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San Diego County presenter: suicide deaths rose 6% from 2021 to 2023; youth and non-Hispanic Black residents saw largest increases
Summary
A presenter at a San Diego County meeting said suicide deaths increased 6% between 2021 and 2023, with a 56% rise for residents ages 10–24 and a 51% rise for non-Hispanic Black residents; a community member shared a personal account of stigma following a family suicide.
A presenter at a San Diego County meeting said suicide deaths in the county increased 6% between 2021 and 2023, with the largest increases seen among residents ages 10 to 24 and non-Hispanic Black residents.
"There's been a significant decrease in annual suicide deaths in San Diego County over the last 5 years. The last 2 years for which we have data have left us with news that isn't as good," the presenter said. "Overall, between 2021 and 2023, there's been a 6% increase in suicide deaths, and we see emerging vulnerability among certain populations. From 2021 to 2023, suicide rates increased for example, 51% for non Hispanic black residents. And during the same period there was a 56% increase in the suicide rate among those 10 to 24."
Another speaker characterized the statistics as severe. "These are harrowing mortality numbers," the speaker said.
During the meeting a resident gave a personal account of losing a parent to suicide and described the long-term stigma their family experienced. "When I was six years old, he took his own life. He left my sister and my mom and me in a pretty bad situation," the resident said. "So there's something kind of strange about the way my dad died. Meaning, all of a sudden, no one really talked about my dad after that. And I was very aware of that." The resident added that family conversations changed when the parent's name was mentioned: "I grew up feeling this sort of shame, the stigma, around suicide even before I knew what it was."
A third speaker urged community responsibility for prevention, saying everyone can learn the signs and refer people to professional help. "Our goal here is to create a community where everyone sees that they have a role to play in suicide prevention, whether on a personal level or a professional level. And each of us has the ability to learn the signs of suicide, remind someone of their reason to live, and refer them for professional help," the speaker said.
The meeting record provided the percentage changes and the age and racial subgroup increases above; no formal actions or policy votes were recorded in the provided transcript excerpt, and funding, program names, or specific county response plans were not specified.
