Suicide prevention team coming to Cheyenne County

SIDNEY, Neb. — A new team to help suicide prevention is coming to Cheyenne County.

A Local Outreach for Suicide Survivors unit received grant funding provided by The Nebraska State Suicide Prevention Coalition.

“Now that we have that grant funding, we can start building a team to reach out to those who have lost someone recently to suicide," Suicide Prevention Volunteer Liz Borgmann said.

Borgmann said the most prevalent sign for someone struggling with suicide is not acting like themselves.

“One of the things I teach community members is the QPR method, which is question, persuade, and refer,” Borgmann said. “Asking the question, ‘Are you feeling suicidal?’ Or if that’s too difficult maybe go with something that’s not so straightforward and say, ‘Hey, I am noticing some of these signs.' Knowing what the signs are and reaching out to ask these questions is important."

Borgmann said males have a higher suicide rate than females. However, females have a higher suicide attempt rate. For every fatal suicide there are 25 suicide attempts. Women are 10 times more likely to attempt suicide, although men have a higher overall suicide completion rate.

“One of the biggest things we have noticed just in our community is the middle aged 30 to 50-year-old white males are the quiet men,” Borgmann said. They keep to themselves they’re taught at a young age that they shouldn’t express their emotions so when they are feeling these emotions, they don’t know how to deal with them. It’s all about talking, opening up, and finding that safe space.”

Borgmann said individuals in a rural community can be even more hesitant to confide in other people about their emotions.

“People have a hard time opening up when there are so many people who might know their business. Having a safe place to go and that one person to talk to is the important piece,” Borgmann said. “You don’t have to tell your story to everybody, but just one person. Tell them how you’re feeling, you might not always get answers, but talking about it will make you feel 10 times better.”