September is National Suicide Prevention Month and one goal is to help provide information on suicide prevention programs and resources. Although it is important to focus on suicide prevention every day of every year, given the challenges of 2020, this year it may be even more important.
It has been a tough year for many people around the world as we struggle to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Within the United States, we have not only surpassed the 6 million mark of people infected with the virus, but our deaths from the virus are nearing 200,000. We are more than six months into a period of extended social distancing and quarantine, and most of us are feeling depleted. To add to this stress, we also have a second pandemic we are battling, the racism pandemic.
September is Suicide Prevention Month. This is a very important topic that touches many individuals around the world. In addition to our existing resources on suicide prevention, we will be have a series of blogs on the topic this month. Come back to check them out all month long! This month's CDP Presents webinar will be on "Key Elements for the Effective Management and Resolution of Suicidality." This 90-minute presentation will offer evidence-based solutions to the management and treatment of suicidality, as well as clinical maxims from 25 years of treating suicidal individuals.
Several years ago, I was co-facilitating a group Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) session with several BIPOC (Black, Indiginous, People of Color), Vietnam Veterans. During agenda setting, one of the Veterans in the group wanted to discuss a Challenging Beliefs Worksheet (CBW) that he had completed during the past week. I acknowledged his request, and, since he didn’t often speak about his practice assignments, I asked the group if we could start with his agenda item. The rest of the group agreed.
A patient walks into your office and states that he is having a panic attack because he just saw a women in the pharmacy line wearing a Hijab. Just seeing the veil produced flashbacks and a quickened pulse. Upon further questioning, he reveals that he is avoiding certain Middle Eastern restaurants, and missed an elevator ride because he saw a Muslim women waiting in line. He even states that he thought he saw a soldier wearing a Hijab, but then states "I think I must be losing my mind." As a provider working with service members, how culturally informed are you on veiling policies to better assist this patient?