World Suicide Prevention Day

[GwenRaiden]

Another one I didn't know was a "day" until today.

What is World Suicide Prevention day?
World Suicide Prevention Day is held each year on 10 September. It's an annual awareness raising event organised by International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

This year's theme is about understanding the impact that reaching out to people at risk can have in preventing suicide, and ultimately saving lives.

Why is it important?
More than 800,000 people take their lives each year across the world. In the UK and ROI, more than 6,000 people die by suicide a year - an average of 18 a day.

Reaching out to people who are going through a difficult time can be a game changer. People who are feeling low or suicidal often feel worthless and think that no-one cares. Small things like hearing from friends or family, feeling listened to or just being asked the question 'are you ok?' can make a huge difference.

What you can do
Start a conversation today if you think a friend, colleague or family member may be struggling. You can also join us on Twitter to spread the word and ask the question [HASHTAG]#RUOK[/HASHTAG]?

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Obviously preventing suicide has always been a very crucial subject. What I do find interesting (or similarly, awful) is that statistically, in the UK at least, there's been a massive increase of suicide in middle-aged males. I think, from having several men with depression in my family, the "shame" aspect of mental health (and suicide) is possibly harder for men to deal with than women. A friend who is a gp once said to me when we were talking about my own depression that, in her job, she always found when asking "do you have someone close you can talk to about it?", women did tend to have more people in their life they were willing and comfortable to talk to about mental health than men did. Ever since then, I've tried to make a tiny difference in the lives of people around me, whether I know them well or not, whether they are ill or not, because a simple "how are you?" or "are you ok?" is enough to make that huge difference in someone's day and could even, hopefully, open a crucial dialogue.

 

[ILLYRIAN]

I'm not suggesting the cause is wrong, it isn't. What I hate is how the number of suicides is calculated. Does it include attempted suicides, probably. The people who run the program want to promote the problem. (that is a generalisation)
I'd prefer it if facts were used not averages as averages seem to make light of the real problem.

 

[bespangeled]

I'm not suggesting the cause is wrong, it isn't. What I hate is how the number of suicides is calculated. Does it include attempted suicides, probably. The people who run the program want to promote the problem. (that is a generalisation)
I'd prefer it if facts were used not averages as averages seem to make light of the real problem.

I think there is a need to show how universal the problem is - a lot of people think that it can't happen to them, or people like them. Though I have to say, until it hit your family or friends it is easy to be in denial. I think that the numbers were clearly suicides and not attempted ones, I agree that would be impossible to calculate. But knowing how many people commit suicide worldwide might make some people pay attention to those in their lives who are at risk. In fact, I am helping one of my fosterlings deal with her at-risk child right now. She's struggling to find a therapist who takes her insurance and has openings for new patients. There are very few therapists available for early teens - and suicide is the biggest cause of death for that age group.

 

[Blaze]

I agree with what the cause is trying to say, but at the same time I feel like this might make some people feel bad about not being able to reach out. Reaching out isn't always as easy as they make it sound, but as a general rule, it is always good to ask the simple question "are you ok". I think it would also be important to teach people that it's okay to answer honestly when someone asks you "how are you", and I make a point to make that clear with all of my friends, and that if the answer is no, they should reply with no. A big problem is that with many stigma nowadays, people are forced into the habit of saying that they are doing fine.

 

[Mr Trick]

Those fingures are pretty shocking. And people are different, some people deal with these kind of thing better in private and with close people they can trust, but anything which raises awareness and gives those who want it a plateform can only be a good thing in my view. Sometimes the media tend to focus on really trivel and pointless things, whereas issues like this can often go ignored.