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Celebrate With Us!
oin us and Bob Keeshan, better
known as Captain Kangaroo, as we
celebrate Catherine McAuley Health
Center's 75th anniversary of community
service.
Kids have been growing up with
Captain Kangaroo for the past 25 years
and today's parents won't be short-
changed either. The Captain will wel-
come everyone to the celebration and
answer any questions you may have for
him. He'll also be available for pho-
tographs. (And don't forget, the Cap-
tain's new show airs this fall on public
television.)
The 75th anniversary celebration,
called "McAuley Time Capsule," runs
from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov 16,
in the Reichert Health Building on the

Catherine McAuley Health Center cam-
pus on East Huron River Drive. In addi-
tion to Captain Kangaroo, Miss Michigan
Kelly Garver, Ronald McDonald and vari-
ous displays and activities for children
will be featured. Historical displays such
as a 1911 doctor's office and free give
aways and refreshments will keep par-
ents entertained, too. The displays-in-
cluding the St. Joe's Baby Book featuring
pictures of more than 750 babies born
at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital-will be up
through Friday, Nov 21. So, don't miss
this opportunity for the whole family to
have fun (you'll probably learn some-
thing, too). If you miss McAuley Time
Capsule this time you may be out of
luck-the next Time Capsule leaves in
75 years!
For more information, please check
the appropriate box on the reply card.

a community
health newsletter
Vol. 4, No. 4
Fall 1986
Finding aWill to Live


Living With Diabetes
continuedfrompage 3
prescribed diet, exercising regularly,
monitoring their blood sugar and giving
themselves insulin," VandenBosch says.
At first Merkel refused to administer
her own insulin, but VandenBosch in-
sisted she do so. "Later I was so glad not
to be dependent on someone else,"
Merkel says.
How you get it
While women can develop diabetes
during pregnancy, other causal factors
include heredity, age (80 percent of the
people who develop diabetes do so
after the age of 40) and being over-
weight. Diabetes is also known to de-
velop as the result of a viral disease.
Twice as many women as men develop
diabetes, and there is a higher inci-

deuce of diabetes in Michigan than in
any other state. Research indicates that
diabetes tends to occur more often in
the United States in highly indus-
trialized areas.
Diabetes cannot be cured, but it can
be controlled with a carefully planned
diet, regular exercise and, if necessary,
insulin or oral drugs. A good exercise
program has helped me immensely,"
says Dunawas. 'After I began jogging
regularly, I was able to cut back on my
insulin intake."
Even though diabetes is incurable,
this story still has a happy ending: Dun-
away has learned to live with diabetes
and both her children and Merkel's are
healthy and happy.
November is National Diabetes
Month. Catherine McAuley Health Cen-
ter and the Washtenaw County Chapter
of the American Diabetes Association

are sponsoring a talk on ness research
in diabetes at 7:30 p.m., Nov. 12, in
the Education Center Auditorium at
St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. For more in-
formation on the lecture or for general
information on diabetes, please check
the appropriate box on the return mail
card. R
. Roth ttaliar'd

Ofttimes the test of courage becomes
rather to live than to die.
Alfieri-Orestes
From the time you woke up this
morning, to the time you go to bed
tonight, more than 1,000 people world-
wide will have killed themselves. Nearly
- of those suicides will have occurred
in the United States-about one every
20 minutes.
Some of those people may have
reached out for help and been denied,
while others didn't give any obvious
warning of their unhappiness.
"I don't think it can ever be fully
explained, "says Jay Callahan, an expert
on suicide and the assistant director of
Ambulatory Mental IHealth Services at
Catherine NcAulev Health Center.
"There may be 35 identical factors for
two people such as lttw income, abusive
parents or drug abuse and yet one com-
mits suicide and the other doesn't.
There isn't any easy answer
Troubled teens
The suicide rate for teenagers and
young adults has risen drastically over
the past three decades. Statistics indicate
the suicide rate among teenagers has tri-
pled since the 1950s, from four to 12 per
100,000. 1However, Callahan is quick to
point out that those statistics can be
misleading.
"The terms 'young adult' and 'teen-
tger' have become confused," he says.
"Statistics say there are 5,000 'teenage'
suicides per year, but that includes the
ages of 15 to 24. When we look cltser at
this age group, 3,100 of the 5,000 are in
the older half-between the ages of 20
and 24-and less than 1,900 are in the
15 to 19 age group."
That isn't exactly good news, how-
ever. If suicidal behavior--including
attempts and self-destructive behavior-

.y
Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in America. (A modelhas been
used toprotectpatient confidentiality.)

Healhower

Sponsored by the
RSeigious Sisters ot Mercy
founded in 1831
by Catherine McAuley

P301East Huron River Drive
Pn o 992
Ann Arbor. Michigan 48106

is considered, then the problem of
teenage suicide becomes very alarming.
According to Callahan, research sug-
gests that for every completed suicide
among teenagers, there are approx-
imatels 100 attempts, a ratio far higher
than among adults. Also, recent surveys
reveal that about 10 percent of all high
school students report having made
what they consider a suicide attempt at
some time in their lives.
Why?
High expectations
Depression and fatilty problems
are just a couple of the reasons leading
teenagers and young adults to suicide.
Callahan believes the major factor asso-
ciated with the rise of teenage suicide,
along with the increase in drug and al-
cohol abuse, is one of high expecta-

tions, both from the parents and the
teens themselves.
"High expectations are important,"
Callahan savs, "as is the drive to excell.
However, for many teens, not reaching
No. 1, not being the best at something,
can be a terrible thing. It's not achieving
enough that can drive teens to suicide.
"Its not so much the parents, but the
culture at large and self expectations,"
he adds. "Parents need to help their
teens feel good about themselves and
let their kids know they're loved."
Callahan has seen the drive to be
No. 1 lead parents into living vicariously
off their children's triumphs, while con-
tinuing to push kids over the edge.
Some societal factors that may have
given teens a negative outlook on their
future include a perceived lack of
Continued on next page

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Sisters of Mercy serving our community since1911