California Chef Aims To Help Restaurant Workers Prevent Suicide

NPR
The Salt
In An Industry Rife With Substance Abuse, Restaurant Workers Help Their Own
Mulvaney lost a longtime friend, 41-year-old local chef Noah Zonca, in May. Zonca's son, Evani Zonca, said his father suffered from depression and addiction before his drowning death.
A month later, celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain took his own life. Mulvaney felt compelled to act.
"This is a place for me to help my people," he says. "We are storytellers at the end of the day. And one of our stories is going to be about mental health."
Mulvaney says hot tempers in fast-paced kitchens and rampant drug use during and after business hours are often seen as the norm in an industry of "stress junkies."
"You have to be [messed] up to work in restaurants," he says. "There's an acceptance that we're an industry that takes misfits."
That mentality deters some people from asking for help, even when they have a serious problem.

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If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255
Ben's Friends is a food and beverage industry support group based in Georgia and North Carolina. It offers hope, fellowship and a path forward to professionals who struggle with substance abuse and addiction.
Big Table, an organization in Washington State, and the Giving Kitchen, in Atlanta, help chefs and culinary professionals access community and emergency resources.
Visit wellspacehealth.org or call their crisis chat line at 916-368-3111.