Understanding Suicide 102 - December 5, 2025
Includes a Live In-Person Event on 12/05/2025 at 12:45 PM (EST)
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- Learners - $35
A 3-Hour Training with Sarah Gaer
12:45pm-4:00pm
130 Pembroke Road, Suite 150, Concord, NH 03301
Presentation: Understanding Suicide: 102 is an interactive, advanced-level workshop designed to address the professional and personal challenges of working with individuals experiencing suicidal despair. While suicide is one of the most feared outcomes in mental health practice, most academic programs provide minimal preparation for engaging in these critical conversations. Misconceptions — such as the belief that talking about suicide may “plant the idea” — continue to persist despite research evidence to the contrary. This workshop provides participants with the opportunity to explore their own beliefs, emotions, and reactions to suicide in a structured, supportive environment. By examining personal discomfort and professional barriers, participants develop greater confidence in having open and direct conversations with individuals at risk. The workshop emphasizes reflective practice, peer dialogue, and the development of self-care strategies necessary for working with high-risk populations.
Suicide remains a leading cause of preventable death in the United States, yet stigma and misinformation persist among the general public and within professional practice. Clinicians and helping professionals frequently report feeling unprepared to manage both their clients’ suicidal ideation and their own emotional responses. This workshop addresses this competency gap by equipping professionals to confront their own discomfort, engage in effective dialogue with clients, and practice self-care to sustain their work.
As a result of this training, participants will be able to:
- Identify at least two personal reservations or concerns when supporting a person experiencing suicidal despair;
- Recognize at least three ways in which their own reactions may unintentionally contribute to negative experiences for the individual; and
- Describe the importance of self-care when working with high-risk populations, particularly those experiencing suicidal ideation.
3 Contact Hours Available
CRSW Performance Domains: 1-4
LADC/MLADC Categories of Competence: 4-6 & 15-18
Certified Prevention Specialist Domains: 2 & 6
NBCC: LICSW/L-MFT/LCMHC (Category A) & Psychologist (Category A)
NH Alcohol & Drug Abuse Counselors Association has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider. ACEP No 6754. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. NHADACA is solely responsible for all aspects of the program.
This training is financed under a contract with the State of NH, Department of Health and Human Services, with funds provided in part by the State of NH and/or such funding sources as were available or required, e.g., the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
Sarah Gaer
Senior Team Leader
MassSupport Network
Sarah Gaer holds a Masters Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with 24 years experience in the field of mental health care. Her early career was started working with children in residential programs, therapeutic schools, and therapeutic outreach. She also worked in a therapeutic community substance use treatment facility both as a counselor and an intake coordinator.
Sarah focused her graduate degree work on military veterans and trauma. She was an outpatient clinician, crisis clinician and member of the trauma response team in Springfield Massachusetts for 5 years. Sarah then spent 9 years as a Suicide Prevention Specialist focused on men in the middle years and first responders with Riverside Trauma Center.
She has trained over 1000 first responders in Massachusetts and is a QPR (Question, Persuade & Refer) Master Trainer for the QPR Institute. Sarah was also a member of the Riverside Trauma Center trauma team for 9 years and has responded to suicides, homicides, natural disasters, and terrorist attacks. Sarah was the Senior Team Leader for MassSupport Network, the FEMA funded Crisis Counseling Program responding to Covid19 in Massachusetts and was the Team Leader for the CCP in 2011 responding to the tornadoes that impacted Western & Central Massachusetts. Sarah currently works as a consultant in suicide prevention and trauma recovery and is spearheading long term recovery efforts at Holyoke Soldier’s Home, which experienced a mass causality event during Covid-19.
Sarah also holds a contract with the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health creating and providing training for Law Enforcement on topics such as suicide prevention, toxic stress and resilience building. Sarah has presented her work at National and International Suicide Prevention conferences and her writings have been published by SAMHSA and the Good Men Project. She authored the novel “The Price” which chronicles the suicide death of a police officer as well as co-authoring Guts, Grit & The Grind, which is an anthology series about Men’s Mental Health. Sarah has also published a children’s book, Good Night Grace, which assists families and caregivers in talking with children about their parents’ substance use disorder.