Shifting Paradigms
Suicides have been occurring in Indian Country for a long time, however, the rate in which they occur continues to increase each year. Sadly, we’ve experienced losses that continue to defy traditional and accepted norms in the clinical community. Society has sort of tricked us into believing certain things when it comes to suicide, including the notion that we might have predictive power to see them coming. While it is true that suicide may have specific correlates in terms of behaviors and environmental factors, our lived experience has shown us that suicides can happen anywhere, at any time, to any family, no matter what conditions exist in the periphery of that loss.
Because of this complicated reality, we believe multiple systemic changes are necessary to truly make a difference. Beyond “indigenizing” clinical approaches that meet the diverse needs of Tribal communities, we promote systemic and societal changes as well. Our decades of experience working with suicidal individuals in Indian Country has helped us understand that the responsibility to heal and feel ok should not solely belong to distressed persons. The obligation to create a world with empathy and protection, a world that elicits safety and compassion instead of the dark desire to end one’s own life, is something we all need to share. This is true of governments, businesses, schools, hospitals, community organizations; all of us.
As is true of many Western systems, the clinical mechanisms that were designed to help suicidal individuals in Indian Country instead have the potential to cause harm. We often see the term “dehumanizing” when describing how typical clinical structures impact Indigenous people. This dissonance is one of the main drivers of our work. Over the years we have collaborated with many dedicated and passionate professionals in the therapeutic community that feel the same way we do, and together we are working to imbue the world of suicide assessment and clinical interventions with new Indigenized practices that will foster strength rather than shame. Please see the What We Do tab of this website for more information about this initiative.
Suicide has tragically affected all of us, no matter your color or background. Our hope is that you will join us in striving to create more protection form this devastating outcome, not only in Indigenous communities, but wherever you call home. Let’s take care of each other. Keep the fire burning.
