Since the age of 13, I have faced chronic suicidal ideation, leading to multiple attempts throughout my teenage and early adult years. This journey has taught me much about the profound effects of suicide—not only on myself but also on my family and friends.
Within this presentation I aim to explore the feelings of shame, guilt and fear suicidality creates for young people, their families and loved ones. My focus will be on how peer support can forge meaningful connections and offer hope. By sharing experiences through a lived-experience perspective, I aim to highlight the transformative power of peer support in mitigating the stigma and isolation often faced by those struggling with suicidal thoughts.
In my current role as a Senior Youth Peer Worker at Alfred Health, I work closely with many young people who are experiencing thoughts of suicide or have had suicide attempts. Young people often reflect that their fears for reaching out to clinical staff about suicidal thoughts and ideation are due to how these conversations are held.
Young people bring up concerns around being sent to hospital by clinical staff when they disclose thoughts of suicide, safety planning and not being given the space to explore these feelings. These fears and concerns keep young people experiencing suicidal thoughts or crisis silent, these thoughts perpetuate feelings of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness.
This presentation, through a co-design process, will explore how youth-focused peer support can bridge the gap between clinical approaches and lived experiences. By normalising suicide as a part of the human experience and providing a space for shared understanding, peer support offers young people a unique opportunity to connect deeply, acknowledge their pain, and find meaning in their experiences. Peer support helps to validate their struggles, fosters a sense of belonging, and encourages resilience.
Peer support in youth focused mental health settings offers young people an opportunity to connect, an opportunity to sit in the pain and share experiences of the hardships, distress and the beauty that comes along with suicidality.
When young people are able to speak openly about their suicidality with peer workers, we begin to look at suicide differently, we are able to move towards a life that isn’t ruled by suicide, but instead a universal experience that proves to us that we are human.