The Bene?t News-Fall/Winter 2006

11

HEALTH & FITNESS

O

ut

of the

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A

R

K

N

E

SS

The statistics are startling. Every 18 minutes, someone in the United States

commits suicide … Suicide is the third leading cause of death among teens …

24 percent of high school students have seriously thought about attempting

suicide. For teenager Brandon Garland, anguished thoughts became reality.

I

T IS ESTIMATED THAT 20

million people will suffer from

depression each year, and of those,

30,000 will die by suicide. Many people

don’t realize that depression is a serious

brain illness. Those suffering from

depression may be unable to get them-

selves the help they so desperately need.

Quite often, untreated depression leads

to suicide, which results from complex

interactions between biological, psycho-

logical, social, and environmental factors.

Suicide evokes dif?cult and uncom-

fortable reactions in most people. Too

often, victims are blamed and surviving

friends and family members are stigma-

tized. Consequently, suicide is shrouded

in secrecy. This limits the amount of

available information that is crucial to

suicide prevention.

Eric Garland, a member of National

Mutual Bene?t and a home of?ce

employee, lost his only son, Brandon, to

suicide on February 15, 2006. When he

?rst learned of Brandon’s death, he

vowed there would be no cover-up and

has spoken freely of his family’s harrow-

ing, life-changing experience. Eric is

determined to educate others about

depression and its link to suicide.

Brandon Dean Garland, age 18, had a

huge circle of friends and enjoyed every-

thing and anything that had to do with

country music, hunting, ?shing, snow-

mobiling, and sports. One of Brandon’s

life-long friends described him as “a

really good, outgoing guy—really fun to

be around.”

It was Brandon’s love of sports that

ultimately led to his decline and death.

After receiving two concussions, one in a

snowmobiling accident and another

while playing rugby, Brandon was never

the same guy again. Suddenly he had

concentration and short-term memory

problems. Garland says of his son, “He

went from a smart kid with an A/B aver-

age and a gifted athlete, to someone who

could no longer participate in sports,

and who struggled with his schoolwork.”

Brandon was devastated. He with-

drew from his many friends and started

hanging out with people who weren’t at

all like him. Having moved out of the

ouf

12

The Bene?t News-Fall/Winter 2006

family home, Brandon was adrift. He

refused to take phone calls from anyone.

He didn’t take his meds. He had no job.

He was barely in school. He was drink-

ing. And in the last four to six weeks of

his life, he turned to cocaine.

Being the athlete that he was prior to

the concussions, Brandon had always

despised anything that had to do with

drugs. But in those last weeks of his life,

he turned to what he had once scorned

to dull his mental anguish.

Brandon had been prescribed the

antidepressant Zoloft, but because of the

stigma of taking drugs for depression,

he didn’t want treatment. He felt that if

he needed medication for depression

then he must be crazy.

The perceived shame associated with

mental illness and substance abuse pre-

vents many people, especially teens, from

seeking help; they fear prejudice and dis-

crimination. It is that social stigma that

needs to be changed or—better yet—

eliminated. Eric’s hope is to lessen the

stigma of depression, stating, “Depres-

sion is a real disease, just like cancer or

heart disease. It doesn’t mean someone is

crazy. People are scared of depression;

scared to talk about it.”

Education about depression and sui-

cide prevention needs to be brought to

the forefront, and Eric Garland, his wife,

Trudy, and daughter, Brittney, have

become deeply involved in these efforts,

not only in their community of McFar-

land, Wisconsin, but also through their

participation in a national event called

Out of the Darkness Overnight.

A 20-mile walk through the night,

from dusk until dawn,

Out of the Dark-

ness Overnight

brings together friends,

family members, and loved ones whose

lives have been touched by suicide or

depression, and gives them a way to turn

their heartbreak into hope for tomorrow.

It’s a unique opportunity to help shed

light on suicide, its impact, and its

prevention.

On August 12-13, 2006, 1,200 partici-

pants walked along the lakeshore in

Chicago, Illinois. Another 1,200 partici-

pants walked in San Francisco July 22-

23, 2006. The walkers in both of these

cities combined raised over $3.6 million,

before expenses, with donations contin-

uing to come in every day. The net pro-

SUICIDE HELP LINE

If you or someone you know is having

thoughts of suicide, contact the

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).

It is a 24-hour, toll-free service avail-

able to anyone in suicidal crisis. Callers

are routed to the closest possible of

over 120 crisis centers across the coun-

try. All calls are free and con?dential.

Visit

www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

for more information about the organi-

zation and its services.

ABOVE: The Garland family—Eric, Brittney, Trudy, and Brandon—enjoy an Alaskan Cruise in September 2001.

RIGHT: Trudy’s favorite picture of Brandon is one taken while he was ?shing on Lake Waubesa. Brittney’s

favorite is of herself and Brandon dressed up for prom.

HEALTH & FITNESS

The Bene?t News-Fall/Winter 2006

13

awareness and suicide prevention pro-

grams. Their fund-raising efforts started

with donation boxes in community

businesses and schools and culminated

with a spaghetti supper, which alone

raised $6,200.

“It was a really neat night,” Eric recalls.

“We sold 425 tickets ahead of time and

served an additional 300 walk-ins. There

were more people at the dinner that we

didn’t know than we did know.”

we have to ?nd a new normal, however

long that takes.”

When people ask how the Garlands

are doing, their typical answer is “okay.”

But Eric sadly states, “The truth is that

we are not okay, and it is almost impos-

sible to ever imagine being okay again.

As deeply as I love my family, I have

come to learn that love alone is not a

match for the power and strength of

depression.”

?

ceeds bene?t the American Foundation

for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), to fund

research, education, survivor, and aware-

ness programs—both to prevent suicide

and to assist those affected by suicide.

Brandon’s mother, Trudy, says, “I was

overwhelmed by all the people who are

affected by suicide, by their eagerness to

support others and the AFSP.”

In order to participate in the walk

each participant pledged to raise at least

$1,000. Together, the eight members of

team “Bear With Us,” (Griz was Brandon’s

nickname) raised $13,000 for depression

Eric and his family were especially

touched by a group of teenagers, unknown

to the Garlands, who stepped up and

bused the tables. “People wanted to help.

This dinner turned out to be a whole

community effort,” relates Eric.

Why are the Garlands so passionate

about this cause? “Because we are sur-

vivors of suicide … we lost a son, broth-

er, student, and friend to suicide,” states

Brandon’s father. “Brandon suffered

from depression and chose to take his

own life. We have been forever changed

by his death. Our normal is gone forever;

Symptoms of Major Depression

¦

Physical symptoms that don’t respond

to treatment and persist after all med-

ical reasons have been ruled out

¦

Persistent unhappiness, negativity, irri-

tability, sad or empty mood

¦

Uncontrollable anger or outbursts of rage

¦

Overly self-critical, unwarranted guilt,

low self-esteem

¦

Slowed or hesitant speech or body

movements, or restlessness (anxiety)

¦

Loss of interest in once pleasurable

activities

¦

Low energy, chronic fatigue,

sluggishness

¦

Disturbances in sleeping and eating

patterns, including bulimia or anorexia

¦

Thoughts of suicide, suicide plans or

attempts

Not all people with depression will show

all symptoms or have them to the same

degree. If a person has four or more

symptoms for more than two weeks, a

medical doctor or a psychiatrist should be

consulted. Remember that only a medical

doctor can diagnose depression.

Warning Signs of Suicide

¦

Talking about suicide

¦

Statements about hopelessness, help-

lessness, or worthlessness

¦

Preoccupation with death

¦

Suddenly happier, calmer

¦

Loss of interest in things one cares

about

¦

Visiting or calling people one cares

about

¦

Making arrangements; setting one’s

affairs in order

¦

Giving things away

A suicidal person urgently needs to see

a doctor or psychiatrist!

HEALTH & FITNESS

Old friends and new acquaintances join together to support depression awareness and suicide prevention

during the 2006

Out of the Darkness Overnight

walk in Chicago, Illinois. Pictured from left to right are: Kelly

Phelps, Danita Dostalek, Brittney Garland, Eric Garland, Mark McLaughlin, and Jim Depor. Brandon’s mother,

Trudy, who is not pictured, was serving as a volunteer at the event.