- The Mississippi Department of Mental Health confirms that a person with a neurodivergent diagnosis, which includes people with autism and ADHD for example, are more affected by suicidal thoughts due to the way they perceive the world.
People with autism, and other neurodivergent diagnoses, are said to be at a higher risk for thoughts of suicide. However, professionals say the data is still in its infancy.
According to data included in the 2025 Mississippi Autism Advisory Council legislative report, about 32.8 per 1,000 children have a form of autism in the state, in line with the nation’s average.
In addition to needing varying levels of help depending on the person, research shows people diagnosed as neurodivergent appear to be at higher risk for suicidal thoughts and potential action, the National Library of Medicine states. It was noted that the research on suicide prevalence within the autistic population only has five years of data.
Data from those studies over the past five years demonstrate 20% of autistic children reported ideation of suicide, with 10% of those individuals attempting the act. For comparison, non-autistic children reported rates of 14.2% and 4.5%, respectively.
The same was noted in autistic adults, where 42% indicated having suicidal thoughts, of which 18% attempted the act. Statistics among non-autistic adults showed 4.8% reported having those thoughts with 0.7% attempting the act.
Across the globe, about 800,000 people die from suicide annually.
Risk factors for autistic individuals include depression, lack of social support, feelings of loneliness and ruminating on negative emotions or thoughts.
The Mississippi Department of Mental Health confirms that a person with a neurodivergent diagnosis, which includes people with autism and ADHD for example, are more affected by suicidal thoughts due to the way they perceive the world.
“There is a correlation there and sometimes it’s because how they process their emotions,” said MDMH Suicide Prevention Director LaBethani May.
When it comes to creating hard and fast statistics of the number of Mississippians with autism who might be suffering from a mental crisis, it is difficult because a neurodivergent diagnosis often means that person has trouble describing their feelings, and subsequently expressing emotional pain, May explained.
“So it makes it difficult to communicate. A lot of times they might be feeling certain things, but they’re not able to express them,” May added.
Due to those barriers, the current training mental health staff receive in relation to how to deal with people dealing with a mental health crisis uses the holistic approach.
“We don’t have a model as of yet that is specifically for neurodivergent individuals,” said May.
When someone is dealing with a mental health crisis, they have the option to reach out confidentially to trained personnel through the national 988 hotline. Within Mississippi, there are two call centers, which have been recently recognized for achieving a 98% in-state answer rate. One of the call centers is located in Jackson, which covers 74 counties in the state, and the second is in the Columbus area. It covers the remaining 8 counties.
MDMH is also working to develop new training that will provide 988 personnel and volunteers with additional tools they can use when talking with someone who may have autism, said 988 Director Ja’Quila Newsome.
“But there are some things that we currently practice now with our 988 counselors, like making sure that when they answer the calls they’re direct and use clear communication,” Newsome described.
Getting an actual number of Mississippians with autism who call 988 is difficult because most people who have a neurodivergent diagnosis do not disclose it.
“And because those calls are confidential and non-judgment we don’t ask those questions. And a lot of times, of course, the callers don’t share that information,” Newsome explained.
Newsome did note that people with autism feel more comfortable using 988’s chat and text options when seeking mental help.
No matter which route a person takes to seek support from the call centers, the individual is connected with trained personnel with extensive backgrounds.
“Many of our 988 counselors their back ground is in social work and mental health fields, and that is pretty much all over. That’s including our volunteer workers as well,” Newsome added.
Educators are also being trained in suicide prevention, as per state law, May said. During the summer, MDMH reaches out to school superintendents and principals to offer the free service. While not specific to helping those with neurodivergent diagnoses, MDMH’s ‘Shatter the Silence’ campaign provides training on the warning signs of mental illness and how such a crisis can correlate with the act of suicide.
The training focuses on warning signs, such as agitation or micro-aggression, and how they are demonstrated by age range of the individual. May added that there are plans for future training sessions to include a focus on those with autism, but funding and additional resources will be needed.
Training under the ‘Shatter the Silence’ campaign can be provided remotely or in-person and can be tailored to the audience or specific need. It is also available to more than just educators.
Yet, just like with 988, those trained in ‘Shatter the Silence’ techniques may not always know if a student has a diagnosis.
“Most times we don’t know that someone has a diagnosis, and that’s behavioral diagnoses or neurodivergent diagnoses, just depending on the severity of it. So we have to just go based on what we’re presented with,” May described.
That lack of a known diagnosis can be due to the fact that some parents do not want their child treated differently, so they may not disclose a diagnosis.
“So sometimes teachers don’t know until there’s a situation,” May said.
Parents can keep an eye on their autistic child’s mental health by looking for signs of depression, which can include regression in their behaviors and social interaction, Shavvone Williams, Director of Autism Services, explained. She added that even if the child appears happy, they see and feel the world differently. By letting them speak their thoughts and emotions, and letting them engage in self stimulatory behavior that does not lead to harm, they can freely express themselves.
“Because that’s a way for them to release,” Williams added.
Additional signs noted by 988Lifeline.org include looking for increased rate/severity of self harm, making statements alluding to a lack of reason or purpose to live and a sudden withdrawal in normal behaviors.
MDMH also has online tools Mississippians can use to find mental health and social services across the state on the department’s website.
