How to raise awareness – World Suicide Prevention Day

Key facts[1]

• Suicide is Australia’s leading cause of death among people aged 15 to 44.
• Up to one in six (17%) Australians experience suicidal thoughts or behaviours in their life.
• Suicide statistics in Australia show that it is the 15th most common cause of death overall.
• World Suicide Prevention Day is held on 10 September each year.

Sadly, Australia’s suicide statistics are still too high. In 2020, 3,139 people died from suicide. It’s such a significant public health problem that it has its own awareness day: World Suicide Prevention Day. Held in Australia and around the world on 10 September, World Suicide Prevention Day is observed with the intention of raising awareness and empowering people to take action to prevent suicide. We can all play a role in suicide prevention.

If you are in an emergency or if you or someone is at immediate risk, please call 000.  

World Suicide Prevention Day

Anyone can help raise awareness during World Suicide Prevention Day. Participation could be a simple conversation with a friend or family member, an online #WSPD post, or a workplace event. The International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources that can help you start a conversation or organise an event.

What matters is that the issue is talked about to help reduce the stigma around suicide, and we can support our friends, families and colleagues who may be experiencing a crisis or are bereaved by suicide. Here are some ideas to think about on World Suicide Prevention Day.

Raise awareness at work

Promote mental health awareness in the workplace or host a World Suicide Prevention Day event. There are many organisations who can provide advice for establishing better mental health in your workplace. Check out Heads Up starter pack and Black Dog Institute’s six ways to contribute to wellbeing at work.

Reach out to someone

Reach out to a mate or family member if you think they’re struggling. Take the time to speak to them, listen to what’s going on, ask questions and show them you’re there to provide support.

Listen well

Listen non-judgmentally when someone opens up about their worries and concerns. Make it clear that it’s ok to talk it out. Do not ignore or talk down to them, don’t tell them to get over it, or instantly ‘take over’ the discussion and relate it back to yourself. Good communication is as much about listening as it is about talking.

Rethink attitudes toward mental health

The idea that someone just needs to get over their stresses (and that talking about concerns and worries is bad) is not helpful. This is because bottling up stresses can potentially lead to problems becoming destructive behaviours. So let others know that it’s ok to talk about their worries and that they won’t get judged — and that it’s better in the long term because it probably helps prevent those stresses from growing into more serious problems.

Encourage people to get help

Men are at the greatest risk of suicide but least likely to seek help. It is estimated that nearly three quarters of men who are affected by a mental health illness do not seek help. Although men have a higher rate of suicide, women have higher rates of suicide ideation and suicide attempts. The exact relationship between help seeking behaviour and suicide is complex. However, getting help and addressing stresses and worries early is widely agreed to be the healthiest way to help prevent problems becoming more significant. Seeing a GP or speaking to a counsellor can be a good first step.

Awareness means changing the mindset

You’ve probably noticed a common theme among these ideas for World Suicide Prevention Day. It’s not just about raising awareness of the problem itself — it’s about raising awareness of the issues that contribute to the suicide problem.

It’s one thing to know that over 3,000 people took their own lives during the last period in which national suicide data were reported. It’s another to know that bottling up worries and stresses (because someone believes they’ll be judged or seen as weak if they talk about it) contributes to the suicide rate.

Reducing the suicide rate therefore involves changing the mindset. Raising awareness about Australia’s alarming suicide statistics is a good start — for change to be effective, more of us need to understand the causes behind the suicide rate.

World Suicide Prevention Day is the perfect opportunity to make that happen.

If you need to talk to a counsellor, call Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467 or click on the online chat button. Our professional counsellors are available 24/7.

If it is an emergency, dial 000.

References

[1] ABS Causes of Death, Australia 2020 https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/causes-death/causes-death-australia/2020