ABSTRACT
For the residents of the Standing Rock Sioux reservation along the North Dakota-South Dakota border, the winter months in 1997 and 1998 were plagued with disbelief, anger, and fear stemming from a suicide epidemic that culminated in 37 attempts among adolescent youth and 5 completed suicides by adolescent males. At the height of this epidemic, an estimated 150 at-risk adolescents were monitored by mental health professionals, relatives, and other tribal members. Additional risks stemming from the unknown influence of suicide pacts and contagion effects were also difficult to manage. In the aftermath of these teen suicides, the Standing Rock Sioux community-along with tribal leaders and federal officials-conferred to strategize suicide prevention measures, including but not limited to the opening of youth recreation centers and the tailoring of mental health services for depression and substance use, as well as a more general rebuilding of reservation life.
