Trinidad and Tobago recorded 478 suicides between 2020 and 2023, an average of one life lost every three days.This has prompted Trinidad and Tobago Association of Psychologists (TTAP) president, Victoria Siewnarine-Geelalsingh, to warn that the country can no longer ignore what she described as a suicide crisis.In a release yesterday, Siewnarine-Geelalsingh, a clinical psychologist, said the figures should be treated as “alarms” rather than warnings, as the country observes World Suicide Prevention Day today.“Suicidality has often been the hidden, heinous destroyer of so many lives,” she said, arguing that suicide has for too long been surrounded by stigma and misunderstanding.World Suicide Prevention Day 2026 is being observed under the theme “Changing the Narrative on Suicide”, with the call to action “Start the Conversation”, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The campaign encourages open and compassionate conversations about suicide, while challenging harmful myths and stigma.Siewnarine-Geelalsingh said Trinidad and Tobago ranks third in the English-speaking Caribbean for suicide rates and pointed to the number of lives lost locally as evidence of the urgent need for greater intervention.“These are not just numbers; these are fathers, sons, mothers, daughters, friends, and neighbours whose pain went unseen and unaddressed,” she said.She also raised concern about the impact of suicide and mental-health struggles on children and young people, noting that globally suicide is a major cause of death among people between 15 and 29 years old.In Trinidad and Tobago, she said, children as young as nine have died by suicide, while more young people are reporting suicidal thoughts.Siewnarine-Geelalsingh linked the growing distress among young people to a combination of pressures, including cyberbullying, social-media comparison, economic instability and social isolation.She said reports of physical bullying had increased gravely, while verbal and cyberbullying had doubled.The extent of distress was also reflected in calls to the National Suicide Prevention Hotline, which received 1,851 distress calls between October 2024 and January 2025, according to the TTAP president.Siewnarine-Geelalsingh said the country must also confront the stigma surrounding mental health, particularly attitudes that dismiss emotional distress as weakness or madness.“In Trinidad and Tobago, we still laugh and say ‘yuh mad’ or ‘yuh crazy’,” she said, adding that people are often told to toughen up or pray more rather than seek professional support.She warned that such attitudes could discourage people from speaking about what they are experiencing or seeking assistance before reaching a crisis point.She called for a “whole of society response” involving families, schools, communities and government agencies.One priority, she said, should be increasing access to psychological resources in schools, while the country should also establish 24-hour Community Crisis Response Teams and develop a properly funded National Suicide Prevention Strategy.“We need mental health education in our school curriculum to help children regulate emotions, recognise warning signs, and seek help,” she said.She also called for greater attention to men and boys, saying cultural expectations around strength and emotional restraint could make it more difficult for them to acknowledge vulnerability and seek assistance.Siewnarine-Geelalsingh said the public also has a role to play in prevention by paying attention to changes in the behaviour of loved ones.She identified withdrawal, persistent hopelessness, major changes in sleeping or eating patterns, increased alcohol or drug use, giving away valued possessions and talking about death as warning signs.She urged people to move beyond casual conversations and genuinely check on family members, friends, colleagues and neighbours who may be struggling.“Research does not support the fear that mentioning suicide puts the idea into someone’s head,” she said, encouraging people to ask directly about a person’s well-being and create an opportunity for them to speak openly.For people experiencing a mental-health or emotional crisis, support is available through the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-COPE (2673), Childline at 131 or 800-4321, and Lifeline at 800-5588 or 866-5433.