Host: ComWell Behavioral Health Services
Event Theme: In-Person Suicide Prevention Community Training, 2 hours
Event Date/Time: August 15, 2025, 9 am-11 am CT
Audience: School mental health staff, private practice clinicians, Peer Support Specialists, rehab clinicians, community stakeholders, parents
Topic: Diary of a Broken Mind: Addiction and the Tragic Link to Suicide
Description:
AnneMoss Rogers, one of today’s top suicide prevention speakers, and her husband tried to find help for their struggling son, Charles, a creative genius and rap artist. Shamed for his addiction and desperate to escape the emotional pain of depression, Charles turned to heroin and died by suicide in 2015 at age 20.
This powerful session explores the often-overlooked connection between addiction and suicide. How common is suicidal thinking among those who are addicted? How many turn to substances to numb the pain of untreated mental illness or trauma? And most importantly, what can schools, communities, mental health professionals, and treatment centers do to reduce suicide risk and offer compassionate support to both individuals and families?
Key Takeaways:
- How shame around addiction contributed to Charles’s sense of hopelessness
- Drug overdose or intentional OD? How is suicidal intent determined?
- Times when those who misuse substances are most at risk of suicide
- Warning signs of suicide and practical ways to respond
- Suggested screening tools and safety plan examples
- How clinicians can support families living in fear for their loved ones
- How to ask for support when you need it