Ashtabula County's suicide rate ranks in top 10 for Ohio

Sept. 14--ASHTABULA TOWNSHIP -- Mental health professionals, suicide survivors and area runners gathered Saturday to draw attention to the problem of suicide in Ashtabula County.

Ashtabula County ranks in the top 10, out of 88, counties for per capita suicide, said Matt Butler, a clinical supervisor at the Community Counseling Center in Ashtabula Township

He said the average suicide then involves at least five to eight survivors that deal with the pain, guilt and confusion that follow.

A grief support group specifically for survivors of suicide was formed in February and meets 6 p.m. on the first Thursday of every month at the CCC building at the Donahoe Center, Butler said.

The organization was named Heartbeat and provides people with an understanding ear, according to participants.

Joyce Stokes, of Ashtabula, lost a family member to suicide in the mid 2000s and had no where to go. She said she eventually found a support group in Erie, but is happy not to have to make that drive.

"It is helpful to be around people who have experienced the same thing. It (suicide) is in a different category," she said of the challenges facing survivors.

"My son was 15 when he committed suicide (in 2005). My guilt was so bad I needed other people to talk to," said Cheryl Dombroski of Conneaut. Unfortunately she did not find those people until recently.

"I am just dealing with it now," she said of her connection with suicide survivors during the last year.

"Heartbeat has helped me so much," Dombroski said. She said she is also learning she can help others after her experience that included a suicide attempt of her own.

"I tried committing suicide four days after my son, so I can understand both sides," she said.

Dombroski said having other people in a similar situation helps when times get tough. "I know I am not alone," she said.

Heartbeat provides a support group that encourages suicide survivors to embrace the grieving process and learn ways to cope with the loss so they can learn to "live again," Butler said.

___

(c)2014 the Star Beacon (Ashtabula, Ohio)

Visit the Star Beacon (Ashtabula, Ohio) at www.starbeacon.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services