ERIE COUNTY, N.Y. — Crisis Services is working to end the stigma surrounding mental illness by releasing a powerful live saving message.
Crisis Services launched a new campaign at the annual stakeholder meeting Wednesday morning called "Be a Man." Buffalo firefighter Daniel Mulovich worked with other men on the public service announcement.
The campaign encourages men to tell their stories and talk openly about their mental health struggles.
"Our data show that men in the middle-age range is our highest rate of suicide in Erie County," Crisis Services CEO Jessica Pirro said.
She added, "So we want to talk about encouraging reducing stigma, encouraging people to reach out for help, but also we want to share the stories of men who lived successfully with their mental health conditions, who may have reached out and gotten the help that they needed."
Middle-aged men do have the highest suicide rate in Erie County, but those numbers have been going down.