Every year, organisations and communities around the world come together to raise awareness of how we can create a world where fewer people die by suicide.
Suicide is preventable, it’s not inevitable. But not being OK is still widely stigmatised.
Talking about suicide isn’t easy. Asking someone if they are having thoughts of suicide does not increase the risk but gives people permission to tell you how they feel and offers a space to talk.
Suicide is the single biggest cause of death in men under 50 in the UK. That means more men die by suicide than from heart disease, cancer, heart attacks or road traffic accidents. Among women and girls, suicide levels overall have been consistent for the last decade, though there has been a marked increase among those aged 10-24 years.
Suicide rates in East Sussex have been significantly higher than the England average for several years.
Suicide prevention is something that we can all help with. The Suicide – Let’s Talk training takes 20 minutes and provides information about the causes of suicide, and what we can do to prevent it. There’s also a five minute abbreviated version of this course too which gives you a brief, but vital introduction to suicide awareness.
Below we have listed places to access support, advice and tailored resources for people sharing specific characteristics. We appreciate there’s a lot to look through here, but if you only have five minutes then even just reading these tips from the Samaritans could help you support a loved one to talk about how they’re feeling.
Support for someone in crisis
Apps (available free)
Support for specific groups
There are some additional risks and higher incidence of mental health conditions for some groups, relating to ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, age and being a veteran. These resources may be helpful:
Further mental health resources
