Mental Fitness Minute: Is it normal to think about death, dying and suicide regularly? Even when life is good?

On March 16, a grassroots committee hosted the Worland Mental Fitness Fair at the Worland Community Center.

Members of the panel were Dr. Ralph Louis, psychologist from Oxbow Center in Basin; Janae Harman, owner of Family Circle Counseling in Worland; Mary Johnson, CEO of Oxbow Center in Worland; and Carol Bell, provisionally licensed therapist at Foundations Counseling in Cody.

The panel answered prepared questions that came from the committee and from similar events in Shell, Greybull and Cowley.

The Northern Wyoming News will be covering the questions on a weekly basis throughout the next several weeks.

Is it normal to think about death, dying and suicide regularly? Even when life is good?

Louis: Well, normal is a tough one. Because normal is the average of everybody. So none of us is normal. So, when we recognize that, I think maybe the way I would read into this question is that, is it common to think about death and dying and suicide regularly? Even when life is good?

And no, it’s not. If you are thinking about death, and dying and suicide regularly, it’s a good idea to get some help.

There’s the 988 line that you can call for help, anytime, day or night. If you’re in a crisis, there’s crisis intervention people available 24/7 through the counseling centers. So I would say, if you are having thoughts about death, dying and suicide regularly, talk to somebody about it.

Harman: Lots of people think about it in like discouraging moments, like a passive thought of “I wish I weren’t here,” or “maybe I shouldn’t be here” or something like that. But they don’t sit and think about it. It’s not something that they make plans about. It can just be like a thought that flies through your mind. That’s pretty common.

But it is an indication that you have despair, and that you need to reach out to some support so that you don’t stay there.

Next week: The pandemic lockdowns created mental challenges for many people, especially youth. What are some coping mechanisms for things like social withdrawal and germaphobia?