Submissions to prevention of youth suicide inquiry finds shocking youth suicide statistics

On October 6, 2017 By admin In Suicide in schools, Youth suicide 0 Comment

The NSW Governments called for submissions into the prevention of youth suicide in NSW. Following on from the inquiry, an article was published in several local newspapers across Sydney and also published on the Daily Telegraph Website. The website received more than 5,000 reads. Here is the web link to the story: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/hills-shire-times/submissions-to-prevention-of-youth-suicide-inquiry-finds-shocking-youth-suicide-statistics-links-to-unemployment-gaps-in-education/news-story/e5288b458b5866047f7fb0d2e4a920b0

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Mental Health First Aid achieved!

On September 9, 2016 By admin In Mental health First Aid 0 Comment

Meet our enthusiastic group of participants who completed the Mental health First Aid workshop recently. You now have the skills and the tools to help someone developing a mental illness or experiencing a mental health crisis – well done everyone! Click on ‘READ MORE’ tab to see our photo

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A wonderful group of suicide first-aiders in Townsville!

On May 27, 2016 By admin In suicide prevention, suicide training 0 Comment

Click on ‘read more’ to see our new group of suicide first-aiders from Townsville. What a wonderful group of dedicated workers in the field. It was a pleasure to work with this group and observe their learning as they completed their Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training. They will be helping us create a suicide-safer community. Well done to all!

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Suicide prevention workshop with RFQ!

On April 18, 2016 By admin In suicide and mental health, suicide and the workplace, Suicide in schools, Suicide myths, suicide prevention, Suicide Prevention Queensland, Suicide signs, suicide training, Teen suicide, Youth suicide 0 Comment

Suicide prevention – a vital skills for those working in community services. One of the most recognised programs is Livingworks ASIST which we has the pleasure of delivering to a very experienced group of staff at RFQ. Read some of the comments from participants at this valuable workshop:- “Sandi was a really competent trainer and facilitator. She brought fantastic professional experiences in working in suicide and in counselling roles. She…

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A Mental Health Report on Adolescents

On March 22, 2016 By admin In Youth suicide 0 Comment

2015 Report extract – Suicidal behaviours Around 128,000 or 7.5% of young people aged 12-17 years had seriously considered attempting suicide in the previous 12 months. The proportion was over twice as high for females as for males (10.7% and 4.5% respectively). In addition, 4.7% of males and 6.6% of females answered “prefer not to say” to the question on suicidal ideation and were not asked subsequent questions about suicide…

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Identifying the warning signs in your children

On March 4, 2016 By admin In suicide prevention 0 Comment

Statistics indicate that thousands of teenagers are diagnosed with clinical depression almost every year. However signs for depression are the same as suicide warning signs and thus depression requires your utmost attention in order for the consequent suicide to be prevented. If left ignored depression can become a devastating disease for the affected individual and their families which can ultimately be the driving factor towards self harm and suicide. In…

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Suicide through social media…

On February 27, 2016 By admin In Teen suicide 0 Comment

Suicide is classified as a leading cause of death for adolescents within the age group of 10-24 emphasising the extreme situation for today’s youth. In addition to this almost 157,000 teenagers sustain injuries caused by attempted suicide each and every year. Reasons for teenage suicide are many and include bullying, social inequality, academic issues and relationship failures all of which result in depression. Many teenagers fall into depression whilst searching for an ideal…

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Elderly Suicide Prevention

On February 19, 2016 By admin In suicide prevention 0 Comment

No matter the age, suicide and mental health is a serious issue that affects everyone. I’ve heard many people say different things about it, even calling it victimless. The fact is, however, suicide has many victims, even more than one might imagine. One of the issues we have in fighting suicide is that we put a face on the issue and create a stereotype for suicide, but suicide has no…

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Schools without Suicide: How teachers can make a difference!

On February 19, 2016 By admin In Suicide in schools 0 Comment

Studies conducted in the past indicate that almost 15 per cent of high school students confessed to having considered suicide within their short lives. Young school-going teens can be vulnerable to the concept of suicide in which one death serves as a domino effect and begins others. However experts explain that there are certain procedures that can be implemented by parents to reduce the risk of teen suicide and ultimately…

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Cause and Effect; Prevention is better than cure

On February 12, 2016 By admin In suicide prevention 0 Comment

Latest research indicates that suicide is listed within the top 5 most disturbing issues experienced by the teens of today. With suicide rates alarmingly increasing across Australia, extensive research has been conducted to discover what’s troubling today’s youth, in which the results concluded the top five most popular issues experienced that lead to depression in adolescents: mental health, family relationships, emotional well -being, dating and partner relationships and finally suicide…

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Suicide Prevention Sunshine Coast

On February 4, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 0 Comment

A NEW research centre to be opened on the Sunshine Coast will work to help arrest alarming rates of youth suicide across Australia. The University of the Sunshine Coast has teamed with University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Research Institute to bring together research and clinical practice to improve the care of young people suffering depression and mental illness. A donation by Maroochydore philanthropists Roy and Nola Thompson has advanced…

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Suicide Prevention Mackay

On February 4, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 0 Comment

MACKAY’S suicide crisis has deepened with three men believed to have taken their own lives in a week. Two of them were in their 20s, the other in his 40s. Last year 33 people died by suicide in Mackay. Grapevine Group chairman Laurence Manning said there simply wasn’t enough awareness about mental health issues. “We all understand major health issues like slip, slop, slap and checking our skin for signs…

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Suicide Prevention Townsville

On February 2, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 0 Comment

A COMMUNITY forum on suicide has unanimously voted to form a Townsville prevention network following a growing outcry for more local support services. Wesley LifeForce Suicide Prevention Network hosted the public meeting in Vincent on Tuesday at the Mental Illness Fellowship North Queensland. It was held after national advocacy group Wesley Mission determined the city was an at-risk area according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data and anecdotal evidence. Wesley…

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Suicide Prevention Cairns

On February 2, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 2 Comments

CAIRNS suicide prevention campaigners are calling for change on how suicide data is recorded among youth. It comes as a new report shows an increase in youth suicide rates since 2004. Machans Beach mother Ruth Crouch, whose son Declan took his own life two years ago, said deaths by suicide for those under 15 were not properly recorded. “We don’t know how many people under the age of 15 are…

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Suicide Prevention Gold Coast

On February 2, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 0 Comment

Griffith University on the Gold Coast is conducting a study on behalf of Beyond Blue. It was prompted by documented high rates of non-fatal suicide attempts amongst LGBTI people and is investigating if they constitute a unique risk-group. AISRAP researcher Dr Delaney Skerrett says it’s the first time a study has been done on fatal suicidal behaviour amongst the LGBTI population in Australia. “You get a lot of research done…

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High school suicide rates on the rise

On February 1, 2016 By admin In Suicide in schools 0 Comment

Study results published by NY Daily News show that attempted suicides have risen from 6.3% to 7.8%. Teen suicide is now a growing problem in today’s society. There are suggestions that there is a strong link between bullying and suicide. Perhaps in the past many parents have viewed ‘bullying’ as part of being a kid and growing up, but more and more it is being considered as a serious problem….

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Suicide Prevention Brisbane

On January 31, 2016 By admin In Suicide Prevention Queensland 0 Comment

Suicide stigma of Brisbane Story Bridge: Similar to many large bridges such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Brisbane’s Story Bridge has become notorious as a suicide hotspot. Following two high-profile murder-suicides from the bridge in 2011 and 2012, Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk announced plans to install free telephones linked to suicide prevention hotlines. On 6 February 2013, Lord Mayor Quirk announced plans for to install a…

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Workplace redundancies contribute to suicide

On January 18, 2016 By admin In suicide training 0 Comment

Workplace redundancies contribute to suicide: Redundancies in the mining industry and now Masters closing its doors – these are concerning events. The World Health Organisation estimates that in a company of 1,000 employees, one worker will die by suicide every ten years. For every employee who dies by suicide, another 10–20 will make a suicide attempt. In addition, between 200–300 workers will suffer from a serious mental health problem. These…

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Who can help with suicide prevention

On January 18, 2016 By admin In suicide training 0 Comment

Is it true?…only a mental health professional can help someone who is thinking about suicide?   The stats tell us that it is usually the non professional who encounters someone who is thinking suicide before they engage with a professional, such as a counsellor, psychologist, or mental health worker. This also tells us that if more people in our community were willing to do a suicide first aid course, more…

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David Webb penned the world’s first PhD on suicide – read about his experience here https://suicideprograms.org.au/blog/

On January 18, 2016 By admin In suicide 0 Comment

During an interview David Webb was asked when he was suicidal who tried to help?…this was his answer – “I sought help from quite a few people from a variety of the helping professions. Mostly it was not very helpful, and a few times it was distinctly harmful. The obviously harmful ones were the psychiatrists who deceived me into taking quite inappropriate and dangerous drugs.But the scariest one was a…

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All persons who suicide are suffering from a mental illness?

On January 16, 2016 By admin In suicide and mental illness 0 Comment

Another myth! Suicidal ideation is a human condition…when someone reaches a point in their lives where they think everyone will be better off without them…they may feel they no longer have any hope left and feel helpless to do anything about it…considering suicide as an answer. Whilst many who have been diagnosed with a mental illness may be in the higher risk category of suicidal thoughts and behaviours, not everyone…

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People who talk about suicide won’t do it?

On January 16, 2016 By admin In Suicide myths 0 Comment

Some people who contemplate suicide will talk about their thoughts of wanting to take their own life before they act on those thoughts. What we do know is that most people will indicate in some way or another that things in their life are not going well and they feel that the only option left for them is suicide. What’s important to remember is to take all talk about suicide…

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Can talking about suicide in schools cause more suicides?

On January 16, 2016 By admin In Suicide in schools 0 Comment

Absolutely not! There are four main arguments in response to the myth that talking with kids about suicide will “plant” the idea: Students are already well aware of suicide from their experience with suicidal peers and the media. In the authors’ thirty years of hotline experience and twenty years of school-based suicide prevention programming, there has never been a case of planting the idea. The facts in regard to stimulation…

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Do you think it is dangerous to bring up the subject of suicide with someone who might be at risk?

On January 10, 2016 By admin In Suicide myths 0 Comment

Talking about suicide might put the idea in their head – this is one of the greatest myths of all time, in fact the opposite is true. Talking about suicide openly and directly has been shown to be the most effective step to take to start reducing suicide in our community. Openly talking about suicide shows your genuine concern for the person and allows them to express their thoughts without…

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Who bears the responsibility of suicide in the workplace?

On January 10, 2016 By admin In suicide and the workplace 0 Comment

Suicides traced to losing jobs have surged 65.3 percent in some countries – Didier Lombard, former CEO of France Telecom, was placed under criminal investigation for allegedly creating conditions that drove more than 30 of his employees to commit suicide, and dozens more to attempt it, in two years. One man actually stabbed himself during a staff meeting, and a woman threw herself out of her office window! Numerous civil…

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Around 128,000 Australian teens aged 12-17 years had seriously considered attempting suicide in the last year

On January 10, 2016 By admin In Youth suicide 0 Comment

The portion was over twice as high for females as for males, in addition 4.7% of males and 6.6% of females answered ‘prefer not to say’ in answer to the question on suicidal ideation and therefore were not asked the subsequent questions about suicide plans and attempts, in the Australian Child and Adolescent survey of Mental Health and Well-being in August 2015. This clearly tells us that the full extent…

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Why is suicide more common after a psychiatric patient is released from the hospital?

On December 11, 2015 By admin In suicide and mental health 0 Comment

There are many factors to consider – hospitals provide relief from the stresses of daily life, and once released the person once again has to face the stresses of the outside world which may have contributed to the the initial suicide attempt. After release, some patients are reluctant to take their medications, and there are more opportunities to act on their thoughts of suicide in a non-protected environment. Some patients…

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Maureen Underwood leads the charge in youth suicide prevention.

On December 11, 2015 By admin In suicide prevention 0 Comment

Maureen Underwood, a licensed clinical social worker, has dedicated her life to dealing with the tough stuff – issues such as youth suicide – that no one really likes to talk about. Maureen is one of the Co-Founders at the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide, holding the position of Clinical Director. Maureen was instrumental in writing and publishing Lifelines Trilogy – A Suicide Prevention Program, an Evidence-Based whole-school…

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A parents quote when they got a call from school about their son’s risk of suicide…

On December 4, 2015 By admin In Teen suicide 0 Comment

“When we got the call from the school that we needed to come to a meeting to talk about our son’s possible risk for suicide, I’ve got to be honest, we were shocked and terrified. We felt like failures as parents that we hadn’t picked up on this ourselves! I can’t even put into words how helpful and comforting the counsellor was. He was very clear about why the school…

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Asking about suicide is never easy…

On December 4, 2015 By admin In Suicide in schools 0 Comment

a quote from a student assistance counsellor “Asking about suicide is never easy. But after a student in our school made a very serious attempt, it sure got easier for me. I realised that maybe, just maybe I might be the one to help a student get enough professional support to realise there are healthier ways to solve problems. And the easier it got for me to ask questions about…

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A message for teens

On November 27, 2015 By admin In Youth suicide 0 Comment

I used to think that depression and suicide were things that happened to other people, that the way I approached my life somehow prevented me from becoming a victim of mental illness. I realized just how incorrect that assumption was when my own life was turned upside down by major depression. I first noticed that something was wrong in 8th grade. Apparently, so did one of my teachers, because she…

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Crisis of Suicide

On November 27, 2015 By admin In Suicide signs 0 Comment

Suicide for most is outside the realms of normal experiences. It is a rare event that can happen suddenly taking others around them unawares with very little coping skills. Suicide defies our natural human survival instinct which also makes it difficult for others to comprehend. There are lots of questions but never any clear answers, often leaving others with questions “why did this happen” “what if….” “Could I have done…

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Warning signs of teen suicide

On November 27, 2015 By admin In Youth suicide 0 Comment

Current knowledge about the risk factors and warning signs of teen suicide comes from clinical sources and “psychological autopsy” studies of youth who have completed suicide. Researchers interview the family members, friends, school staff, and other significant people who know the deceased teen and try to discover the factors that may have contributed to their death. The vast majority of youth who die by suicide have significant psychiatric problems, including…

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