It’s hard to identify all who enter a potentially suicidal state because, in the midst of an intense crisis, the idea may come out of the blue, say researchers such as Craig J. Bryan, Psy.D., M.D., professor of psychiatry at the Larner College of Medicine and director of the University of Vermont Medical Center’s suicide care clinic. “People move in and out of suicidal states, sometimes very quickly,” Dr. Bryan said in a webinar.
Overemphasizing mental health treatment has led to overlooking other strategies, Bryan argues, such as limiting gun access, and, before the lethal means becomes an issue, improving quality of life and alleviating stresses. But the basic idea is to at least make it harder to use a gun until the impulse to end life passes.
What if creating time—even just the few minutes it takes to gain access to and load a securely stored gun—can change the trajectory of a suicidal crisis? Time, experts say, gives people a second chance at life and a fighting chance to survive.