Summary

This article summarizes the final part of a series based on a lecture by Assistant Professor Alexis May (Wesleyan University), focusing on preventing the worst outcomes for young people at risk of suicide. The lecture highlights that long-term support frameworks—particularly Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)—play an essential role not because teachers must become experts, but because they must recognize when a student needs such structured, long-term help. DBT emphasizes acceptance and change, teaches mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness, and involves both individual and group components.

For adolescents, suicide risk is unique: the window between suicidal thoughts and actions can be significantly shorter than in adults. This makes school settings critical. Teachers are encouraged to notice subtle behavioral changes, ask directly about suicidal thoughts, listen to friends who express concerns, and connect students to resources such as counselors, specialists, or crisis lines.

The lecture also underscores the value of secondary prevention through dialogue—sharing accurate knowledge about suicide with two or three people around you. Projects like “Live Through This,” which share stories of suicide attempt survivors, help reduce stigma and deliver the message that no one is alone.

Ultimately, teachers do not need to become lighthouses that solve everything. They are “companions walking through the fog,” acknowledging students’ pain without judgment, opening the door rather than closing it, connecting with professionals, and holding hope on behalf of students until they regain it. The article ends by asking teachers to reflect on a crucial question: “Am I an adult whom someone would feel safe talking to when they’re struggling?” This question becomes the foundation of building trust and creating safer school communities.

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This marks the final installment of the section on preventing worst-case scenarios. As before, the content follows the lecture by Assistant Professor Alexis May of Wesleyan University.

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Section 3: What Teachers Can Do — Keeping a Long-Term Perspective

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

As a long-term treatment framework, the lecture introduces Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) in detail. DBT was developed in the 1990s by Dr. Marsha Linehan as a relatively long-term psychotherapy (typically 6 months to 1 year). It was designed for individuals with borderline personality disorder who struggle with chronic suicidal ideation and self-harm. DBT has the following characteristics:

• The goal is not simply “to stop suicide” but “to build a life worth living together.”
• The core concept is “dialectics”: valuing both acceptance and change, two seemingly opposing ideas, at the same time.
• Clients learn four skill areas systematically: mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance, and emotional regulation.
• The program consists of multiple components: individual therapy, a skills-training group, crisis coaching, and a therapist consultation team.
• For adolescent clients, family therapy may also be integrated.

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Teachers Do Not Need to Become DBT Experts

It is admittedly complex. My own understanding is imperfect. But teachers do not need to become DBT specialists. What is important is having the sensitivity to think:

“This student’s pain may require long-term support within such specialized frameworks.”

The lecture also introduces other approaches—CAMS and Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Suicide Prevention (BCBT)—which directly target suicidal ideation and behavior themselves, not merely psychiatric diagnoses. This reflects a shift toward treating suicide directly as the focus of intervention.

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Characteristics of Suicide Among Younger Generations and the Role of Schools

The lecture repeatedly stresses detailed insights into adolescents and young adults. For this age group, the following perspectives are emphasized:

• Adolescent health programs should include indicators related to suicidal ideation.
• School-wide suicide prevention curricula represent primary prevention. Rather than targeting only high-risk students, these curricula aim at the entire school population, including students with no signs of distress yet. This broad approach builds resilience and protective factors.
• DBT, safety planning, and CAMS can all be applied to adolescents, often involving their families. For example, in DBT skills groups (about two hours weekly), family members may join teenagers or young adults to learn the same skills together.
• Crisis-response lines—hotlines, text lines—must be available not only to youth experiencing suicidal thoughts but also to their friends and families.

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Notice Small Changes

For teachers, one particularly crucial point is this:

Young people move from suicidal ideation to action more quickly than adults. Their risk is higher.

Therefore:

• Notice small day-to-day changes
• Do not fear asking directly about suicide
• Listen not only to the student but also to concerned friends
• Think proactively about connecting students to resources (counselors, institutions, crisis lines)

These behaviors can be directly life-saving.

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Dialogue and Storytelling as “Secondary Prevention”

The lecture also recommends sharing what you’ve learned with just two or three people around you. This simple act helps spread accurate knowledge throughout society.

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“Live Through This”

The lecture introduces “Live Through This,” a project launched by Dese’Rae L. Stage, which shares stories from suicide attempt survivors (in English).

When survivors’ real voices are made public:

• Stigma toward suicide softens
• The message “You are not alone” and “There is a tomorrow” reaches those currently suffering
• Clinicians and learners gain an invaluable educational resource

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Secondary Prevention as “Sharing Knowledge”

For young teachers, this can mean:

• Telling colleagues or younger peers that “It’s okay to ask about suicide—and asking can save a life.”
• Creating class or grade-level opportunities to talk about emotions and help-seeking.
• Being an adult who can say “I’m struggling” when needed.

These are concrete forms of secondary prevention.

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Conclusion: Teachers Are Not Lighthouses—They Are Companions Walking Through the Fog

According to the lecture’s metaphor, suicide prevention is like helping someone who has lost their way in the fog while searching for a distant lighthouse.

• Asking “Are you thinking about suicide?” is like saying, “I see that you’re in the fog,” and handing them a compass.
• A safety plan is a pre-made evacuation route for storms.
• Treatments like DBT are training in the navigation skills needed to cross stormy emotional seas.

Young teachers must remember: You do not need to be a perfect lighthouse.

Instead, the teacher envisioned in the lecture is someone who:

• Recognizes a child’s “pain” not as a weakness but simply as pain
• Opens the door by saying, “It must have hurt that much,” rather than shutting it with “You must not think that way”
• Becomes a connection hub linking students with professionals and systems
• Holds onto hope on behalf of a student who cannot yet hold it themselves

Being a “hub” is the key.

This article is not asking teachers to become doctors or therapists. Rather, with the knowledge and frameworks from Assistant Professor May’s lecture, teachers can shift from “adults who are too scared to act” to “adults who listen, ask, connect, and hold hope.”

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Finally

The lecture ends with a question for teachers:

“Am I an adult whom someone would feel safe talking to when they’re struggling?”

This is the heart of trust-building.
Holding this question close, even small actions in daily practice can become beams of light.

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