By Amy Cook, MBA, Director of Training, NAMI NH
“I wasn’t really looking forward to this training.”
We hear that a lot from school staff during mandatory suicide prevention trainings. After all, educators are required to complete two hours of suicide prevention training every year—and if you’ve sat through multiple trainings on the same topic, they can start to feel pretty similar.
But then this educator stayed after our new “Words Matter” workshop and shared something different: “I’m so glad I came. This was actually meaningful.”
That’s the feedback we’ve been hoping to hear.
Why We Created Something New
Over the past several years, teachers, counselors, and school administrators have been telling us the same thing: suicide prevention training can feel repetitive. And honestly, they’re right. Most suicide prevention programs cover similar ground in similar ways. We recognized that educators needed something that didn’t just check a compliance box—they needed training that would actually engage them, challenge their thinking, and leave them feeling equipped to make a real difference.
So we created a series of topic-specific workshops designed to go deeper. These aren’t meant to replace foundational suicide prevention training; they’re meant to expand on it. To explore specific issues with real nuance. To be interactive, meaningful, and yes—actually interesting.
One deep-dive workshop is “Words Matter,” and it’s all about safe messaging and the power of language as it relates to mental health and suicide prevention.
The Power of a Single Word
Here’s what we discovered: educators are hungry for this kind of focus. When you take something as seemingly simple as language and give people real time to explore it, something shifts in the room.
“Words Matter” examines how the language we use can:
- Reduce or reinforce stigma around mental health and suicide
- Promote or discourage help-seeking behaviors
- Differ significantly across age groups—what resonates with a 5th grader lands differently with an 8th grader
- Shape perception and behavior in ways we don’t always realize
But more importantly, the workshop helps educators understand this: You already have the power to make a difference. It starts with the words you choose.
That’s not abstract. That’s empowering.
What Happened in the Room
When we recently brought “Words Matter” to a K-8 public school, something genuinely special happened. The energy was different from the start. Educators weren’t just sitting and listening; they were actively thinking, discussing, and sharing their own experiences with language—both the harm words can cause and the healing they can create.
The conversations were real. People were considering the language they use every day. They were thinking about how a single word choice might impact a student’s willingness to ask for help. They were recognizing moments in their own practice where they could do better.
By the end, participants weren’t just checking off a training requirement. They were talking about how they felt empowered—like they had concrete tools and a renewed sense of agency about the difference they could make.
One educator summed it up: “I came in skeptical, but this was different. This actually made me feel that I can do something.”
Making Mandates Meaningful
Here’s what we’re learning: when educators are given time to deeply explore a specific topic that connects to their daily work, something shifts. Compliance becomes engagement. A checkbox becomes a moment of genuine learning and reflection.
The “Words Matter” workshop is just one example of what’s possible when we move away from one-size-fits-all training. By creating space to really think about how language shapes our world, we’re helping educators become more thoughtful, intentional advocates for mental health in their schools.
And maybe that’s the real power of this work: helping educators recognize that suicide prevention isn’t something that happens only in crisis moments. It happens in the small, everyday choices we make—including the words we speak.
Because words do matter. And when individuals recognize that, they become agents of change.
The Connect Suicide Prevention Program offers comprehensive training for schools and communities, including our new topic-specific workshops designed to deepen learning and engagement. Interested in bringing “Words Matter” or another Connect workshop to your school or organization? Learn more at https://TheConnectProgram.org or contact us at info@TheConnectProgram.org.
