Families walk for suicide awareness

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - New Mexico is third in the nation for suicide deaths.

It is a sobering and sad statistic, and the families left behind call the pain they feel indescribable.

Sunday afternoon, those families pounded the pavement at the Out of the Darkness Walk at Albuquerque’s Balloon Fiesta Park to raise awareness and money for suicide prevention.

Walker Cyd Ault’s son committed suicide three years ago. Ault described the pain as pulling a pin on a hand grenade when you’re surrounded by loved ones.

“It is surreal, you cannot believe that this is your life,” Ault explained. “You cannot believe your flesh and blood, your child has done this to themselves, and it is incomprehensible. It can't even be explained.”

The state’s partnering agency, the New Mexico Suicide Prevention Coalition, said it wants the public to know that suicide deaths are preventable.

The organization educates people about warning signs to look for and offers support to grieving families.

Officials with the organization said they believe the walk is therapeutic for those who have lost a loved one to suicide.

“It gives us a chance to network with people and to break the stigma surrounding suicide,” Executive Director Laura Rowland said. “[We want] to let people know that there is help that we can provide and that we can be there for support teams for each other.”

The walk raised $6,000 that will be split between the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the New Mexico Suicide Prevention Coalition.