Being scared of your needs is NORMAL when you have grown up in an environment where it was not okay or safe to ask for your needs to be met. Know that you CAN shift this pattern. You CAN reconnect …
Self-Betrayal: Putting Others First
When we grow up with abusive or neglectful parents, we quickly learn to ignore our own needs. Maybe it is dangerous to express our needs, or when we do, they are ignored. The result is a deep disconnect from our …
Protective Factors for Suicide Prevention
If you read through this list and see that you are weak in some of these factors, you can always strengthen others. For example, if your family has a lot of conflicts and it feels out of your control, you …
Reaching Out To Someone You Are Worried About
This post is a great pocket guide for ‘how to have that conversation’. Above (in the slide) are the DOs, and below are the DO NOTS: Don’t try to talk them out of suicide Don’t try to fix their problem. …
A Suicide Attempt is a Cry for Help
When people are considering suicide, they need help from a trained professional. A therapist, counsellor, or doctor as soon as possible. Emergency assistance is available in Australia through Lifeline: 13 11 14 ____ Reference: https://medbroadcast.com/condition/getcondition/suicide
Warning Signs of Suicide
Warning signs are important. Know what to look for and reach out if in doubt. We often think that most suicides are caused by a one-off event, maybe a relationship break-up, the loss of a career or public shaming. In …
Suicide and its Causes
I read a book about 29 survivors who had all attempted suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. ALL of them regretted their decision to jump AS SOON AS THEY JUMPED. In another article, Dr Freedenthal found that of …
Statistics of Suicide in Australia
When I look at these statistics, I feel really sad. If suicide rates can be taken to be somehow reflective of how we are doing as a community in the area of mental health, then we are failing. If anyone …
Familial Guilt and Aligning with Our Values
This is one I come back to again and again. Whenever I am feeling guilty, I ask myself, am I out of alignment with my values? If yes, I realign with them. If not, I stop the guilt. Love, Jen
Mental Illness: Adapting to Unhealthy Situations
Knowing that mental illness results from normal adaptations to unhealthy situations became clear to me when I read “The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog” by Dr Bruce Perry. Trigger warning for this book – it does contain harrowing …