Suicide: McHenry County Community Resources

The third leading cause of death in teens ages 15 to 24 is suicide.

In 2014, 33 people in McHenry County killed themselves.

And while the community mourns the loss of Adrian Salazar, many would not know where to turn if a friend of loved one expressed an intent to hurt themselves.

The first thing that needs to change, according to Carolyn Frasor, training and community development associate for the McHenry County Mental Health Board is for people to start talking.

“One of the big pieces they talk about in all of the training I have read so far is how to talk about it,” she said.

Because this may be one of the hardest things. For someone who is not suicidal, she said, a reaction to someone who wants to hurt themselves might be of such disbelief that it reinforces the feelings the suicidal person has that they are too different and their feelings are not normal.

In addition, we have to embrace than we may have accepted many myths that are not true as fact. For example, many people think that suicides increase over the holidays. In reality, more suicides happen in the spring than any other time of the year.

“I think a lot of times people think the holiday season, but it is actually the spring,” Frasor said. “When we talk about it, it is people maintain (their feelings) through the holidays or through the winter and hope with the coming of spring that they will feel better.”

When spring arrives and the sun is out longer, they expect to feel better and when they don’t that’s very discouraging.

“Hopelessness can set in a little bit more,” she said.

In McHenry County, there are a variety of resources for people.

The McHenry Crisis Line is manned around the clock, 24-7, 365 days a year, 366 on leap years, always always,” Frasor said.

That hotline is: 1-800-892-8900.

The McHenry Crisis Center Web site has information about suicide, including the survivors of suicide group.

The McHenry County Crisis Center is also working to add programs.

“We are hoping with the task force (to) doing more education and training in the community,” she said.

Although it is a ways off, there is a suicide prevention conference on September 4.

“We are looking at hosting community training too,” she said. “We’re exploring a curriculum right now.”