Bev Cobain's Living Matters Workshops and Books

Presentations

Youth Depression: What You Need to Know

A time-flexible, interactive, informative presentation by Bev Cobain designed to provide participants with essential knowledge of depression. Includes signs and symptoms of youth depression; myths, attitudes, and the stigma surrounding depression; causes of and common treatments for depression as well as ways to help and support someone who may be exhibiting signs of depression.

Information included in Youth Depression: What You Need to Know is necessary for and well-received by middle school, high school, and college students and can be utilized in health classes to great advantage. Information given in this presentation can be compressed or enhanced to conform with time constraints and the needs of the facility.

Since many students form trusting alliances with peripheral school staff (e.g., food service, bus drivers, and custodial staff), who may be in a position to notice youth having problems, the information provided in this presentation is highly appropriate for those staff. Of course, the information is crucial for school counselors, teachers, nurses, administrators, parents, foster parents, and others caring for and about youth within the community, including therapists, physicians, and nurses.

Suicide: What you don't know can hurt everyone!

Suicide affects hundreds of thousands of Americans every day. This time-flexible presentation by Bev Cobain includes critical information about youth suicide statistics, causes, risk factors, signs and symptoms, facts and myths, stigma, and includes a powerful, safe and simple 1-2-3 prevention technique which can be used by anyone, even young people, to help save lives.

Especially appropriate for keynote addresses, this presentation also provides valuable information for students of middle and high schools, as well as for college students, and is essential for increasing public awareness and education.

Contact Bev for more info

Workshop

Keeping Our Kids Alive: A Suicide Prevention Workshop

A 7-hr workshop facilitated by Bev Cobain during which participants learn to identify behaviors, signs, and symptoms which may signal an impending suicide. Attendees will learn what actions to take and how to help the suicidal youth consider other options, including getting professional help. The Keeping Our Kids Alive: A Suicide Prevention Workshop workshop also includes discussions of attitudes, myths, and the stigma surrounding suicide.This workshop helps non-professionals to develop the skills required to interpret youth behaviors in new, more meaningful ways and enhances the competency levels of professional participants in identifying and supporting young people suffering the pain of depression and/or suicidal thoughts.

Books

Dying to be Free: A Healing Guide for Families After a Suicide by Beverly Cobain and Jean Larch

Based on an original, one-of-a-kind workshop developed, facilitated, and proven successful over the past fifteen years by co-author, Jean Larch. Suicide always leaves grief-stricken survivors reeling in a nearly impenetrable vacuum. Each feels isolated, ashamed, guilty, angry, and totally in the dark about how to get through the next hour, day, week, month. For survivors, it is inconceivable that they can, or should, survive this loss. Because suicide is violent, unexpected, traumatic, and occurs without warning, the kind of grief suffered after suicide is unparalleled.

When survivors finally understand the process through which their loved one progressed toward suicide, their guilt is significantly relieved, their own risk for suicide decreases, and recovery is facilitated

This book is directed toward healing for survivors and anyone suffering from suicidal thoughts. In addition, therapists, counselors, survivor organizations, and individuals or groups dealing with the issues of depression and/or suicide will find this book helpful and enlightening.

When Nothing Matters Anymore: A Survival Guide for Depressed Teens by Beverly Cobain

Bev Cobain's acclaimed book describes the causes and types of depression and the connection between depression, anxiety, suicide, and drug and alcohol abuse.

"For along time I have been depressed. I won't lie; one of the reasons that I picked it up your book was the name "Cobain" on the side. I was hoping that I could tell you how much your book helped me. After I read (it), I decided it was time to get help. When I did, I found that life was worth living." -- Danielle, High School Senior, Vincennes, Indiana

In 1994, rock star Kurt Cobain ended his struggle with depression and drugs by taking his own life. Bev is Kurt's cousin. This book is her way of making sense of his death and reaching out to teens who are sad, discouraged, and/or depressed. Whether you are a teen or an adult who cares for and about young people, this book will help you learn to identify the signs of real depression and get help.

Depression is present in at least 70% of suicides. This book can help you to save lives, and help kids to live happily in todays' daily chaos.

For large quantity orders for schools, educators, agencies, etc. please contact our publishers at Free Spirit Publishing.

"By emphasizing recovery, Cobain manages to write an upbeat book about a potentially bleak topic and, in the process, provides hope to teenagers in dire need of such incouragement" -- Paul McComas, in EMPHASIS on Mental Health, the Newsletter of the Mental Health Association of the North Shore (Chicago, Ill)