September is National Suicide Prevention MonthStatistics tell us that suicide on the rise in the U.S., a 33% increase in the past two decades. There were more than 48,000 recorded suicided  in the U.S. in 2018. Further, research tells us that one in five adults are having or have had suicidal thoughts.

The attached reflections from Lila Bennett, “The Opposite of Suicide is Connection,” is the fourth of a four-part series from Vermont Care Partners to offer Vermonters information and resources during September, Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

Read “The Opposite of Suicide is Connection”

Read previous posts

Part One: “Suicide: Signs and Symptoms”

Part Two: “How to Talk About Suicide”

Part Three: “Suicide Does Not Discriminate”

For more information about suicide awareness and prevention, please visit the Vermont Suicide Prevention Center at www.vtspc.org or the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org or by calling 1-

800-273-8255. If you are a Veteran, call 1-800 – 273-8255 and Press 1. You can also use the Crisis Text Line by texting VT to 741741, and you will be connected with a live, trained counselor quickly. (learn more: www.crisistextline.org).

In Chittenden County, call First Call at Howard Center at 802-488-7777.

This series is a collaboration produced by members of the Vermont Care Partners statewide network of sixteen non-profit, community based agencies providing mental health, substance use and intellectual and developmental disability support. To find an agency near you visit: https://vermontcarepartners.org/agencies/