Thu 21 Jul 2011 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
As suicide continues to hurt deeply in the glbt community, the Mental Health Foundation is planning a prevention forum in Auckland aimed at arming people and communities with basic and practical ways of keeping their loved ones safe. "How Do We Talk About Suicide?" will be held on Wednesday September 7 from 8am to 5pm at the Telstra Clear Pacific Events Centre in South Auckland. It will also be streamed live on the internet and recorded for those unable to attend in person. “We’re encouraging anyone with an interest in suicide prevention in our communities to attend, from clinical and social workers through to families, whanau and people with experience of mental illness,” says Judi Clements, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation. "The forum will be very interactive, with panel discussions, a diverse array of speakers and plenty of time for questions from the audience." Topics covered during the day will include supporting people at risk, warning signs, suicide in communities, the challenges of suicide prevention via social media, indigenous wellbeing, and finding hope and support after the loss of a loved one. The full speakers list is yet to be confirmed, but will include suicide survivors and bereaved people, GPs, counsellors and psychologists, social and youth workers, Maori health workers, kaumatua and media representatives. Gay filmmaker and journalist Christopher Banks will take part in an afternoon panel discussion on warning signs, social and new media, recounting his experiences since launching Bipolar Bear, a blog and Facebook community aimed at gay men with experience of mental illness. "The blog and Facebook group have been a great way for gay men to start talking openly about their own experiences with mental illness, and for some this will be the first medium in which they’ve chosen to do it – before talking to friends, partners or family,” Banks says. "Research has shown that glbt people are at increased risk of having suicidal thoughts, making suicide attempts and dying by suicide. "I've seen through my blog that people in crisis or distress are using social media to send out cries for help as part of their daily dialogue online, and sometimes they might not be easy to spot. As part of the online community we need to be able to recognise these warning signs and discuss how we can act appropriately to help." Clements says we all have a role to play in suicide prevention, and we need dialogue to be happening at a grass roots community level. "By bringing people together from all walks of life to share their experience and stories, we aim to break down barriers associated with the discussion of suicide in a way that lets people know what they can do to make a difference. "Depression and health problems can be major contributing factors to suicide, and mental health issues in particular still carry a huge amount of stigma. Open and honest discussion in a safe environment like our annual forum is just one way in which we can all contribute to the body of knowledge that will help prevent suicide in our communities." Registration for the "How Do We Talk About Suicide?" forum costs $65 and can be done online at www.spinz.org.nz. A limited number of registration fee waivers are available for those on low incomes and can be applied for via this website.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 21st July 2011 - 4:21pm