Weekly News Roundup Jan. 13 – 19, 2024

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Canadian Men’s Health Foundation reports that more men are addressing stress, anxiety and depression – Telus Health
January 18, 2024
Canadian Men’s Health Foundation (CMHF) has expanded their MindFit Toolkit, which provides men with resources to deal with chronic stress, anxiety, and depression. “We are encouraged by the significant increase in men accessing MindFit Toolkit, taking self-assessments and completing counselling appointments,” said TC Carling, CMHF President & CEO. “We continue to expand MindFit Toolkit year-over-year with a goal of reducing stigma, breaking down barriers, and helping more men access help when they need it.” The MindFit Toolkit includes resources from Centre for Suicide Prevention.

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Opinion: Universities can build resilience in students to improve mental health – Calgary Herald
January 19, 2024
This opinion article, written by Mount Royal University (MRU) president and vice-chancellor Tim Rahilly, explores the role universities can play in building resilience. Rahilly says, “a university education can empower students to adapt to change, absorb setbacks and maintain their mental health. Students learn facts and to think critically, but also to manage time, workload and stress. This prepares them for academic achievements and lifelong success in an increasingly complex society. Earning a degree is an individual pursuit embedded in a supportive community. Likewise, building coping skills also falls to the individual.” Rahilly says that at MRU, students are supported in a variety of ways, including through support groups, workshops, counselling, and policies and frameworks, such as MRU’s suicide prevention framework. The framework aims to “to build a campus community that is open, welcoming and inclusive to promoting mental health and suicide prevention.”

Anonymous tips work to prevent school shootings and suicides, new study finds – CNN
January 17, 2024
A new study has found that suicide and school violence can be prevented when anonymous reporting systems are used by students to report concerning behaviour of peers. 10% of tips from the database used for the study were related to firearms. Researchers note that firearms “are the leading cause of death among children and adolescents.”

Day-to-day suicide risk linked to menstrual cycle – The Independent
January 17, 2024
Findings from a new study have found that thoughts of suicide fluctuate with menstrual cycles. Study participants who had a history of suicidal thoughts reported an increase in suicidal planning on certain days during their menstrual cycle, and reported a significant increase in depression, anxiety, and hopelessness in the premenstrual and early menstrual phases. Senior study author Tory Eisenlohr-Moul said, “This study establishes that the menstrual cycle can affect many people who have suicidal thoughts, which makes it one of the only predictable recurring risk factors that has been identified for detecting when a suicide attempt might occur.” Researchers hope that study results can help clinicians more effectively treat their patients  by suggesting personalized recommendations about their care depending. “We’re excited to use the best methods out there to try to create individual prediction models for each person, so that we’re not putting people into a box,” Eisenlohr-Moul said. “We want to really figure out: does the cycle matter for this person, and then exactly how does it matter and how we can best intervene based on that information.”

How rural communities are tackling a suicide and depression crisis among farmers – PBS News
January 14, 2024
Farmers in the US are 3.5 times more likely to die by suicide than the general population. They face unique stressors, including those that are out of their control, such as weather and complex markets. Farms are often run by families which can cause stress and conflict, and often, farmers are working in isolated rural areas, which can contribute to social isolation. Farmer Randy Roecker describes the mental health struggles he faced when the prices of milk dropped during the 2008 recession: “I would get in the truck, and I would drive out on our back 40 acre field and sit in the truck and just cry. I never thought depression would happen to me. But this financial struggle and feeling that you’re losing this legacy that your grandfather started and it just really played a lot with my mind.” Telehealth, offering services to people over the phone, is one way farmers can be supported. Peer support, such as educating community members about the signs that someone may be struggling so they can reach out to help and making available access to therapists who have a background in agriculture, can also help farmers who are struggling. Therapist Megan Wolf, who grew up on a farm, says, “I definitely think having a farming background helps build rapport immediately. Right? You don’t have to explain it to me, because I get it.”
Learn more about suicide prevention in agriculture