The Avondhu

Survey on suicide bereavement seeking men’s insights

MARIAN ROCHE

Next Monday is termed ‘Blue Monday’, allegedly the most depressing day of the year. The oft-repeated claim has been dismissed as pseudoscience and was originally released by Dr Cliff Arnell for a travel company. However, just because it’s not real, doesn’t mask the very real fact that January is tough for a lot of people, for a lot of reasons.

It’s cold and wet, the purse strings are a little tighter, nature is hidernating and the early evenings make it harder to get vital vitamin D. Social activities are down and continual reports by the media that January is depressing, add fuel to the fire.

In October, the National Suicide Research Foundation in collaboration with HUGG (Healing Untold Grief Groups) launched Ireland’s first national survey on suicide bereavement. However, even though men make up the vast majority of those who die by suicide each year - at least 75% - only 20% of the 1500 who have taken the survey are male.

The organisation is calling on men in particular to log on and to take the survey before the end of January. The results of the survey will be used to inform suicide bereavement support services, with an eye to the fact that men are also the least likely to seek support.

“We especially want to learn about men’s experiences with suicide bereavement so that we can inform and enhance suicide bereavement support for males, as we know they are less likely to seek help for their mental health. We want to ensure we represent the experiences of men impacted by the suicide of someone they know. This could be a friend, family member, partner, neighbour, patient, student, co-worker, or client that has died by suicide. “

When men were asked about the challenges in seeking support for mental health, some of the responses were:

“Being men in our forties, none of us found that easy to do” and “Our culture is to ‘keep going’, ‘man up’, so males are not inclined to look for this.”

SUPPORT AVAILABLE

In Mitchelstown, the Haven Hub has continued to operate over Christmas, with fifteen volunteers. While the service is still finding its feet, the service continues to operate from 7pm - 11pm every Saturday night in Forrest

Hall in New Square. Carmel O’Gorman says that the most important thing is that people use the services when they need them, and that they know listening services are available in places like The Haven Hub.

In 2020, 340 deaths by suicide were recorded, according to the Central Statistics Office. It is estimated that six family members and up to 135 individuals may be affected by every suicide death. Amongst men, by far the highest rate of death by suicide occurs in the 45-54 age group.

Amongst members of the Traveller community, the figures are even higher, with Traveller men 6.5 times more likely to die by suicide, and Traveller women are 5 times more likely, than their settled counterparts.

The link for the survey is at: www.hugg. ie/ suicide- bereavement-survey and takes approximately 20 minutes.

For support on any of the issues discussed in this article, please contact the following numbers:

Text HELLO to 50808; Samaritans: free phone 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.ie; Irish Hospice Foundation Bereavement Support Line: freephone 1800 807 077.

The Haven Hub can be called or text on 089 2618815, 7pm - 11pm every Saturday.

NEWS

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2022-01-13T08:00:00.0000000Z

2022-01-13T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://avondhu.pressreader.com/article/281590948923170

The Avondhu (Ireland)