September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month—a time to raise awareness on this stigmatized, and often taboo, topic: on average, one person commits suicide every 16.2 minutes, and 2/3 of the people who commit suicide suffer from depression. In addition to shifting public perception, we use this month to spread hope and vital information to people affected by suicide. Our goal is ensuring that individuals, friends and families have access to the resources they need to discuss suicide prevention and to seek help.

Learning about suicide prevention during the month of September is a great way to educate yourself and others. If you or someone you know needs emergency assistance in the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 800-273-8255 and online chat is also available. Find more help at nami.org/Find-Support. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.

Source: nami.org