Captain America Promotes the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
Guest Post By: John Draper, Ph.D., Director of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
When I was a kid, I loved Marvel comic books. As much as I indulged my imagination in the workings of superheroes back then, I never could have imagined that, decades later, Captain America would be an ally of mine in promoting SAMHSA’s National Suicide Prevention Lifeline!
Someone from Marvel Comics contacted me in December 2010 and told us of their plan to release a special issue of Captain America in January 2011, whereby the Captain would reach out and help an adolescent boy in suicidal distress. The last panel of the issue would show the boy dialing the Lifeline number, 800-273-TALK (8255). They were calling only to obtain access to the Lifeline logo which, as a public service, is available to anyone who accesses our web site at www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org. Marvel has made the comic available electronically.
In reviewing the story, I was simply blown away by the outstanding quality of the art work. I also noted that there was no dialogue, no word bubbles; only pictures and action. In just a few frames, they powerfully portrayed signs of suicide and precipitating events in this boy’s life that triggered his suicidal thoughts: the recent accidental death of his father; his mother dating a new love interest; his girlfriend breaking up with him; failing grades in school; and a sense of complete isolation. The writer (also a psychologist) did his homework; research shows that 1/3 of adolescent suicides are precipitated by conflicts with parents and/or relationship break-ups, often in the same day.[1] The primary demographic for readers of popular comic books is tech savvy 20-28 year old males. Suicidal thoughts are common among persons in this age group, and males are particularly at higher risk of completing suicide. The final frame reminds readers that you don’t have to be a superhero to take action, you just need a phone and the Lifeline number.
Our thanks to Marvel—and the Good Captain—for helping us spread the word that with help, there truly is hope…and help is only a phone call away!
[1] http://www.sprc.org/library/YouthSuicideFactSheet.pdf
I totally agree. Timely mental first aid could have prevented many disasters, icluding family crimes. These courses should be implemented at schools along with natural disaster and other emergency training courses.
Hello. I like the idea of a superhero getting involved in the in preventing suicide. I’m kind of wanting to do the same thing through my website (my blog). I know that my posts won’t cure anyone of their depression, but maybe they’ll give suicidal teens pause… which might precipitate their calling the hotline in search of interactive help.
So, what I’m doing is trying to spread my link around.
Any advice for my site you may have would be appreciated.
Thanks
Dan
This is great that comic books are not just entertainement but something else, something that saves lives. I never thought that sucidal thought mostly occur in 20-28 males. I thought teenagers are most prone to suicide because of the common teenage problems – being bullied by classmates, being not enough attractive, first relationship breakdowns, shame or inability to talk to parents, being certain of having learned everytihg about this life, etc…I’ve never been a comic addict but I believe the above ones are mostly for the male audience. Will there any help of that sort be delieved to teenage girls, by the same means?
I like the approach of sharing with the opposite sex what they are concerned about….because it is those mindsets each takes with them when they grow up to young adults. For instance, grieving is different for men/woman, boys/girls, and a section on grieving styles might be that insight needed to be a thoughtful friend instead of assuming or ignoring what might be needed.
Thank you.
I really appreciate such efforts. Suicidal thoughts are transitory, short-term and still they ruin a life just becausr the person didn’t know how to magane it and look at the situation from outside his depressed mind. In many instances a small bit of understanding what’s going pn is all that people need to save themselves.
Unfortunately, by the time the signs are obviously apparent, it is often too late. Parents need to be more in tune with, and involved in their children’s lives. Plain and simple.
Some parents would love to be involved, a lot of students in the villages throughout Alaska go to boarding schools for the full four years. By the time they get back from school in the summer time is off to fish camp. There is a small window of opportunity to bond as the fishing/hunting season is getting smaller and more regulated and then the students are off to school again.
This I am sure is a barrier in other places as well.
That remind me of another story about suicide, spiderman was looking for the brother of a dying friend, that needed kidney transplant, and found him when he was about to suicide. The message is the same here: you are not worthless while you can still help someone. This is a pretty powerful story, without all the corky talking and stuff. Just great.
Awesome idea!
Each one of us can be a “super-hero”…
If Captain America cannot save you from despair he has many friends who can support him. It is a great idea for sure. Nice catch.
I ask the audience, “how does the face of suicide look,” which would be my question to, “How does the face of a hero look?”
We all need a hero, and in doing so, we replace that face with our loved one who is our hero!
I love the idea with comics books being used for suicide prevention. My boys (and even girls) always copy their favorite characters, and I think pictures and action is really a great approach: they are much more meaningful for them.