SOS

Signs of Suicide (SOS) Suicide Prevention Program

What is the Signs of Suicide (SOS) Program?

The Soquel Union Elementary School district (SUESD) uses Signs of Suicide (SOS), a suicide prevention program that educates students in grades 7th and 8th about the relationship between suicide and depression. In addition to delivering the program, as a district, we encourage all students to seek help from trusted adults whether they have concerns about themselves or a friend using the ACT® message (SOS, n.d.-a).

Key Message of SOS: ACT

ACKNOWLEDGE that you see signs of depression or suicide in yourself or a friend and that it is serious.
Let your friend know how much you CARE about them and are concerned that they need help.
TELL a trusted adult that you are worried about yourself or a friend.

SOS Program Research

SOS is used in thousands of schools around the country and is the only youth suicide prevention program that has demonstrated an improvement in students' knowledge and adaptive attitudes about suicide risk and depression and a reduction in actual suicide attempts. The SOS Program has shown a reduction in self-reported suicide attempts by 40-64% in randomized control studies (SOS, n.d.-b).

Why is suicide prevention education important?

California Education Code (EC) Section 215, AB 2246 mandates that the Governing Board of any local educational agency (LEA) that serves pupils in grades seven to twelve adopt a policy on pupil suicide prevention, intervention and postvention.

We also teach suicide prevention because suicide is one of the leading causes of death amongst teens. In addition, roughly 10% of U.S. adults struggle with depression-related disorders, and 1 in 5 adolescents experiences an episode of depression before age 18. The counseling team at SUESD wants to do all they can to educate and advocate for their students' physical and mental safety, and the SOS program helps work towards that goal.

Remember, help is always available.

The Crisis Text Line and National Suicide Prevention Lifeline are available 24/7.

Sources:

SOS. (n.d.-a). References | Signs of Suicide - MindWise. Signs of Suicide (SOS). Retrieved March 9, 2022, from https://sossignsofsuicide.org/references
SOS. (n.d.-b). Signs of Suicide Program | Signs of Suicide - MindWise. Signs of Suicide (SOS). Retrieved March 9, 2022, from https://sossignsofsuicide.org/parent/signs-suicide-program

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