WORLD SUICIDE PREVENTION DAY 2026

 Content warning: This section contains information about suicide and suicide prevention.   

World Suicide Prevention Day 2026

Thursday 10 September sees World Suicide Prevention Day take place. This is held to raise awareness of suicide, to reduce the stigma that surrounds the topic and encourage action to be taken on suicide prevention.

 

The theme for this year is 'changing the narrative on suicide' and that is something that needs to happen. We can't be quiet about something like this, can't suffer in silence and not talk or write about it. Our upcoming mental health issue will include articles on this subject. That will be published at the end of this month but we need some coverage now.

Winning the Battle to Stay Alive by Steve Ashfield

This isn’t an easy article to write, but if it helps just one person it will have been worthwhile publishing it.  Suicide is such a difficult subject to write about and it is something that I’ve both considered many times and also attempted.

I’m not going to tell you how I tried to end my life. This article is supposed to help you, not be an instruction manual.  I was around 12 when the dark clouds first began to affect me. More about that in an article I have written for our upcoming mental health special. The main subject of that article is the fact that I suffered in silence and didn’t talk to anyone about what was happening and that’s just not the thing to do.

My schooldays were not an easy time for me. Of course I didn’t know at the time that I was autistic. I was just the quiet, sensitive child who somehow plucked up the courage to become a journalist.

I still can’t work out how no one at school (or my parents and friends) realised that I was suffering mentally. They were just used to me being quiet, but had no idea of the horrible thoughts that were swirling around my head.

My elder brother had two nervous breakdowns and it seems mental health problems are really something that has affected generations of my family. I regularly thought about suicide when I was at school. The problems I had just seemed insurmountable, but I never had the courage to do anything at home. 

The thought of a family member being the ones to find me deterred me. I’d been in that situation myself when my brother attempted to take his life. I caught him in time, but that experience showed to me how a suicide doesn’t just affect the person who dies.

The plan was therefore to take my life while on a school trip to York. I was my usual quiet self and no one had a clue what I was planning to do. When it came to it, I just couldn’t do it, but that didn’t cure my mental health problems.

Many difficult years followed and suicide was often on my mind. There were a few more attempts, most recently in 2017. That really was a low point and very nearly the end for me. By that time I had learned that seeking help rather than suffering in silence was highly advisable. Later that year, I found myself going to The Maytree in London. It describes itself as a “sanctuary for the suicidal” and my time there really did help me. I’d never spoken so much about my mental health or eaten so much quiche lorraine.

There are still dark moments, but finding out I have autism and ADHD has helped me, I have a greater understanding of my life now. There’s still work to do and I had some tough times after being told I might be autistic. More about that in our mental health special.  

Getting help is the answer. It won’t instantly cure your ills, but being able to be open about this subject is so important. There is still stigma attached to the subject of suicide. It’s often a brilliant way to end a conversation that you don’t want to continue. That sadly applies to mental health in general.  

If you break your leg, people will be full of sympathy, ask you how it happened and want to sign your plaster. Tell them that you have mental health problems and you’re bandaged up because you’ve self-harmed or attempted suicide and you just never know how they will react. It shouldn’t be like that.

I hope this article has helped you if you’re in this situation.  We’ll have more about this in future editions. 

Premier League Together Against Suicide Campaign

It's always good to see Premier League clubs helping their fans. The 'Together Against Suicide' campaign is being supported by all 20 clubs, and that of course includes Brighton and Hove Albion.

The following statement was made by the Premier League on their website: "The expansion of Together Against Suicide to all 20 Premier League clubs is an important step forward.  

By creating safe, welcoming spaces on matchdays, clubs can encourage conversations and help supporters affected by suicide or suicidal thoughts access the support and expert advice they need." 

The Premier League already have an Inside Matters section on their site.  This helps to raise awareness of mental health and it encourage football fans to check on the wellbeing of others. We will have more about this in the sports section of our Mental Health Special due out at the end of September, an absoutely unmissable issue. 

Brighton Bereaved by Suicide Wins Award

Brighton Bereaved by Suicide along with Surrey Support After Suicide were both named Specialist Grief Service of the Year this week. They won awards in the London & Southeast Prestige Awards 2026/27 and impressed judges with their psych-social support for those who are bereaved by suicide.

Wendy Robinson is the manager of Brighton Bereaved by Suicide. Talking about the award, she commented: “The dedicated team are incredibly proud to be acknowledged for the sensitive and important work we do. This award is for all those who have ever used our services and to remember those we have lost through suicide.  We are truly grateful for the 2026 award and our funders and inspired everyday by those whom we meet in our service.”