Tulsa Sees Rise In Suicides, Mental Health Struggles; Health Experts Offer Resources

In a city of hundreds of thousands of people, many could be struggling, and you might not even know.

"Mental illness affects almost ten percent of the population at any point and time, so a large volume of people," said Stevan Lahr with Children and Family Services. 

Tulsa Police said there have been 98 suicides in the city this year, almost two times the number of murders. Lahr said although there are a lot of factors that can go into suicide rates, there is often a common theme.

"There's a lot of stress, environmental stress, personal stress, you're going to have an increase in mental illness rates and an increase in suicide rates," he said. 

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, there is 1 suicide every 11 minutes in the United States. 

"The most common areas where you're going to have people that will attempt suicide is going to be people with mental illness, so you're talking about depression, bipolar disorder, and then you layer on that substance use disorder and the rates of attempts will go up," Lahr said, but he said the good news is that Tulsa has several mental health resources, "so you have Family and Children Services, you have Laureate, you have Parkside, all that have intakes that you can just walk in and talk to someone."

Lahr said as suicides increase in the United States each year, it reminds him why he and his colleagues do what they do,

"The need is very real and you can make a change not in just one person's life, but in their families and their community whenever you focus on someone's mental health," he said.

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can call or text the statewide Suicide and Crisis lifeline at 988.

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It is our policy to provide resources for anybody considering self-harm when reporting a situation involving suicide or a suicide attempt. 

The Family and Children Services crisis and emotional support helpline, COPES, is available 24/7. 365 days a week at 918-744-4800, with therapists available to talk.

The Mental Health Association of Oklahoma can be reached at 918-535-1213, or 405-943-3700 Monday - Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, or anytime by completing this form. 

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those looking to help someone else. To speak with a certified listener, call 988.

The Veterans Crisis Line and Military Crisis Line at 988 (press 1 when prompted) connect veterans and service members in crisis and their families and friends with qualified, caring U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs responders through a confidential toll-free hotline, online chat, or text.

Crisis Text Line is a texting service for emotional crisis support. To speak with a trained listener, text HELLO to 741741. It is free, available 24/7, and confidential.