Written By: Pamela Hyde, SAMHSA Administrator 
Every day nearly 100 Americans die by suicide, and even higher is the number of people who contemplate suicide.  A study released this year by SAMHSA found that 8.6 million American adults experienced serious thoughts of suicide within the past 12 months.  Among children ages 14-18, 2.9 million had serious thoughts of suicide.
Suicide is a public health issue that touches the lives of millions of people across the nation, and each of us has a role to play in preventing it in our own communities.
On …

Cross-posted from blog.aids.gov
Written By:  Ronald Valdiserri, M.D., M.P.H., Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health, Infectious Diseases, and Director, Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Policy, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
September marks the 23rd annual observance of National Recovery Month (Recovery Month).  Our colleagues at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration(SAMHSA) organize Recovery Month as an observance to educate Americans on the fact that addiction treatment and mental health services can enable people with a mental and/or substance use disorder to live healthy and rewarding lives. The main focus is to celebrate the gains made …

Written By: Larke Huang, Director Office of Behavioral Health Equity
Several Tribal groups, as part of the National NNEDLearn 2012 Training sponsored by SAMHSA’s Office of Behavioral Health Equity, have organized the nation’s 1st Annual Walk to Raise Awareness about Suicide among Native Americans for Wednesday, September 12, 2012 in conjunction with National Suicide Prevention Week (September 9-15). The theme for this year’s Tribal walk is Tribal Communities Connecting Together to Prevent Suicide. The organizing Tribes represented among the planners are:

Bishop Paiute (California)
Choctaw (Mississippi)
Creek (Oklahoma)*
Little River Band of Ottawa Indians (Michigan)
Pueblo of …

Written By: Pamela Hyde, SAMHSA Administrator 

SAMHSA is proud to announce a new online campaign to promote the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, You Matter.  The campaign focuses on the positive message that the lives of young adults matter, even as they face trying times or difficult problems.

Through a blog and social media, You Matter aims to build awareness and trust in the Lifeline among young adults by providing a safe, online space where they can connect with the Lifeline. The campaign showcases hopeful peer-to-peer messages and also supports friends of young adults …