Hey there, a warning before I start today's show.

We're going to be talking about some pretty heavy topics.

Today we'll be talking about mental health, anxiety, depression, and surviving suicide.

Parental discretion is advised.

In 2019, nearly 800,000 people died of suicide.

That means every 40 seconds someone was taking their own life.

And suicide is a global phenomenon and certainly there are populations, certain people, certain experiences that place you at greater risk of suicide.

But for every person who dies from suicide, it's estimated that there's another 20 who attempted suicide.

That means for every one person who dies of suicide, there are 20 people who survive it.

But death by suicide and suicide attempts are preventable.

Now that is not to say that you, you alone can prevent someone from taking their own life or from even trying.

But it does mean that we've got to start having these conversations more openly.

We've got to remove the stigma.

We've got to be able to know the signs so that there's something we can do so that we can intervene.

So today, because of the pandemic, because of racial tensions, because of the world that we live in today,

suicide rates are higher than ever.

Now I've heard reports that suicides are up nearly 200% so far in 2020.

And I did my best to substantiate those statistics and I can't tell you I can substantiate

the number of suicides is that much higher?

It wouldn't surprise me. I just can't substantiate it.

But what I can tell you is that Google searches calls to suicide prevention lines and visits to online support groups

are up more than 200% since the lockdown began.

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