Social Media Offers Tools to Improve Mental Health, Reduce Suicide
From: DoD Live - 01/19/2017
By: Robert E. Accordino, MD

Research funded by the DoD Suicide Prevention Office shows how information on
social media can provide an important window into a person's state of mind.
Social media platforms provide potential opportunities for individuals to
connect to support or treatment they need. For instance, social media posts
that convey messages of despair or a pattern of increasing hopelessness over
a period of time could spur outreach from peers, who in turn can help connect
a friend or teammate to commanders and professionals.

Social media platforms could also provide resources to help individuals
understand when they should intervene and how to intervene with a friend. 
Service members and individuals across our society are living in a new
culture of sharing and connectivity. This landscape provides new
opportunities to apply preventive measures and practice timely intervention.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.dodlive.mil/index.php/2017/01/social-media-offers-tools-to-improve-mental-health-reduce-suicide

Link:
Defense Suicide Prevention Office
http://www.dspo.mil

Submitted by John Van Peborgh