Teen's suicide highlights importance of education, prevention

McALLEN — In the hours prior to her death. Brenda Dominguez acted like almost any other teenager.

She ate pizza with friends and she went for a walk. Brenda seemed at peace.

But just a few hours later, the 18-year-old woman lay dead in front of the science building at UTPA, an apparent suicide, according to the coroner.

Health care professionals say that in the months and weeks leading to her death, Dominguez sent a number of signals that she was suicidal.

And they say that if the people around those who commit suicide were more aware of the signs, such death might be averted.

“She might still be alive today,” said Dr. Robert A. Mosqueda, a child, adolescent and family psychiatrist. “If the person who heard (Brenda) … telling people: ‘This is a good place to die,’ if someone would’ve said: ‘That is not healthy, we need to talk to somebody’, and somebody would’ve told the grandmother ‘We are worried about this girl,’ she may still be alive today.”

Education and prevention

Young people like Brenda are the reason Clark Flatt began advocating for education about suicide prevention. Flatt recently spoke to local health care professionals and educators about noting the subtle signs kids send when they’re suicidal. He was at the McAllen Country Club to launch Jason Foundation, which is named after his late son. Jason also committed suicide.

And Brenda and Jason are far from being alone.

A suicide is committed every 15 minutes in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And for every person who commits suicide, 100 to 200 more consider, plan or attempt it.

Suicide is the third-leading cause of death among 10- to 24-year-olds and the second-leading cause of death among college-aged youths. The figures are all the more jarring when you consider that the victim often sends out signals to those around him. But people sometimes don’t pick up on the more subtle signs.

Flatt, who believes suicide is a silent epidemic, lost his son, Jason, in July 1997. And when he found out how many other kids at least consider suicide as a way to solve their problems, he was mortified.

Jason Foundation

Flatt successfully lobbied Tennessee lawmakers for the Jason Flatt Act of 2007, which requires teachers to undergo two hours of suicide-prevention training every year. And he started the foundation as a way to keep other parents from losing their children.

“That has reduced suicide rates in Tennessee,” Flatt said. “That could be done in Texas.”

And, of course, the non-profit foundation is a good resource.

Through the educational organization, Flatt tours the country, showing teachers, students, parents and community members how to prevent suicide. Corporate sponsors offset travel and training expenses.

The Jason Foundation is located at the South Texas Behavioral Health Center, 2102 W. Trenton Ave. There people can get treatment, other assistance and more information about preventing youth suicide.

 “We need to get involved in suicide prevention before the fact,” Flatt told a group of school counselors and law-enforcement and behavioral-medicine professionals last month.

He said friends of potential suicide victims generally can see behavioral changes better than anyone else. As soon as anyone sees signs, they need to react quickly.

Signs include talking about suicide; making statements about feeling hopeless, helpless, or worthless; a deepening depression; preoccupation with death; and taking unnecessary risks or exhibiting self-destructive behavior like self mutilation.

Other signs are out-of-character behavior; a loss of interest in the things one cares about; visiting or calling people one cares about; making arrangements; setting one’s affairs in order; and giving prized possessions away.

Certain types of people are more likely to kill themselves, according to the foundation: people who are perfectionists; gay and lesbian youths; learning disabled youths; loners; youths with low self-esteem; depressed youths; students in serious trouble; abused, molested or neglected youths; and drug abusers.

Lety Crixell, a counselor for Sharlyland ISD, noted during the training that suicide risk isn’t limited to outcasts.

“It’s not just kids that have not been successful … but also the popular kids,” said Crixell, who operates out of Ruben Hinojosa Elementary. “It can also be the kid that is walking down the hall, that (is) popular, talking and involved, and inside there is something going on that you don’t even” realize.

Delia Rodriguez, a counselor from Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD, told Flatt she had a case of a child telling his mother “to hide anything he could use to harm himself.”

Flatt said that while he is not a counselor, that child probably needed immediate intervention. He said the best thing to do was to call for professional help and take him immediately to a facility that could provide the appropriate treatment.

“That person needs to be in a treatment facility right now,” Flatt said.

Dr. Mosqueda concurred.

 “If you do not know what to do, call 9-1-1,” Mosqueda said, adding that police officers are trained to perform mental health checks and evaluate the imminence of the risk.

The verbalization of wanting to die or the self mutilation should have zero tolerance, he said.

“It’s like if you were bleeding. Go to the emergency room, call 9-1-1,”  Mosqueda said.

Four out of five teens who attempt suicide have given clear warning signs, Flatt said. That means that in “80 percent of suicide attempts, we have the opportunity to make a difference.”

He urged anyone who detects the warning signs to seek help before it’s too late.

     Some of Dominguez’s classmates attended a vigil in memoriam for her last week and said they had never received any suicide training through Edinburg CISD. District spokesman Gilbert Table said school officials would not comment about Dominguez because of a student confidentiality policy.

The will to help

Marifina Gonzalez, another counselor from Ruben Hinojosa Elementary and who also attended Flatt’s presentation, said she was appreciative of the foundation’s free training because there are not any  resources in this area that deal with suicide prevention..

Emma Castillo of Project HELP at Donna ISD works with suicidal students.

“We don’t let them go; we do get them (separated out) so they can go to the behavioral center and get proper treatment,” Castillo said. “It’s scary, but it’s people lives.”

She said Flatt had inspired her and that she is anxious to expand the training in her district’s schools.

“I thought this was beautiful,” Castillo said of Flatt’s presentation. “It was very touching, very moving, He has the guts and the will to help others to survive.”

Flatt said he didn’t see the signs in Jason and that people oftentimes end up in the tragic position of saying, “I knew something was wrong, and I did not do anything about it.”

Mosqueda has seen many people who feel the guilt afterwards because they did not know what to do with what they knew, but didn’t recognize.

“And they have to live with that” Dr. Mosqueda said. “(People have to say) ‘I need to learn, and when this comes my way, I will know what to do.’”

UTPA president Robert Nelsen also did not detect any signs prior to his 25-year-old son’s suicide. Seth Nelsen was successful 11 years ago and was outearning his father. His death shocked everybody, and hit hard his close knit group of friends.

“They were so close, they were so choked, that they even today asked themselves what they could done differently,” Nelsen said.

--

Martha L. Hernández covers health, business and general assignments for The Monitor and El Nuevo Heraldo. She can be reached at mlhernandez@themonitor.com and (956) 683 4846