Suicide Awareness & Prevention

Below you will find more information about suicide awareness and prevention resources located in Wake County, NC and beyond. 

Please scroll down to the bottom of the page to locate Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, and Vietnamese translations.

Signs of Suicide (SOS) Prevention Program at FVHS

Student Services teams with the Health & Physical Education department to teach the SOS Signs of Suicide® Prevention Program to all 9th graders during Health & Physical Education classes as a part of the NC Essential Standards (Mental and Emotional Health). SOS is an award-winning, nationally recognized program designed for middle and high school-age students. The program teaches students how to identify the symptoms of depression and suicidality in themselves or their friends, and encourages help-seeking through the use of the ACT®technique (Acknowledge, Care, Tell). 

The SOS High School Program is the only school-based suicide prevention program listed on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices that addresses suicide risk and depression, while reducing suicide attempts. SOS is an approved WCPSS program and each high school is required to teach this program to 9th grade students as well as provide a refresher of the program to 12th grade students. 

 SOS aims:

• To help students understand that depression is a treatable illness.

• To explain that suicide is a preventable tragedy that often occurs as a result of untreated depression.

• To train students in how to identify serious depression and potential suicidal thoughts in a friend.

• To impress upon teens that they can help themselves or a friend by taking the simple step of talking to a responsible adult about their concerns.