAPS provides resources including suicide prevention trainings, HelpLine By Aubrey Vogel Information in this article may be triggering to some individuals. If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1.800.273.8255 for professional support. If you or someone you know are in immediate danger, call 9-1-1 immediately. There is help. There is hope. Sometimes, a simple conversation can help save a life. Suicide is not an easy topic to discuss. It is the second leading cause of death among all college-aged students, according to the American College Health Organization. As Texas A&M works to expand the number and types
of training, counseling and intervention services, one suicide prevention graduate said it’s time to break the stigma and end the silence around suicide. AJ Franzetti is a graduate student who leads training through A&M’s Counseling & Psychological Services, or CAPS, program. As the need for more and different kinds of outreach and suicide prevention services has grown, Franzetti said both A&M and CAPS have expanded campus mental health programs and the number of resources offered on campus. “There was a [national] study done with college universities, and we saw that those that died by suicide – 86% of those students, unfortunately – did not see campus counseling prior to their death,” Franzetti said. Whether it is due to stigma, cultural or religious beliefs, or lack of awareness about resources, too many students don’t seek help,
Franzetti said. “Students aren’t seeking help, and that’s so unfortunate,” he said. It’s vital to change that now since the number of students seeking resources is slowing, he added. Whether through the Aggies Reaching Aggies peer counseling program or connecting a friend to the Crisis Text Line, there are on-campus programs at Texas A&M for anyone who needs help. Aggies who want to help others by offering understanding, reassurance, and support can learn how to help a loved one or friend seek the help they need through training, according to caps.tamu.edu. It’s also why people need to be checking in with friends and loved ones, explained Franzetti. It might be someone who is acting differently. Or it might be someone showing warning signs of possible suicidal behavior – withdrawing from social engagements or unexplained aggression or irritability – and Fran-
zetti wants Aggies to know there is training to learn when, and how, to help that person access campus counseling services. “One of the main roles as a [graduate student] here is to provide Gatekeeper Trainings where I help faculty, staff and other students recognize warning signs [of suicidal behavior in] other people, their colleagues or peers that may be contemplating suicide,” Franzetti said. “We have to rely on those that are on campus interacting with the students on a day-today basis to help be aware and notice,” Franzetti said, “and then bring them to counseling services. Because they just, unfortunately, aren’t always willing to seek.” CAPS offers three levels of training for students, faculty and staff to educate themselves about how to support students who are emotionally distressed or in crisis. The Question Persuade Refer, or QPR, Gatekeeper training brings awareness to verbal, situational and
