Male suicide - the biggest killer of men under 45 years
Tragically, suicide is not as rare as one might think. In 2016, the last year global data is available from the World Health Organization (WHO), there were an estimated 793,000 suicide deaths worldwide. Most were men.
In the UK, the male suicide rate is its lowest since 1981 – 15.5 deaths per 100,000.
But suicide is still the single biggest killer of men under the age of 45.
And a marked gender split remains. For UK women, the rate is a third of men’s: 4.9 suicides per 100,000.
With the recent passing of Mike Thalassitis, let’s make extra time for the men and boys in our lives - especially those who appear to ‘have it all’. Let’s remind them there’s always a choice, always an alternative and there will always be someone to listen. Let’s bring our children up to be able to share their feelings honestly, to be free to express their feelings and to be able to deal with situations. Remind them that happiness begins and ends within themselves. No amount of Insta followers, ‘faking it til you make it’ and ‘living the dream’ will fill the void of housing an empty identity.
** UPDATED **
I don't know about you, but I am not a professional on the subject of suicide and mental health, so I'm not here to make comments or judgements about people / celebrities I don't know.
All I would like to do is to encourage everyone who is concerned for a friend, family member or work colleague, to be aware of a number of organisations that offer free and specialised advice. Here's a couple I suggest to friends and clients :-
https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/support-and-information/worried-about-someone-else/
Let’s make time for ourselves, our friends and our family.
