LISTEN LEARN LEAD...I will live by a personal creed that wherever I am, that is the safest place a...

LISTEN LEARN LEAD L3 Suicide Intervention Training

Core Curriculum in the

THE INTERVENE CHALLENGE

2 ©Listen Learn Lead

The Intervene Challenge “Thousands of caring individuals have taken the Intervene Challenge, gaining the skills to courageously intervene for those at risk. Intervention saves lives! Together we can build a network of care and stop suicide in the USA.” Kevin Sorbo “Because of the Intervene Challenge our officers are fully equipped to recognize and respond to someone that is considering suicide.” Chief Janet Moon, Peachtree City Police

Questions To keep the workshop moving along please write any questions you may have in the Q&A Parking Lot in the back of workbook. It is very possible that we will cover the question at some point in the workshop. We will have three times during the workshop to address Parked Questions. Please note Listen Learn Lead is intended for mature audiences. The material presented provides general information for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical or other professional care. You should not use the information in place of a visit, call consultation or the advice of your physician or other healthcare provider. This presentation is not intended to create or establish ministerial duty for teachers, counselors, administrators, law enforcement or other individuals who must implement a given policy. IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY OR MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS, YOU SHOULD FOLLOW GUIDELINES SET FORTH BY YOUR EMPLOYER OR CALL 911.

©Listen Learn Lead 2013 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to L3 Publisher at AFM P.O. Box 1101 Tyrone, GA 30290

Journaling is free therapy that anyone can use to strengthen the mind, build self-confidence, and facilitate healing. Blue quote boxes are from Ken’s personal journal entries over a period of years as he fought to rediscover hope.


Welcome Thank you for joining us today. Through the Intervene Challenge and the Listen Learn Lead curriculum we are training caring and courageous individuals to build a culture of health that will effectively reduce the suicide rate in communities across the USA.

Suicide in the US continues to rise every year nationwide. The Intervene Challenge is a grassroots movement established in 2013 to address this growing epidemic. More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung

disease, COMBINED. But we know from personal experience and the training of thousands of participants in the Intervene Challenge that trained people save people.

Intervention makes a difference. The Golden Gate Bridge authorities, after years of discussion, are finally installing suicide prevention barriers because they have been fully persuaded through research and passionate advocates that intervention makes a difference. They now understand that the $200 million in production cost is worth the lives that will be saved.

In a similar way, I believe that by the end of the day you will say that your time here with us was well worth it. I am reminded of our first workshop in 2012. Rebecca, a retired school teacher had lost her son to suicide. She wasn’t sure that she wanted to attend, but finally made the decision to do so. Months later she wrote, "Ken the workshop has given me a voice to help end the epidemic of suicide - one person at a time." Rebecca is one of many participants over the years that have shared that the Intervene Challenge gave them the courage and the skills to step out of their own comfort zone into the discomfort of another person having thoughts of suicide.

Listen Learn Lead is the core curriculum in the Intervene Challenge, and I am grateful for your willingness to join us. Turning the tide on suicide will take the efforts of many working together.

For Stronger Community, Kenneth Koon

Chaplain Kenneth Koon is the founder of Armed Forces Mission and the Intervene Challenge. He serves as the CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) Chaplain for Peachtree City Police Department and formerly served as the Suicide Prevention Subject Matter Expert for the US Army Reserves. He was inducted into the University of North Georgia Alumni Hall of Fame in 2018 and honored as the 2016 Trinity Awards Emergency Responder of the Year for his work in suicide intervention. Ken holds a Master of Divinity in Education, and Doctorate in Pastoral Counseling and was trained in Clinical Pastoral Education at Atlanta Medical and Piedmont Hospital. He is the author of Listen Learn Lead (Courage to Ask Power to Save).

Listen Learn Lead is approved to provide 5 hours of Continuing Education Credit for the following:

SC Criminal Justice Academy

Licensed Professional Counselors Association of GA

Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council (P.O.S.T.)

Other states may offer reciprocity, but such is not guaranteed


ENABLING OBJECTIVES Participants will gain the skills and confidence to render aid to individuals at risk of suicide.

Additional participant learning objectives are as follows:

• Increase personal awareness of the community impact of suicide • Understand the importance of developing a culture of community health • Gain insight into the questions asked in each phase of the L3 model • Recognize the steps to transitioning through the L3 model • Recognize the importance of building rapport that enables a successful intervention • Practice the model through roleplay and simulation exercises • Discuss fears that impede willingness to intervene • Evaluate the myths that impact societal and helper responses to suicide • Examine cultural differences that challenge ability to intervene • Apply learning to better understand potential risk • Learn how the brain responds to Post Traumatic Stress increasing risk of suicide • Attempt to complete a brain response exercise given a PTS condition • Identify the steps in transitioning to safety • Summarize the various community resources for further assistance as needed

13 REASONS WHY YOU MAY BE HERE My Personal Why?

I am here because… Before coming to the workshop if I thought a person was thinking of suicide…

• You are concerned a friend may be suicidal • You lost a friend or family member to suicide • You want to learn about resources for those at risk • You are concerned with the culture of mental health • You have heard that certain people are at higher risk • You have heard others say, “We didn’t see it coming?” • You want to learn about signs to look for in those at risk • You have heard people that talk about suicide are not serious • You have wondered after a loss “Did they really want to die?” • You have pondered the question, “What if there are no signs?” • You are not sure what you would say or do if you see the signs • You have wondered if mental illness is the primary cause of suicide • You have a strong desire to make a difference in the lives of others

And One More Why…Your Own Thoughts of Suicide

I will live by a personal creed that wherever I am, that is the safest place a person can be.


Henry David Thoreau

True or False

“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.”

“It's not what you ________ at that matters, it's what you ______.”

Building a Culture of Health Is it Possible to Reduce and Even Eradicate Suicide?

Proof of Principle From 2010 to 2018 AFM trainers were embedded in the 4th Brigade 94th Division USAR with responsibility for direct intervention of those at risk and the training of all soldiers in a command covering 10 states. During that time, the team sustained a ZERO suicide rate.

US STATS

• Suicide is 272% higher than homicide • 7000 lives higher than car fatalities

• 2nd leading cause of death among teens • 5400 teens attempt every day

• 22 veteran suicides every day across US • Suicide takes more lives than enemy fire • 49,000 veteran suicides 2005 to 2011 • First Responders a high-risk group

• Girls attempt 2x more often • Boys die 4X more often • Bullying creates a 5 to 9X higher risk • Bullying indicated in ½ of teen suicides

Suicide is not a real option; it’s an option ender. I have yet to meet anyone that really wanted to die. Suicide is not the result of wanting to die; it is the result of loss that leads to hopelessness. The loss can take any form. Validating the pain of loss is often the first step a caring person can take to help bring the hurting person back to a safe place. If the thought returns, we lean upon previous success to eradicate the thought once again. With each success, we grow stronger.


The First Step The power to restore hope is proportional to your own ability to step out of your comfort zone into the discomfort zone of others.

Know the Risk Risks are the ____________ of life in which a person _____ themselves. It does not mean that the

person is ____________ of ____________. It simply means that the ______________is present.

THINK: Kids making a _______________

Possible Risk (Circumstances/Transition Points) to Consider

• Failed relationships

• Family history of suicide

• Prior attempts

• Poor social skills

• Depression

• Financial Stress

• Access to lethal means

• Other…


Pre-Test Meet Sgt Jett (note what you hear)

One night you get a call…

MEET RUSTY Rusty was voted “Most Likely to Succeed” in high school, had a successful athletic and academic life in college and afterwards began a job in mortgage banking. He served as the president of his local civic organization and taught youth Sunday school each week. Rusty married Connie, his boss’s daughter and was promoted to senior vice-president. He enjoyed the esteem of many individuals in his community and was often called upon as a motivational speaker, focusing upon the value of ethics. Life was good. After Rusty had settled into this successful niche, unbeknownst to him his

father-in-law began skimming funds for several years from the company’s escrow accounts. State banking audits revealed that more than $2 million had been stolen. Eventually, Rusty was convicted of mortgage fraud and served two years in prison, losing his banker’s license in the process. While in prison, he did the best he could to maintain a positive attitude. He would speak in chapel and exercised in the “yard” every opportunity he had. After prison, he went home to his wife, who was then living in an apartment 30 miles from the home that they had built and later lost during his incarceration. His sphere of influence and friendships that had been dear to him had faded. For several weeks after he returned home, Rusty attended the church that he had loved, but was shunned by the new pastor and many parents who had been friends, so he stopped attending. He was able to secure a job as a forklift operator, because the boss’s son had played ball with him in college. At the end of each week, Rusty would pick up a six pack of beer and finish six beers over the course of a weekend. As time progressed, he typically had six beers every day. He ruminated upon his high school and college days and couldn’t understand how his life had turned out the way it had at the age of 31. Connie remained supportive, although she was often bitter over what her father had done and the effects on her family. When Rusty began going into fits of rage and accused her of being just like her dad, she repeatedly; forgave him. She connected with a small church she had found, but Rusty wouldn’t go with her. “What’s the point?” he would ask, “If there is a God, He doesn’t care about me and I certainly don’t care about Him.” Connie encouraged Rusty to begin going to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings. After an arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol, Rusty finally complied with her request. An older man in


the group befriended him and encouraged Rusty to reunite with his father, who had already tried many times to connect with Rusty. Out of a sense of shame Rusty had turned his back on family relations. After he finally reluctantly agreed to a meeting with his father, Rusty showed up to learn that his mother was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. She had perhaps 2 months to live. The father sat in silence as Rusty began to curse God. The ranting subsided and the tears began to flow. Rusty confided in his dad that he just couldn’t take anymore. “Nothing makes sense.” “Rusty”, the dad said, “You have Connie and she loves you very much. I don’t understand why you have been through all that you have been through. But you can turn your life around.” Rusty stood; putting on his coat he mumbled, “I just don’t know dad. If one more thing happens….” For the next few months Rusty focused on making improvements in his life. He went 45 days without having any alcohol. He was able to move to the day shift and obtained a promotion to the assistant manger’s position. He started back to the gym and even lost 15 pounds. He returned home and spoke at his mother’s funeral. Many people from the church apologized for the way they had shunned him and became convinced that he was not responsible for all that had happened at the bank. To his delight, Connie announced that she was pregnant with their first child. The pregnancy went well until two weeks before the due date, when Connie went into labor and then delivered a stillborn child. Rusty held his baby with tears streaming down his face. He could not help but think of the last words that he had told his father at the coffee shop. Rusty and Connie went home the next day; then for the next month Rusty went to work and carried out his usual routine in a fog- Work-gym-AA-home. Another 30 days went by. Work-gym-AA-home. Sixty days after the loss of his first son, Rusty…

DESIGN OF L3 MODEL

Yellow

Listen answers the ______

Brown

Learn answers the ______

Green

Lead answers the _____


Keep in mind as a helper It's not about you...your story, your critique, unrelated questions,

or even finding a solution to their pain.

“Why” is something we learn as we listen to the individual’s story.

Be careful about using “WHY” in your conversation.

Why can be perceived as judgmental.

MOVEMENT THROUGH THE MODEL

Notes


I dream of a day when a boy will ask his father, “Dad what was suicide?”

When Time is on Our Side

Sometimes it is not about living or dying.

Sometimes it is simply a matter of staying safe for now.

What’s Going on in There # of Neurons _________________

# of Synaptic Bridges _____________________

THE VORTEX OF SUICIDE


THE QUESTION IS IT REALLY NECESSARY?

FACING OUR OWN FEAR

• I may be ____________.

• I may put the ___________ in their mind.

• They will be _____________.

The Myth: Only certain “kinds” of people consider suicide.

The truth: 1 in 20 people you meet every day has recently contemplated suicide.


WHAT’S GOING ON HERE?

Listening begins with _____

It’s more than what you ______ with your _______

A state of mindfulness Mindfulness is ________ open

______________ on the present.

MORE ON CULTURE

• Ethnic • Main stream media • Education Systems • Hospitals • Law Enforcement • Faith Communities • Corporations

There is in all of creation this DNA of life that shouts, “LIVE, LIVE, LIVE!” The job of the interventionist is to uncover that DNA, to stoke the embers of life under the cold ashes of hopelessness and stir them once again into flame.


Will you be an Agent of Culture Change?

Teens will often tell a friend of their thoughts of suicide with the demand that they not tell anyone else about what they are thinking. Out of loyalty to the friendship they keep the secrets. While loyalty is an important quality of friendship it should never be the primary one. Love for a friend means that sometimes we must do things that others don't want us to do. We easily see loyalty and what it means. Love on the other hand is often misunderstood. My encouragement to teens is to love your friend even when doing so is painful and misunderstood. This is in

fact true loyalty to the friendship. The other is only "keeping the momentary peace" out of a sense of duty, which can result in no peace and the lifetime of a painful memory.

Life is filled with questions and some questions are filled with life.


ACTIVE LISTENING

• Active without __________________________ .

• ____________________________

• Not just the _______________ but how we use them.

• Closed and Open-ended questions

• So, tell me…

How would you help?

MORE ON RISKS AND SIGNS

Knowing the _____________ – we enter dialogue.

Seeing the ______________ – we prepare to act.

Possible Signs to Look for include…

Substance abuse Feelings of hopelessness Talk of ending it all

Giving away things Withdrawal from friends Disturbing text or post

ANY Changes in behavior Other Signs…

If you see the sign, the sign was meant for you!


BUILDING RAPPORT A VITAL KEY

• A good sense of understanding and __________________

• Developed through attitude

• Developed ____________ more _________________ than most people think

Rapport building statements

• Pajama Pain - “I can see that thinking about the _________________ is painful.”

• Look for the Monkey – “What are you _________________ _________________ ?”

• Hungry Zombie Questions – “How well are you _________________ ?

When was the last time you had a _________________ _________________ ?”

LET’S TAKE A WALK According to researchers at Saint Xavier University, “Walking, as opposed to sitting or standing, will almost certainly result in increased feelings of pleasant energy. And that’s true whether you expect this to occur or not.”

Benefits include:

• Spending time in nature • Exposure to sunlight which stimulates Vitamin D production • Production of endorphin – the body’s natural opiates

On a flight to Dallas, before the wheels were off the ground in Atlanta, I had asked the question of suicide to the man sitting beside me. For the next 90 minutes, we talked about the circumstances that had led to the thought. Rapport is a vital key and it can be developed far more quickly than most people think.


MOVE INTO LEARNING _________________ the suicide _________________ moves

the conversation into the Learning phase.

BOTH ARE NOW LEARNING…

• You as the helper are learning their _________________

• PAR is learning….

WHAT MUST YOU LEARN?

Do you have a _________________ ?

When are you _________________ to _________________ ?

Listen for Pivot Points

• I’m so confused… • I’m just not sure… • The relationship is over…

Trained people save people! We train to play sports, musical instruments, be better employees, even better spouses. But few people train to save lives.


EVERY WHY IS UNIQUE

Additional risk factors will likely be _________________ in the

learning phase such as PTSD or other _________________ or

_________________ health issues.

One person’s risk is another person’s _________________ .

Let’s Play Who Wants to Be an Interventionist?

Meet Anthony

Anthony needs a courageous individual to be the one!

As the One you can

• Refer to your notes• Call out for lifeline suggestions from your peers

TRANSITION TO LEADING PHASE _________________ have you _________________ about your plan?

How can we keep you _________________ for _________________ ?


COMPLETE THE LEADING PHASE

• Disengage the _________________ _________________

• Assure individual is _________________

• Encourage _________________ building _________________

• Care for the ___________________

APPEARANCE PARADOX

• Not everyone who enters the _________ is concerned with _________________ . Some

are looking for a way to ___________ , believing it is the only _________________ .

There Comes a Time YOU Must Ask the QUESTION It is a challenge for most people to ask the suicide question. Even in simulation exercises and a completely safe environment participants often struggle to ask. Before we have acknowledged and validated the reality of a person’s present state of mind many people push to change the subject or try to get the hurting person's mind moving in another direction Doing so only adds to the stigma. It takes courage to ask the question that most will never ask, but if you will, lives will be saved. The person that is thinking of suicide is also hoping that someone will come to their aid - someone will be the one that will help. Will it be you?

Round Two

Who Wants to Be an Interventionist? Meet Leroy…

• Retired police chief • Former SWAT TEAM Captain • Vietnam Veteran • Married 42 years to Mary • Diagnosed with ALS last month

Notes


Where Does Faith Fit in a Suicide Intervention Model? Helping the person at risk is about meeting them where they are; not where you are. There is such a thing as a bad time for a good word. It is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time. “A good word in the right circumstances is like apples of gold in baskets of silver.” Ancient Proverb Sometimes our words of encouragement to those at risk can feel more like a prison shank rather than a golden nugget of comfort and peace; and typically, preparation is needed for the surgeon’s scalpel. Be careful about using any tool just because you are familiar and comfortable with it. The tools that will work are the ones you should use; if it is faith, use it; if not don’t. AND by no means ever use religion to shame the person at risk. “You just need to have more faith, you need to pray more, you have sin in your life…” Such statements are shame inducing. Many times, the suicidal person has already heaped much shame on himself. Finally, never show anger toward the person at risk. The goal is hope that life is worth living. Hope is never produced through shame and anger, but only through compassion and understanding. Secular Religious or Something Else

In the obviously more secular setting, such as a college campus or a law enforcement agency, I still pepper my training with certain aspects of what some would call “religion” For example I share that I will often ask a person at risk if they have a faith background. If they say “yes”, then I know that there is a potential resource I can draw upon. But such is not always the case. If the person at risk is angry with God because their 2-year-old recently died in a car accident, it is not my job in that moment to argue the point that God is still loving and cares for them. My mission in such case is to keep them safe.

The religious vs secular is a rather amusing discussion to me. I do know religious types that alienate others by spiritualizing every discussion. But I also know secular types that are religiously devoted to their secular views and vehemently opposed to anything that smacks of religion. Interestingly, I have never had anyone in the secular setting that objected to any discussion that faith can be a tool that will de-escalate a risk. For the most part all agree that we should utilize whatever means will work to keep a person from taking their life.

Recently, a faith group sponsored the Listen Learn Lead (L3) Training. We were in an obviously religious setting. Yet one of the mental health professionals present stated in an exit survey, “I would have preferred the training to be more secular to appeal to a diverse population.” My intention in this training was to convey to the many pastors present that L3 is a model that they can utilize within their context of ministry.

L3 is simply a tool; a model of intervention that is neither secular nor religious. Saying otherwise would be paramount to saying a cell phone is religious or secular. The truth is, it is neither. It is simply a tool that is used to communicate. In the same way L3 is a tool that we use to communicate. How and what we communicate is dependent on the two people engaged in conversation. L3 simply provides a framework that can be inserted in the conversation to guide the helper in bringing the one at risk of suicide back to a place of safety and hope for the future. There are many tools that we can use to effect change; L3 is simply another tool, neither secular nor religious, something else altogether.

Do you have a

faith background?

How has your faith

helped you through challenges

in the past?


MAINTAINING CAREGIVER RESILIENCE Accept change as a part of _______________

Exercise

Journal

Keep things in _________________

Learn new skills

Maintain a hopeful outlook

Make _________________

Meditation and _________________ disciplines

Move toward POSTIVE goals

Nurture a positive view of yourself

Read inspirational books

Take care of _________________

Take decisive actions

View crisis as _________________

Round Three Who Wants to Be an Interventionist?

Police officer took his own life one week after a man he had tasered fell to his death.

How might a better outcome have been possible? Notes

The paradox for the caregiver is that we take care of others, but often fail to take care of ourselves. I will commit to taking time out. It is not a selfish act. I will be stronger, and others will be grateful.

Latest research reveals the following data for suicide in the law enforcement community:

• Average age 42 • Average time on the job 16 years • 91% of suicides were by male officers • 63% of officers were single • 11% were military veterans


RESOURCES

Specific Resources for Your Community

Winning on the battlefield of life begins within. This is the greatest challenge.


APPENDIX

What We Think We Know

There was a time when the world was the center of the universe, the earth was flat, and the sun revolved around us. In the same way, many people continue to believe that they will never have a mental health crisis; such things only happen to those who are weak. Still others believe that a person’s struggles with mental illnesses are the result of a lack of positive thinking; if you stop having negative thoughts and focus on the positive you can overcome your crisis. Then there are those who believe that mental health crisis is due to a lack of faith. The faith community should always challenge such belief. In the words of Mark Twain, to all the above I say, “JUST AIN’T SO!”

When I was a child I suffered terribly from Asthma. I had to eventually give up being a baseball catcher because there were times when I would pass out behind home plate. Telling someone with mental illness to think positive thoughts is like telling a kid passed out on the ball field to breath; or telling a grandma who fell and broke her hip to get up and walk it off. They want to breath, they want to walk, but it is not possible. Sometimes the same is true in the realm of mental health.

In my work as a LOSS (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors) team leader I often hear people say, “We just didn’t see it.” In such times, what we thought we knew, wasn’t so. There is no way to know for certain who may attempt suicide and who will not; regardless of our awareness of risk. We should certainly not go on the assumption of our own personal judgments (he/she can’t possibly be suicidal); because it is impossible to sum things up about what is going on in another person’s mind when we have never attempted to engage the person in what is going on in his or her life. What we think we know never works when we are afraid to have the difficult discussion in the first place.

Does Natural Disaster Increase Suicide?

The immediate result of natural disaster is typically a decrease in suicide for a brief period. Suicidologist have studied the effects of disaster related suicide since London was blitzed with bombs in World War II. For a period after the 57 days of nightly bombing, suicide and even drunkenness greatly decreased. Similar findings were revealed after 9-11, Hurricanes Ike and Katrina, and many other disasters. The pulling together time after a wide scale catastrophic event is seen in microcosm when a family member dies. Differences are set aside; there is a coming together for the common good…then the WILL is read, and all hell breaks loose, words fly, and fragile relationships are shattered beyond repair. In the same way, there is a honeymoon or pulling together phenomenon that takes place with disaster, but at some point, the honeymoon is over. In this regard, it is like the soldier that earns a purple heart saving his battle buddy, but years later takes his own life.


The Proverbial Bridge

I think many people have this idea that those of us that do suicide intervention every day are standing on the bridge waiting to save people. Obviously, there are some that do that. Take for example, Sergeant Kevin Briggs, a California Highway Patrol officer who is known as the Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge. He has stopped upwards of two hundred people from jumping off this well-known bridge. I have only had one suicide intervention that took place on an actual bridge. There have been many times when I have had to disengage other deadly means in a very real moment of crisis when the loss of risk was imminent.

The reality is that most of the 800 plus interventions I have done occurred because I became aware that the person at risk was moving toward the proverbial bridge. Sometimes it is because of the tip from a concerned friend that saw the signs. Often, it has been an awareness of circumstances even when there were no signs.

Risk of loss increases when circumstances of life become difficult. Suicide is a normal thought in abnormal situations. When you see the perfect storm forming in a friend’s or loved one’s life that is the time to engage in dialogue. Don’t wait till they are on the literal bridge. Don’t assume that things will get better, or they would never think of suicide. Anyone can have thoughts of suicide given conditions for the perfect storm. Two recent category 5 Hurricanes remind us that taking preemptive action is the responsible thing to do.

We will always need our Guardians that are able to intervene in the critical moment, but what is needed even more is hundreds and even thousands of trained individuals scattered throughout the community, on the ballfields, the schools, the factories, the churches, and every other place that you might find a person at risk. Gaining skills in suicide intervention will build a culture of health and reduce the possibility that the person at risk will end up on the proverbial bridge. I know our Guardians of the bridge will be grateful for your support and so will the one who needs you.

The Mask

The most painful and yet freeing thing I ever did was take off the mask. I see the same virtually every day with those I work with, mainly veterans, but civilians too. They are the ones who admit their fears or disclose to another the nightmares that keep them up night after night. They are the ones desperately seeking to rediscover the authentic self. I also see those who continue to wear the mask and later it is little wonder when they become ill. The masquerade of life consumes our energy and can ultimately take our lives. It is a painful thing to disclose personal shame and feelings of self-contempt but is also the first step in finding healing that deep down the soul longs to know.

There is something that happens in the heart and mind when one confides the “secrets.” Ironically, when an individual can confide in a trusted confidant the struggles of life, they are freed from the isolation that is often the consequences of shame. Rather than causing more shame because someone knows, chains are broken, the heart begins to heal.

When the mask comes off it opens a door to understanding self and even God in ways that are not possible when we refuse to remove the mask. The mask is the greatest deterrent to true authentic relationship, be it a husband/wife, parent/child, or that of two soldiers on the field of battle. The masks that we wear create unhealthy relationships and even more isolation. They do little to hide fear and even create more fear, shame, and self-loathing.

For this reason, I pray God give me enough self-awareness to know when I am hiding behind the mask. Give me the courage to be set free, so that I and those I serve can be their authentic self.


Four Things You Can Do After the Challenge After taking the Intervene Challenge, many participants have asked, “What can I do now?”

Maintain your vigilance. Individuals at risk are everywhere. It is believed that at any given time 1 in 20 individuals you meet may be having thoughts of suicide. According to the National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center, “1 in 5 teens had thought about suicide, 1 in 6 teens had made plans for suicide, and more than 1 in 12 teens had attempted suicide in the last year. As many as 8 out of 10 teens that die by suicide try to ask for help in some way.”

Encourage others to take the Challenge. Many of the nearly 8,500 individuals that have participated in the Challenge were referred by those that had taken the Challenge in the previous six months. So, talk it up. Wear your “What Question” wrist band, like our various Facebook pages at Stop Suicide USA and Armed Forces Mission and share post that we put out about upcoming workshops.

Help organize a Challenge workshop for your circles of influence. Encourage civic organizations, your HR department, your faith community small group, or school to get involved.

Support the mission with your time, talent, or treasure. Volunteer, become a co-facilitator, support the work as a monthly partner. $25 a month will purchase curriculum for 20 workshop participants every year!

Learn more at ListenLearnLead.org for civilian community or AFMfamily.org for Veteran and Law Enforcement community

Take Your Involvement in Building a Culture of Health to the Next Level

as an L3 Certified Instructor

Contact us today about the next Facilitator Training


The Intervene Challenge is brought to you by

With much gratitude to our many community partners and a special thanks to

Because A Crisis Has No Schedule™ Behavioral Health Link’s (BHL) professional and caring staff is available any time day or night to get help for those experiencing a behavioral health crisis or a crisis related to a developmental disability. BHL’s crisis call center and mobile crisis services are designed to intervene at the time of crisis and remain engaged until each individual is safely in the hands of ongoing care and services. BHL is The Single Point of Entry for Georgia’s Mobile Crisis Services, Crisis Stabilization Units, and Inpatient Services.


Order

Listen Learn Lead

(Courage to Ask Power to Save)

Available at ListenLearnLead.org

Listen Learn Lead is a work with tremendous capacity to give readers the power and skills to save lives. Chaplain Kenneth Koon offers a concise framework that individuals from all walks of life can utilize to intervene for those in need. The skills learned will enable the reader to lead those overwhelmed with thoughts of suicide to a safe place. Ken’s first-hand experience intervening with those at risk will benefit all people. I have worked with him. I have seen his power of warmth and his capacity for empathy. He truly connects with everyone he touches. When we have worked together and taught others the skills on intervening in suicidal risk, his ability to connect and truly engage is masterful. I have great admiration for his talents.

Listen Learn Lead is his testimony of how one man has learned to connect with others and what he offers the reader are the skills to hear a person’s message of despair, help them to find reasons for living, and lead them out of the darkness. Chaplain Koon is a proven and compassionate leader and Master Trainer in various intervention models. Notwithstanding this expertise, he has now catapulted his desire to eradicate suicide to new

levels by offering this accumulation of his many experiences to thousands that he will never meet or personally train in one of his workshops. The reader will gain a vision of how to intuitively connect with those in despair and ask the tough questions of suicide.

Whether you are a family member of someone who is struggling with despair or various forms of melancholy, a first responder, minister, teacher, medical professional, or a crisis intervention specialist you will be well served by developing the skills offered in this book. The skills here will significantly enhance your ability to identify those in need, connect on a compassionate level, and save lives. You will be well-served to read and reread Listen Learn Lead, so you are best prepared to engage when the need arises.

All of us can better prepare ourselves to be the one person who has the knowledge to make a difference for those in need. By following Ken’s proven template of suicide intervention, the reader will be prepared to help those who may be contemplating suicide.

Paul D. Wade, PsyD, MS, LPC Former Suicide Prevention Program Manager 99th Regional Support Command U.S. Army Reserve, Ft Dix, NJ

My husband is alive today because you were there at midnight when I didn’t know what else to do.

Veteran Spouse

©Listen Learn Lead 2013 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to L3 Publisher at AFM P.O. Box 1101 Tyrone, GA 30290

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