National speaker on youth suicide prevention coming to Naples

On the outside, 16-year-old Emma Benoit had it all.

She was a high school varsity cheerleader in her Prairieville, Louisiana, hometown. She was popular. She had a happy home life.

On the inside, she was keeping her depression and anxiety to herself. She told herself that mental illness was a taboo subject and not talked about.

“I had this sense that sharing dark feelings came with a stigma, so I kept quiet,” Benoit, now 22, said in a news release. “I felt isolated and alone and thought there was something wrong with me.”

Emma Benoit

She attempted suicide the summer before her senior year of high school in 2017. It resulted in a spinal cord injury that left her paralyzed. She intentionally does not talk about how she tried to end her life.

Today Benoit is a national advocate for youth suicide prevention. She shares her story by speaking to students and families across the country. Benoit is featured on national television programs about suicide and she has a documentary, “My Ascension,” released in 2021.

Benoit will visit Moorings Presbyterian Church, 91 Harbour Drive, Naples, when the documentary airs at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 2. There will be a question-and-answer session with her immediately following the screening.

Tickets are $15 per person and will support access to services at the David Lawrence Mental Health Center in Collier County.

To register, visit DLCenters.org/Events or contact DLC at 239-354-1419 or donorcare@DLCenters.org.

Benoit first spoke in Naples last year during the David Lawrence center’s Sound Minds luncheon.

Pandemic was detrimental especially to young people’s mental health

There are 1.2 million suicide attempts every year in the U.S. The public health crisis claims the lives of 20 young people every day.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an alarming impact on young people; a report published this month found youth suicide increased significantly during the pandemic among males, particularly among non-Hispanic Black youth, according to researchers at the Center for Suicide Prevention and Research.

Story continues

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention similarly released data this month that 57% of teen girls in the U.S felt persistently sad or hopeless in 2021, double that of boys. The figure represents a nearly 60% increase and the highest level reported over the past decade.

She found her mission in life

After her suicide attempt, Benoit said she found faith and purpose that lead her to use her own painful experience to help others.

“A lack of community and conversation about mental health factored into what caused me to attempt suicide,” she said in the news release.

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“Now I am on a mission to share my story to help open up conversations about mental health,” she said. “I want people to understand they are not alone and there is help, and that you can overcome your mental health challenges and thrive.”

She started a website, liferejuvenated.org, and a blog to share her story and recovery journey to help other teens who are struggling. In early 2018, she began working on her documentary film that chronicles her recovery journey and advocacy work, while addressing the youth suicide epidemic.

She graduated from high school in 2018.

Benoit serves as an Ambassador for LivingWorks, the world’s leader in suicide prevention training. She has been featured on numerous news programs and podcasts including the Jada Pinkett Smith’s hit show “Red Table Talk” and the Dr. Phil Show.

She also has reached thousands through virtual conferences and events that include the California Department of Education Youth Summit, National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health Conference, LSU School of Social Work Conference.

Benoit has taken part in the Arkansas Youth Mental Health Conference, Hope Rising Suicide Prevention Summit and the Hope Squad National Conference.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Suicide attempt survivor who found her calling in life comes to Naples