[Boston Herald] Suicide prevention efforts in the Bay State are targeting male-dominated industries like construction in an attempt to slow skyrocketing rates among middle-aged men -- a troubling trend highlighted by the recent death of 52-year-old Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell, advocates say.Friends and family of the prolific rock singer were stunned when he was found dead last week in a Detroit hotel room, which the medical examiner determined was a suicide.
"When someone famous kills himself, just like when someone famous dies of a heroin overdose, people say, ’Wow, that’s amazing.’ People don’t realize how enormous of a problem suicide is for middle-aged men in America and in Massachusetts," said Franklin Cook, director of community outreach for MassMen.org, which provides prevention resources to men struggling with suicidal thoughts.
The suicide rate in Massachusetts rose by 40 percent between 2004 and 2014, due in large part to the number of middle-aged men taking their lives.
Men 35-64 accounted for 44 percent of the total number of Bay State suicides in 2014. That toll rises to 67 percent for men 25-64.
"The increased numbers of fatalities is being driven by men in their middle years," Cook said.
MassMen, funded by the Department of Health, aims to tackle that issue by increasing education among those who work in construction -- the industry with the second-highest rate of suicide at 53.3 per 100,000 workers, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The farming, fishing and forestry industry had the highest rate.
MassMen is partnering with the local chapter of the Construction Financial Management Association to host a summit for construction officials June 20 in Needham, which Cook said will likely draw at least 100 people.
The construction business is so vulnerable to suicide for several reasons, one being the "tough guy" mentality that discourages help-seeking, according to Cal Beyer, a member of the Construction Financial Management Association, who has helped organize similar summits across the country.
"It’s a huge issue in the construction space, but for years it had not been quantified," Beyer said. "The references were always vague: the old school ’pull yourself up by your bootstraps, buck up, princess’ attitude. This is the way this is ingrained."
That is compounded by the irregular hours, separation from family, and physical and mental pressure of manual labor.
There is also heightened use of opioids and other illicit substances in the field, fueled by the frequency of soft-tissue injury and the emotional strain of isolation. Drug addiction only adds to the risk of suicide, Beyer said.
But approaching the epidemic of middle-aged male suicide by industry is one way to help reduce stigma, which is the first step.
"If we can get people to talk about this," Beyer said, "we can find solutions."