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Gahanna Lincoln High School leads the way in suicide prevention


National Suicide Prevention Week flyer at Gahanna Lincoln High School. Sept. 10, 2021. (WSYX)
National Suicide Prevention Week flyer at Gahanna Lincoln High School. Sept. 10, 2021. (WSYX)
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If you or someone you know is struggling emotionally or having a hard time, call the toll-free, 24-hour hotline of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) to be connected to a trained counselor at a suicide crisis center nearest you.

It's National Suicide Prevention Week, and Gahanna Lincoln High School is going above and beyond to share messages of help and hope with its students... And that includes talk about suicide.

"It is still a very taboo subject to some people," said Julie Nelson Slagle, a guidance counselor at the school. "And we don’t want it to be that."

Nelson said the school is taking a proactive approach when it comes to suicide.

"Letting them know that we’re here, and that we care, and that we can talk about mental health. We can talk about suicide because talking about suicide does not cause suicide."

She said the guidance office has started a program called "Take five to save lives".

The idea is to take five minutes every day to learn something about suicide, whether it’s the warning signs or how to connect with friends and family.

"Things you can do to proactively prevent suicide," said Nelson Slagle. "We want our students to feel empowered to do that."

Guidance counselor Melissa Monnig said a clear warning sign is a lack of motivation over a period of time.

"Not wanting to be involved in activities, retreating from friends," said Monnig. "Just kind of wanting to isolate themselves. That’s definitely a warning sign or a red flag."

The messages are mostly posted on social media, which the guidance counselors said was an easy way to

connect with the school's 25-hundred students.

"The tweets, Instagram, Google classroom – we know that we can reach every single student whether they acknowledge that they received the information or not," said Nelson Slagle. "We know that it’s out there and they’re seeing it."

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