Wellness & Well-being Highlights October 20th
Wellness & Well-being Highlights
for the
Week of October 20, 2025
This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog provides us look at the latest warnings regarding alcohol and dementia—to how the human mind functions past midnight—to how cuts in DC are negatively impacting vulnerable populations (i.e., special needs students, Women Vets, etc.).
This week I would like to share with you a highlight from the national LOSS conference I attended in Omaha, NE this past Mon thru Wed. This conference was held for suicide loss survivors. It focused on what I refer to as the 3rd leg of the suicide triangle: Suicide Postvention (the other 2 legs being Prevention and Intervention). The keynote speaker was Dr Frank Campbell. I consider him a friend and mentor. He is one of the foremost researchers in the field of suicide postvention. How/Why? Frank lost a childhood friend to suicide when he was 12 yo. Like many of us who have lost a loved one to suicide, in the aftermath, he felt there was a dearth of resources and support during his grieving process. It was via his service and research that he discovered it took ~4.5 years for loss survivors to reach out for assistance. Meanwhile, during this time many survivors are left behind to suffer in silence. In 1997, he developed an active postvention model and coined the term LOSS: Local Outreach for Suicide Survivors. In Baton Rouge, he launched the first LOSS Team in 1998.[1] Since then, research reveals that a program like LOSS can bring the time a survivor reaches out for help down to <2 months. In my opinion, this is key when it comes to preventing additional suicides due to generational impact on families and friends. Thus, the saying: Postvention is Prevention.
As I have noted in the past, Postvention does not receive the funding and/or attention that Prevention or Intervention have garnered on the international and national stages. Despite that, we cannot and will not impact the rise of suicides in this country unless and until we connect the 3 legs of the Suicide Triangle. To do so would mean making an effort to, at the very least, consider how to establish a LOSS Team in Missouri. Just 2 months ago, our construction industry experienced at least 2 suicide deaths that I know of. In both cases, I received calls asking “What to do next?” We need to step back and plan for these incidents so that when the next one happens we are not scrambling for resources in the midst of a full-blown crisis! In the famous words of Hillel, “If not now, when?”
Please check out the rest of this week’s blog: https://moworksinitiative.org/category/worker-wellness-news/
Source [1] https://www.lossteam.com/founder-dr-frank-campbell
US Mental Health Map: Best vs Worst
Counselor’s OUD Recovery Story
Dementia: No Amount of Alcohol
Workplace Wellness & Flexibility
Paralyzed NLRB: CA Takes action
CDC’s Union Blasts HHS Layoffs
Trump / Unions / Media Surveillance
Media Rejecting Pentagon’s Rules
Shutdown Targets Vulnerable Populations
UK Construction Worker Health Claims Up
Canadian Employees Refuse US Travel
End of College; Rise of Skills
One College’s Response: Homeless Students
Medical Costs: 80% in US Unprepared
Upcoming webinars, etc.:
SUD & MH Resilience Strategies (10/22)
2025 Gun Policy Survey (11/11)
Suicide Postvention for MH Pros
Caring Contacts for Suicide Prevention
Apply: BIA-MO Student Scholarships
NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional. Please contact jgaal@moworks.org with related questions or comments.
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