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Padlet Slide #1 Professional Perspective: 

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Padlet Slide #1 Professional Perspective: 

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I graduated from the University of North Texas in December of 2019 and I have been teaching ever since. This upcoming August I will be embarking on my third year of teaching 7th grade English. I decided to pursue my masters degree because I had many students during my first year of teaching go through some tough personal experiences, and I did not know how to best help and respond to them. My hope through this program is that I will be better equipped to help students during any season in their lives.

While looking through the topics, there were many that I could easily apply to school counseling. I chose this topic because I know it is one I will encounter, and I would like to be more than prepared for that moment. As a teacher, I deal with this, but once I refer a student, It is out of my hands. This lagal guide will be geared towards teachers and administrators. This could be part of a training or simply available for reference.

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In order to further my understanding on the topic, I interviewed Julie Rose. Rose is a Licensed Professional Counselor who is currently working as a school counselor at Timber Ridge Elementary School located in Killeen, Texas.

One of the first things we discussed was how important this topic is in our field of work. Rose explained that dealing with suicidal students is a ‘when’ not ‘if’ situation. It is something all school counselors will encounter at some point and it is imperative that they are prepared. It is also important because if a counselor responds poorly in a situation like this, they may be at risk for losing their license. There is a correct and proper way to handle it, and we as counselors owe it to the student to be ready (J. Rose, personal communication, July 19, 2022).

The next thing we discussed was the best practices related to this topic. Rose explained that it is important to be up to date on your districts expectations on how to proceed with a suicidal studnet. The specific process may vary from district to district and the counselor needs to be aware.The next practice Rose discussed was making sure you attend the training provided, and if the district does not have it, you can find it somewhere. Rose explained that this topic is one that she is seemingly over prepared for. She recommends seeking training far beyond what is required of you. If you end up in a tough situation, you would much rather be over prepared than the latter (J. Rose, personal communication, July 19, 2022). In conclusion, know your district protocol, attend required training, and educate yourself outside of what is required.

The last thing Rose and I discussed was emerging issues related to the topic. Rose brought up an issue that had not yet come to my mind. She explained that school counselors and teachers can be prepared to the fullest extent, but if we are not concerned about educators' mental health, are we really fully equipped to assist students? This is something that has really come to light over the past few years. The pandemic has left a lasting impact on many children and adults, and much of that is yet to be explored. There needs to be programs in place that are supporting our teachers and staff so they can turn around and be the best they can for their students (J. Rose, personal communication, July 19, 2022).

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Padlet Slide #3 Professional Association: 

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Padlet Slide #3 Professional Association: 

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Suicide Prevention and Mental Health During COVID-19-

The American School Counselor Association has hundreds if not thousands of trainings, webinars, and podcasts available. There are many resources for the topic of suicide in students, but this specific webinar is relevant to the current state of the world. Mental health took a toll after COVID hit and counselors should be taking a second glance at their approach and ensuring it is still effective. This webinar will assist counselors in understanding the changes, identifying suicide prevention resources, and building their resource bank on mental health (Marshall, 2021).

Reference:

Marshall, D. (2021). Suicide Prevention and Mental Health During COVID-19 [Webinar].  American School Counselor Association. https://videos.schoolcounselor.org/suicide-prevention-and-mental-health-during-covid-19

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Suicide Prevention and Mental Health During COVID-19

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Learn about different experiences during COVID-19 that had an impact on mental health, including...

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Preventing Suicide Among Young Children: 5 Takeaways for Educators

Focuses on mental health in young children

Recognizes the importance of the mental health crisis

Young children can experience suicidal thoughts

Identifies that suicide prevention in children is different than adults

Schools are short on mental health professionals

It is time to make this a priority

Reference:

Gans, A. (2022, April 5). Preventing Suicide Among Young Children: 5 Takeaways for Educators: Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/preventing-suicide-among-young-children-5-takeaways-for-educators/2022/04

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The national mental health crisis has impacted students of all ages, yet efforts to address at least one specific mental health issue affecting those of school age-suicide-have largely focused on high schoolers. The mental health issues of a schools' most vulnerable population, its youngest students, are often overlooked in this area.

Reporters and experts shined a much-needed spotlight on that group during an Education Week online summit last week broadly focused on the growing mental health needs of students and staff in the nation's schools.

Schools in 22 states are mandated to have suicide-prevention policies, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. These often entail annual staff trainings on suicide prevention and how to have suicide-related conversations with high school students. While suicide risk and ideation is higher in teenagers, data from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child health in the country, show that over 8 percent of 9- and 10-year-olds had previously had suicidal thoughts, and more than 1 percent had attempted suicide, indicating that millions of younger students need these resources, too.

Here are five takeaways for educators from last week's online discussion:

Young kids can experience suicidal thoughts

Contrary to popular belief, kids under 10 are capable of wanting to die and can conceive of death or suicide.

"[Kids as young as 5] understand killing themselves better than the word suicide," said John Ackerman, a child clinical psychologist and the suicide prevention coordinator at the Center for Suicide Prevention and Research at Nationwide Children's Hospital. But they may not grasp the finality of death. "Often they know that they would be dead, but they don't understand the permanence of that in the same way. They don't understand that doesn't mean they're coming back or they're not having conversations with loved ones," he added.

That is why Ackerman said it is important that educators and those in the mental health field have developmentally appropriate conversations with young children when they feel deep emotional stress.

"Those conversations should be direct, concrete, and done in a way that's really compassionate and curious, rather than sort of born out of fear or anger or pushing them away and picking up a punishing approach," Ackerman said.

Signs of mental health struggles may be harder to recognize in young children

Part of the problem, said Ackerman, is that warning signs of serious mental health issues, suicide risk, and self-harm risk can look different in younger children than in older children.

Ackerman said younger kids often possess less-developed language skills and less experience in regulating more-intense emotions. They can communicate and manage stress and trauma in ways that look different than for students with more-developed skills.

"A lot of times they're left with intense feelings that they're not able to communicate, or potentially the parts of the brain that do a good job of helping manage and find out solutions on how to deal with those don't have as much practice," he said.

Younger children may have different stressors than adolescents

Younger children may also be triggered by different stressors than older kids, because they tend to spend more time with adults than older children do.

"Young kids are stuck in this very difficult spot of having the people that they turn to for safety also be a major source of stress," Ackerman said.

"A lot of things you see in terms of risk for self-harm is around family conflict and exposure to things like community violence, domestic violence, things that are more interpersonally related," he added. "And that can be very stressful for a young child who's reliant on caregivers and parents."

Supportive adults can help

Ackerman said having supportive adults in their lives significantly reduces a child's suicide risk by making them feel more valued and connected to their school, home environment, or extracurricular activity. "That may not feel like a suicide-prevention program, but [these outside activities] really do act in that way," Ackerman said.

Younger children may prefer to speak with adults in their lives who are not their teachers or counselors, he added. Other school staff including bus drivers, sports coaches, and cafeteria staffers can also benefit from mental health awareness and assisted suicide prevention training.

School psychologists and counselors are in short supply

The pandemic has stoked demand for school counselors and psychologists by students. Nine in 10 teachers and school and district leaders surveyed by the EdWeek Research Center said that the percentage of students seeking school-based mental health services in their communities has increased since the fall of 2019.

Millions of students across the K-12 spectrum are feeling the effects of these shortages. Nearly 2 in 5 districts, which represent 5.4 million students, didn't have any counselors during the first year of the pandemic, according to an Education Week analysis.

During the same period, only 8 percent of districts in the United States met the recommended ratio of 1 school psychologist to 500 students, and 14 percent of districts met the recommended ratio of 1 school counselor to 250 students, a federal study showed.

Despite the influx of federal money going to mental health resources through programs like the American Rescue Plan Act last year, Ackerman said that, as a country, the United States is "definitely far behind the curve" in its resources for young children.

"We shouldn't be this far behind, but we are," Ackerman said. "And so the only thing we can do now is invest in learning what we can do to address that gap."

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Preventing Suicide Among Young Children: 5 Takeaways for Educators

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It's a myth that young children are incapable of having suicidal thoughts, said experts at an online forum on mental health in schools.

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Suicide Is Rising Among Younger Students. Here’s How Schools Can Prevent Tragedy

Suicide Is Rising Among Younger Students. Here’s How Schools Can Prevent Tragedy

Explains the importance of social emotional education

Identifies that children can have suicidal thoughts

Suicide prevention exists in teen but not children

Younger children may not understand the permanence of suicide

Younger children might be more impulsive

The pandemic has heightened the need for a boost in mental health training

It is time for adults to talk about the risks

Reference:

Sparks, S. (2022, March 1). Suicide Is Rising Among Younger Students. Here’s How Schools Can Prevent Tragedy. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/suicide-is-rising-among-younger-students-heres-how-schools-can-prevent-tragedy/2022/03

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If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.
Teachers use a curriculum built around the dog to lead 5th graders though discussions of mental health, signs that they may have unhealthy feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and ways that they can both self-calm and find help for themselves or friends.

"A lot of adults view elementary school-aged kids as incapable of experiencing the level of emotional distress that could lead someone to consider suicide, but we know very objectively that's not true," said John Ackerman, a clinical pediatric psychologist and the suicide-prevention coordinator with the Center for Suicide Prevention and Research at Nationwide Children's Hospital.

Suicidal behavior among children can look significantly different from that among adolescents.

"Research shows now that young kids, as young as 5 or 6, understand that killing oneself leads to death, but they don't always understand the permanence of that," Ackerman said. "We know that young kids absolutely can be in deep, emotional pain. They can have a desire to die but not always fully understand the implications of that. So their behavior can be a lot more impulsive; moving from thought to action happens more swiftly."

Children with attention deficits or depression had a higher risk of suicide, but the National Institute of Mental Health found less than a third of children who die by suicide had a previously diagnosed mental illness. By contrast, about 40 percent of the children had family instability such as divorce, parent depression, or substance abuse, and a third of the children had experienced school disruptions-both problems that have worsened during the pandemic.

"Along with school shutdowns, ... the pandemic disrupted [parents'] livelihood, employment, and that family stability that younger children really need in their lives," said Ellyson Stout, the director of the Education Development Center's Suicide Prevention Resource Center. "So, you know, I think there's a lot of added stressors for younger populations."

Those stressors have heightened both the need and impetus to boost mental health supports and training for children and preadolescents, who historically have fewer school-based mental health supports than students in high schools. For example, in the first eight months of the pandemic alone, the CDC found the share of mental health emergencies-including suicide attempts, self-harm, and serious panic or depressive episodes-jumped by about a quarter for children 5 to 11 and nearly a third for those 12 to 17.

Communities of color and low-income communities have experienced disproportionate illness and financial instability during the pandemic and historically have had less access to mental health support. Suicides among children of color have risen disproportionately quickly both before and during the pandemic, prompting congressional concern. Compared to teenagers, preteens and younger children who die by suicide are more likely to be Black or male.

Averting early mental health issues

Nine states have enacted new suicide-prevention legislation involving schools since 2019, according to the Education Commission of the States, but only a few apply to younger children. Mississippi now requires all elementary and middle school teachers to receive training in children's mental health every two years, while Illinois, Washington, and Wisconsin require public schools to include contact information for suicide prevention on all student-identification cards. Several states have also moved to allow students to take excused mental health days.

"I do think early-childhood screenings should be asking about self-harm and suicide," said Deanna Barch, a professor and the chair of psychological and brain sciences at Washington University. "Asking can reveal the need for intervention and supports for a child with such thoughts even when they might not appear to be clinically depressed."

"Not surprisingly because of their age, children tend to be less able to verbalize thoughts of not wanting to be alive," Ackerman said. "A lot of times, younger kids think they're going crazy. It's a source of shame for them that they've even had [a suicidal] thought. They don't understand what's going on and so they hide this."

Children experiencing suicidal ideation may talk about "not wanting to be around anymore" or "going away and not coming back" rather than explicitly mentioning hurting or killing themselves, he said. Even more often, they may say nothing at all but instead show themes of violence or death in play or experience somatic behaviors like anxiety and irritability, stomachaches, and headaches.

"In a school setting, and certainly in an elementary school setting, mental health distress or stress can come out in certain behavioral issues in those students," Stout said. "And we know from the evidence that that kind of acting out often receives some more-punitive response if the young person is a person of color."

Moreover, Stout noted that many teachers have experienced trauma, stress, and burnout in the last few years and "teachers who also have experienced trauma, I'm not sure they're as equipped to bring a trauma-informed lens to their work with kids. ... So for kids acting out, the adults in the school may not be prepared to respond as constructively as they need to."

Experts say adults need to talk about mental health risks

If conversations are held in a developmentally appropriate and sensitive way, "it's not distressing for children to have an adult ask about [suicide], but typically adults avoid this topic. So if an adult is willing to be a trusted support, then it allows children to not hide these thoughts," Ackerman said.

That's why, in addition to providing suicide-prevention curriculum to elementary and middle school students, the Wolcott district trained all staff, from teachers and paraprofessionals to bus drivers and custodians, on how to recognize signs of depression and suicidal ideation among children and ensure every student has a "trusted adult" at school listed in case of emotional distress.

"It's a gatekeeper program. If a student comes up and has suicidal ideation or is talking about self-harm, [staff] are not really doing the counseling, but it's for the staff to recognize some of the language and the concerns and then refer to a counselor or a school psychologist," said Kevin Hollis of the Wolcott public schools.

"You should train anybody that kids have access to, because kids don't necessarily go to a teacher," Hollis said. "They may feel more comfortable and have a relationship with a custodian or somebody in the cafeteria or the bus driver."

In a nationally representative survey of school and district leaders conducted in January and February, 1 in 4 told the EdWeek Research Center that their districts have begun or expanded suicide-prevention training for staff and teachers since the start of the pandemic.

Studies do show that one suicide can raise the risk of other suicides among children and teenagers who knew or identified with the person in the community. Experts say it is important for educators and school leaders to actively respond to the death and give students the chance to grieve and discuss it.

"The fear of [suicide] contagion often causes schools to sort of go silent after there's a suicide death in the community," Stout said. While experts say memorials should be brief and not sensationalize the way a student died, "the best response is to act as you would if a young person had died of a car crash or cancer; allow the collective grieving."

Educators also can take the opportunity to make students aware of how they can get help if they have similar feelings of hopelessness.

"Young people who are in that level of distress usually feel a lot of relief at being able to talk about suicide. So asking, 'Are you thinking about ending your life?' it opens a door to a young person being able to express what they're going through," Stout said. "I think we all intuitively don't want to go there and are worried that we might be introducing the concept, but talking about suicide does not cause suicide."

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Suicide is Rising Among Younger Students. Here's How Schools Can Prevent Tragedy

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If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. Teachers use a curriculum built around the dog to lead 5th graders though discussions of mental health, signs that they may have unhealthy feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and ways that they can both self-calm and find help for themselves or friends.

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Federal Example: The fourteenth amendment of the Constitution (U.S. Const. amend XIV).

https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript

No person shall be deprived of life without due process

Each person will be protected by the law

School counselors should be providing their best services to all students

State Example: The Texas Constitution Article 1 (Tex. Const. art. 1. Sec. 19).

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CN/htm/CN.1.htm

No citizen of the state shall be deprived of life without due course of law

All citizens of the state are protected under the law

Counselors should ensure that students are not deprived of their rights within the school

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Federal Example: CRIME CONTROL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT is located in Title 34, Section 50701 (34 USC § 50701).

http://uscode.house.gov/

Understanding the cause of suicide

Goal is to prevent suicided in the future

Counselors understanding what has caused suicide in the past may lead to a better understanding in the future

State Example: The Texas Education Code explaining educator preparation expectations (Tex. Educ. Code § 38.302).

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/

Establishes a mental health task force

Tracks the number of violent incidents

Suicides rates in the area

The number of state referrals

The number of outside counseling referrals

Understanding all of the items listed above, will help counselors across the state with preventive measures

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Federal Example: Nguyen v. MIT, 96 N.E.3d 128 (2018).

https://www.supremecourt.gov/

Ensure suicide screenings are up to date

Emergency authorization for counselors to share information regarding a suicidal student

Renew health and wellness curriculum

Review state and district protocols

Educate the staff involved in the process

State Example: Pediatrics Cool Care v. Thompson, 262 S.W.3d 328 (TEX. 2022 ).

https://www.txcourts.gov/

Ensure the proper protocol is followed

Follow up with students when deemed appropriate

If a student requests and outside referral, counselors may provide it to the parents

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Federal Example: The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by ESSA (20 U.S.C. § 6692).

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/landing.jhtml?src=pn

Schools will provide effective school leaders

School leaders will be trained in all aspects of their job

Counselors should be prepared to assist students dealing with suicidal thoughts

State Example: Suicide Prevention Training (19 TAC §153.1013).

https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.viewtac

All school districts will provide suicide prevention training annually

This will be provided to all employed educators

Maintain documentation of staff participation

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Padlet Slide #10 Local Administrative Law:

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Padlet Slide #10 Local Administrative Law:

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Health Care Services (37 TAC §351.1)-

The Texas Administrative Code clearly states that schools should refer high risk students to a mental health professional. This further specifies that it must be done within 24 of classifying the student as high risk for suicidal behavior.

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(a) Medical Referral. If a staff member believes any resident to be in need of immediate medical attention or if a resident requests treatment, the resident shall be referred for medical services. (b) Medical Release. Documentation of consent for medical treatment received in accordance with Texas Family Code Section 32.001, shall be maintained in applicable resident files. (c) Medication. In accordance with Texas Human Resources Code Section 142.005, the juvenile board shall adopt a policy concerning the administration of medication to residents. The policy shall include which facility employees are authorized to administer medication to residents. (d) Suicidal Youth. (1) Prevention Plan. (A) Each facility shall have a written suicide prevention plan developed in consultation with a mental health professional that addresses the following components: (i) definitions of high risk and moderate risk suicidal behavior; (ii) screening methodology to assess a resident's risk of suicide upon admission and upon any indication a resident previously screened may now be at moderate or high risk for suicidal behavior; (iii) communication among facility staff, mental health professionals, the resident, and the resident's parent or guardian including communication regarding observations or indications a resident previously screened may now be at moderate or high risk for suicidal behavior; (iv) level of supervision for residents assigned to moderate or high risk for suicidal behavior; (v) policy and procedure for intervening in suicide attempts; (vi) reporting of resident suicides and attempted suicides in accordance with any applicable state law, administrative standard, or local policy or ordinance; (vii) training on the contents and implementation of the suicide prevention plan; (viii) housing of residents assigned to moderate or high risk of suicidal behavior including the removal from the resident's presence any dangerous objects; and (ix) mortality reviews designed to review the facility's compliance and possible needed revisions to the suicide prevention plan following a resident's suicide. (B) All short-term juvenile detention officers shall be trained annually in the implementation of the suicide prevention plan. (C) Review. (i) The suicide prevention plan shall be reviewed on an annual basis in consultation with a mental health professional. (ii) The suicide prevention plan shall be included in the facility administrator's review of the facility's policies and procedures in accordance with §351.2(d)(1) of this chapter. (2) Level of Supervision. (A) Moderate Risk for Suicidal Behavior. During non-program hours, or any time a resident classified as a moderate risk for suicidal behavior is confined or restricted from the general population: (i) The resident shall be visually checked by a short-term juvenile detention officer at staggered intervals not to exceed every 10 minutes. (ii) The short-term juvenile detention officer shall document each visual observation made with the time of the observation and a general description of the resident's behavior. (B) High Risk for Suicidal Behavior. (i) Supervision. During non-program hours, or any time a resident classified as high risk for suicidal behavior is confined or restricted from the general population: (I) the resident shall be under the continuous, uninterrupted visual supervision of a short-term juvenile detention officer; and (II) the short-term juvenile detention officer shall document physical observations of a high risk resident at staggered intervals of no less than every 30 minutes. (ii) Required Documentation. The following documentation shall be maintained for high-risk residents and shall be posted where it is immediately accessible to the short-term juvenile detention officer providing supervision to the high risk resident: (I) the date and time the resident was classified as high risk; (II) who classified the resident as high risk; (III) a description of the resident's behavior that caused the resident's classification as high risk; (IV) who has been assigned to supervise the resident; (V) the location for the resident's supervision; (VI) the date and time the resident was reclassified as no longer being high risk; and (VII) the name of the mental health professional who reclassified the resident as no longer being high risk. (C) A short-term juvenile detention officer assigned to work in a facility's primary control room may not provide supervision under paragraph (2)(A) or (2)(B) of this subsection. (D) Video and audio monitoring devices shall not substitute for supervision by a short-term juvenile detention officer under paragraph 2(A) or (2)(B) of this subsection. (3) Mental Health Referral. (A) The facility shall refer a resident classified as exhibiting a high risk for suicidal behavior to a mental health professional as defined by §351.1(10)(A), (B), (E), (F) and (G) of this chapter within 24 hours from the time the resident is classified as a high risk for suicidal behavior. (B) The facility shall maintain written documentation that the referral under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph was made. The documentation shall include: (i) who notified the mental health professional or mental health agency; (ii) the date and time of the notification; (iii) the method of notification; and (iv) a brief description of the response provided by the mental health professional or mental health agency. (C) Prior to being removed from a high risk for suicidal behavior designation/classification, a mental health professional as defined by section §351.1(10)(A) (B) (E) (F) and (G) of this chapter shall conduct an assessment of the resident's suicide risk and issue a written recommendation which addresses the following: (i) the need to re-classify the resident's suicide risk level; (ii) the need for intervention strategies and/or services during the resident's period of incarceration within the facility; and (iii) the need for additional assessment(s). (D) The mental health professional's written recommendation shall be maintained in the resident's record. (E) Only the facility administrator or their designee may remove a resident from being designated/classified as being a high risk for suicidal behavior paragraph (2)(B) of this section.

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(a) Medical Referral. If a staff member believes any resident to be in need of immediate medical attention or if a resident requests treatment, the resident shall be referred for medical services. (b) Medical Release. Documentation of consent for medical treatment received in accordance with Texas Family Code Section 32.001, shall be maintained in applicable resident files.

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ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors states in section A.9. that school counselors should, “recognize the level of suicide risk (e.g., low, medium, high) is difficult to accurately quantify. If required to use a risk assessment, it must be completed with the realization that it is an information-gathering tool and only one element in the risk-assessment process. When reporting risk-assessment results to parents/guardians, school counselors do not negate the risk of harm to self even if the assessment reveals a low risk, as students may minimize risk to avoid further scrutiny and/or parental/guardian notification. The purpose of reporting any risk-assessment results to parents/guardians is to underscore the need for parents/guardians to act, not to report a judgment of risk” (ASCA, 2016). School counselors should be assessing the entirety of the situation and going beyond what the risk assessment concludes. It is the duty of the counselor to advocate for action and help, not to simply share information.

Reference:

American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/f041cbd0-7004-47a5-ba01-3a5d657c6743/Ethical-Standards.pdf

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Padlet Slide #12 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards: 

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Padlet Slide #12 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards: 

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I chose this topic because I know it is something that I will encounter in my career as a school counselor. I had very little knowledge of the legal standards pertaining to suicide in students. I feel better prepared moving forward, and I know this is something that I will be trained in even further. I feel like I will be prepared once I accept my first counseling position.

My goal in education is to be an advocate for my students. The laws set for counselors dealing with suicidal students will force me to be exactly that. I am not looking forward to having to deal with this issue, but I rest assured that the legal and ethical requirements will hold me accountable.

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Padlet Slide #13 Bulleted list of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance:

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Padlet Slide #13 Bulleted list of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance:

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Attend required training- and pay special attention!

Attend training beyond what is required- there is a plethora of resources available!

Use the resources provided when assessing a student, but dig deeper than that.

Document everything that takes place in your office.

Be prepared for this situation. It is not ‘if’ but ‘when’.

Educate yourself on the ASCA Ethical Standards. Take some time to read through them!

Educate yourself on the state and district level procedures when dealing with a suicidal student.

Make your mental health important. You can't be the best counselor unless you are helping yourself.