BLOG | Talking about suicide is never easy
16th March 2023
Talking about suicide is never easy.
And that applies when running a national campaign on the topic too. When SAMH started developing a new suicide prevention campaign last year, people with lived experience told us that it had to be bold and powerful, something that captured and kept attention. But it was equally important that we did so sensitively, and with a message of hope.
So we spoke to people who had lived with suicidal thoughts, to people who supported others who had, and to those who had lost someone to suicide. Overwhelmingly, they told us that it was important that we used the word ‘suicide’, front and centre of the campaign.
“It feels like a dance. I’ve known them for 30 years. And I think, ‘please ask me now…’ and they don’t, even after I’ve said, ‘I’m at my lowest point.’ I needed permission to say it.”
With that in mind, we aimed to create a suicide prevention campaign that went beyond awareness raising, and inspired action. We wanted people to feel confident to trust their gut, dig deep, and find the courage within themselves to ask the question they were afraid of. Key to that was equipping people with the tools to ask the question, and to provide guidance on what to do if the answer was yes.
The result was a campaign with a clear message: If you’re worried they’re thinking about suicide, ask them about suicide.
Across TV, podcasts, and social media, we reached more than half the adult population in Scotland with our message. And the support for the campaign was incredible – thank you to each and every one of you who watched the film, accessed our resources, or shared your own experiences. Almost half a million people took action as a result of seeing the campaign – from chatting to friends and family about the campaign, to asking someone if they’re thinking about suicide, or opening up about their own thoughts of suicide. We know that talking about suicide is hard, but your bravery in doing so really could save lives. Evidence shows that asking someone if they’re suicidal can protect them – they feel listened to, and hopefully less trapped.
While Ask Them About Suicide may have been the first time you heard from SAMH on suicide; behind the scenes, suicide prevention is a huge part of what we do every day. Our staff teams in mental health services across Scotland support people living with suicidal thoughts every day. Our suicide prevention trainers help people to feel more confident in speaking about suicide. And our peer support services enable people with lived experience to provide an understanding ear for one another.
Suicide prevention is also a key pillar of our new strategy, We Won’t Wait. Our mental health system was inadequate long before the pandemic, but the added pressure has had devastating results, and we’ll continue to see this for years to come. We need additional investment in mental health services and in suicide prevention now, to minimise the aftershock in the coming years. But we won’t wait for that to happen. Every day we support people affected by suicide or suicidal thoughts through our community-based teams and remain one of Scotland’s biggest suicide prevention trainers. We are a key partner in the Distress Brief Intervention programme, and later this year we will lauch a new Grampian-wide multi-agency strategic partnership and associated delivery programme that builds on many years of suicide prevention in the North East. With thanks to our supporters, in collaboration with the Suicidal Behaviour Research Lab at the University of Glasgow, we are able to fund research on suicide prevention and recently funded a second PhD exploring suicide and stigma. The first PhD delivered ground-breaking research focusing specifically on men to understand suicide risk.
Suicide touches all of our lives in one way or another, so while talking about it might not be easy, it’s what we all need to continue doing. It could just save a life.
Find out more at www.samh.org.uk/ask
