A south Okanagan mother said it is unacceptable she was not able to immediately get through to a suicide prevention phone line after she discovered disturbing social media posts penned by her 13-year-old daughter.
“She had posted on there that she wanted to pass away and that no one would miss her so I asked her in person if that is how she really felt and she said ‘yes I do want to die at times mom,’” said the woman who we are not identifying to protect to identity of her daughter.
It was April 4 around 7 p.m. when the concerned mother said she frantically started contacting at least four suicide-prevention crisis lines.
The woman claimed it took at least forty minutes for someone to finally answer her desperate call.
“My biggest concern is if a youth were to phone these crisis lines they are not going to spend over an hour trying to reach out to somebody. Numerous times the people that I spoke to from the crisis lines told me that they would call 9-1-1. Well, a youth is not going to call 9-1-1 if they are thinking about committing suicide,” she said.
Not Alone
Her experience is not uncommon.
The Crises Line Association of B.C. said call volume for its “310Mental Health Support” line has increased more than 100 per cent over the past two years.
“That dramatic increase in call volume, I mean the current call volume is something that was never really anticipated when the networks were first established some years ago, so it is certainly a challenge,” said Provincial Networks Manager Jason Chare. “Individual crisis centers report back that demands are increasing so this is putting a lot of pressure on the centers and on the networks to be able to respond to it.”
The Interior Crisis Line service is made up of a network of five crisis line sites from within the Interior Region (Cranbrook, Kelowna, Trail, Vernon and Williams Lake).
Call volume for 2015/16 was over 20,000 with interior crisis line workers providing over 254,224 minutes of support and over 40,000 resources, according to program manager Asha Croggon.
She acknowledged the increase in demand for the crisis lines and said the network is working closely with the Interior Health Authority “on a number of initiatives including increasing the number of available crisis line workers and changing technology to reduce wait time for callers.”
Taking Action
The Mental Health Association says it is taking action to address the youth mental health crisis.
“We have just embarked on a suicide training program and our goal is to train 200 individuals. We have trained all the counsellors in the school system in terms of identifying students who might be at risk and we are willing to do sessions for adults and parents as well,” said Dennis Tottenham, Executive Director of the Canadian Mental Health Association South Okanagan Similkameen.
Where to get help
The Interior Health Authority said the Community Crisis Response Team (CCRT) will conduct crisis assessments in the hospital and in the community.
Spokesperson Tara Gostelow said CCRT is based out of Penticton Regional Hospital and can be called upon when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, such as experiencing suicidal thoughts.
“We encourage anyone who may be having suicidal thoughts to connect with the following resources: the IH Crisis Line at 1-888-353-CARE (2273), 1-800-SUICIDE (784-2433) and for youth/young adults the website – youthinbc.com for emotional support,” she said.
West Kelowna woman and Chief Executive Officer of The Lifeline Canada Foundation Liane Weber also launched The Lifeline App, which offers access and guidance “to support those suffering in crisis and those who have suffered the devastating loss of a loved one from suicide.”
She said 500 people use the app every week.
Open Communication
The south Okanagan mother urges parents to be aware of their children’s activities online.
“Don’t be afraid to talk to your children about what they are going through, about their social media life,” she said, choking back tears. “Just be there for your children.”
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