Depressed/possible suicidal sister

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by ZTAOnlytheBest

Thanks everyone. I just didn't know if I should be super cautious about it or just do something.

Let the Powers that Be sort out whether it's a serious problem or not. If it's not serious, she spent a couple of hours talking to someone who is concerned about her. No harm done. She might be pissed, but that's life. If it's serious, they can get her the help she needs.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by KDCat

She might be pissed, but that's life. If it's serious, they can get her the help she needs.

Hopefully she won't be so pissed that she quits her sorority and shuts herself off from people who are trying to help her.

I know it's easy to say "call campus health services" or "call campus police" but these groups can be of widely varying effectiveness, to say the least. Not to mention if there's a religious component involved in the school.

Get her help and a listening ear ASAP, yes, but before we make blanket statements that doing one of the above will solve the problem, we really should know more about what they consist of at the OP's institution.

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Hopefully she won't be so pissed that she quits her sorority and shuts herself off from people who are trying to help her.

I know it's easy to say "call campus health services" or "call campus police" but these groups can be of widely varying effectiveness, to say the least. Not to mention if there's a religious component involved in the school.

Get her help and a listening ear ASAP, yes, but before we make blanket statements that doing one of the above will solve the problem, we really should know more about what they consist of at the OP's institution.

Fair enough. It's a good idea to figure out what the most effective solution is at your campus.

I agree with the "hope she doesn't quit." You can only put opportunities for help in front of people. You can't make them take them.

At the same time, this isn't a problem that I think an individual sister or even several sisters should try to take on by themselves. It's too much. If this person is suicidal, she needs professional help. (Which you totally aren't saying, but I'm just trying to be clear for OP.)

[FleurGirl]

Originally Posted by 33girl

Hopefully she won't be so pissed that she quits her sorority and shuts herself off from people who are trying to help her.

I know it's easy to say "call campus health services" or "call campus police" but these groups can be of widely varying effectiveness, to say the least. Not to mention if there's a religious component involved in the school.

Get her help and a listening ear ASAP, yes, but before we make blanket statements that doing one of the above will solve the problem, we really should know more about what they consist of at the OP's institution.

Better alive and pissed off than the alternative. Most universities have some kind of helpline you can call if you're concerned about yourself or someone else possibly committing self harm. This really isn't a situation where you can take it slow and "see how it goes" though. If there's reasonable cause to be concerned about her well-being, then it's time to get a professional involved. I don't know the exact situation, but I DO know that there's probably not an 18-22 year old member of the house who's qualified to handle the situation properly.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by KDCat

At the same time, this isn't a problem that I think an individual sister or even several sisters should try to take on by themselves. It's too much. If this person is suicidal, she needs professional help. (Which you totally aren't saying, but I'm just trying to be clear for OP.)

Originally Posted by FleurGirl

I don't know the exact situation, but I DO know that there's probably not an 18-22 year old member of the house who's qualified to handle the situation properly.

Oh, I completely concur. I've seen sisters try to do it (the girl wasn't suicidal, she just had LOTS of issues) and it ended up taking a huge toll on them. Just saying that you need to contact the source that will do the most help at YOUR institution, and if your institution doesn't have one, go to the community. If I'd been in that situation and someone called Pubic Safety on me, I probably wouldn't have been able to stop laughing at the concept of them providing any sort of mental or physical help. (Then again, I guess that might have made me not suicidal anymore if I laughed that much.)