Suicidal thoughts | Support for AFYP

We don’t know what starts suicidal thoughts in one person and not another. There are things called risk factors that make it more likely, such as having depression or experiencing a trauma. But, there are many people who live with mental health issues or experience trauma who do not have suicidal thoughts.

It’s important to remember that having suicidal thoughts doesn’t mean that there is something wrong with you. It is likely a sign that you’re really struggling and need some support.

Thinking about the words ‘death’, ‘dying’ or ‘dead’ doesn’t mean that you’re having suicidal thoughts. We can all think things to ourselves that we don’t really mean like “I’m so bored I could die!”. This doesn’t mean that you want to end your own life.

If you start to think of ways that you could end your life, find it hard to think about your future or have thoughts about something happening to you so you die (for example ‘I wish that car would run me over’) then you might be experiencing suicidal thoughts.

Thoughts about suicide might come and go, some days they might be really bad and other days you might not think about them at all. This doesn’t mean that the issue that is causing them has been resolved. Even if they’re not bad all the time, experiencing suicidal thoughts is serious and you should talk to someone about them before they get worse.

No. There is a lot of stigma around talking about suicide or having suicidal thoughts which makes people avoid speaking out when they need help the most. If someone is talking about taking their own life, they should be taken seriously and given the support they need.

Friends and family of people who have died by suicide say that they wish the person had spoken out and told someone how they were feeling.

Having a conversation about mental health can be difficult, telling someone that you’re having thoughts about dying can be really scary. You might be worried how they will react or if they’ll get angry or upset with you. You might not think that anyone cares. They do!

It might be helpful to think about how you want to begin the conversation like “I want to talk to you about some thoughts I’ve been having”. You could write it down and read it to the person or let them read it.

If you don’t feel like you’ve got someone close to talk to you, call a helpline or message a chat line. Mental health charities and helplines are full of people who care and want to help you.

If you feel comfortable you could ask the person how they are feeling or if there is anything they would like to talk about. If you’re worried about a friend you can talk to an adult who can have that conversation.

If you’re ever worried that someone might be about to hurt themselves, call 999 immediately.

Young Minds– Professional Support Resources

Education Scotland – Positive Mental Wellbeing Resources

TURAS – For staff working in mental health: Prevention of self harm and suicide