Suicide - An Extreme Form of Communication

I attended a suicide presentation at the Collin County Community College’s Frisco campus today. Dr. John Hipple, UNT associate professor of counseling and senior staff member at the UNT Counseling and Testing Center, shared that in his opinion and experience, suicide is the ultimate form of communication.

He said that suicide has two components. The first one is “What’s the message that the suicidal person is trying to convey?” And the second is “To whom is this message intended?”

Our task as helper is: (1) To find out what this message is, and (2) To see how we can help the suicidal person make the connection(s). Our role is to help facilitate the communications and connections that the distressed person wants to make.

Dr. Hipple encouraged us to not be afraid to reach out to people in distress.

“You’re offering connections. As we have conversations with the distressed or suicidal person, the chances for a dramatic outcome decreases.” — Dr. John Hipple