Lifeline has always supported Australians in crisis, especially when things are overwhelming and they are thinking of ending their lives.  That’s often when Australians call us. As a leader in the delivery of suicide prevention services, supporting people in crisis is central to our role.

As an organisation, we will do everything we can to prevent this tragic cause of death. We will continue to work with communities across Australia, supporting Australians in times of crisis and equipping individuals and communities to be resilient and suicide-safe.

With best wishes,

Lifeline has some great news for young people who are going through a tough time. We are now collaborating with headspace to deliver the telephone component of the new eheadspace service.

eheadspace provides online and telephone mental health support and counselling to young people 12-25. It is a confidential, free, and secure space where young people and their families can chat, talk or email qualified youth mental health professionals. The service can be accessed at www.eheadspace.org.au and hours of operation are:

Thanks to Icon Film Distribution we have five double passes to give away for The Iron Lady. This film looks behind the scenes at one of Britain’s most loved and hated Prime Ministers, Margaret Thatcher; a woman who came from nowhere to smash through barriers of gender and class to be heard in a male dominated world. It is a film about power and the price that is paid for power, a story that is both unique and universal. Releasing nationally 26 December, The Iron Lady stars Academy Award-winners Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher and Jim Broadbent as her husband, Denis.

Be the first five subscribers to email marketing@lifeline.org.au to receive your double pass. Please refer to the terms and conditions 

Location: Geelong, VIC
Years in operation: 28 years
Employed full-time staff: 10
Number of Volunteers: 135
Services provided: Telephone crisis support 13 11 14, relationship, gambling and general counselling services, ASIST training and Trauma Helpline, Community Forums and Drought Information Packages.

Website: http://geelonglifeline.org.au/

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Everyone experiences difficult times in their lives and during these times, we all experience a great deal of stress and strain. However, men and women often experience and handle these situations differently.

"For men, it can be hard to talk about our emotions, as there is an expectation that we should be able to handle things and just get on with it," Lifeline's Chris Wagner said.

"But there are things you can do to get through these difficult times and you don't have to go through it alone."

"The most important thing to realise is that difficult times will pass and you can get through it."

What can you do to get through tough times?

1.Recognise when you aren't coping
Be aware of your reactions to stress and pay attention to your body and your physical and mental health. Also listen to concerns from family or friends about your wellbeing or behaviour.

2.Talk about it
Talking about the situation with someone you trust can relieve stress, give you some perspective and allow you to release some negative emotions. Alternatively, you can speak to your GP, telephone helplines, counsellors or other health professionals who can assist you in finding strategies to manage your situation.

3.Take care of yourself
Counteract the negative impact of stress and tension by eating healthily, exercising regularly, doing activities you enjoy and taking time out to relax.

4.Reduce use of alcohol and drugs, including caffeine and nicotine
Limit your intake as much as possible, as use of alcohol and drugs can affect your ability to make good decisions as well as damage your relationships and affect your physical and mental health.

5.Avoid excessive gambling or other high-risk activities
Such activities can put yourself and others around you in danger and worsen your situation, particularly in the case of excessive gambling.

6.Have a health check-up
Discuss your situation with your doctor - they can provide advice and referrals to services that may be able to assist you.

7.Be proactive
Come up with some practical ways to manage your situation - stay positive and focus on what you can do, rather than what is out of your control.

8.Stay connected
Be sure to stay in touch with family and friends via whatever means are available to you, as this enables you to feel valued and allows you to feel less isolated and alone.

Where can I go for help?

Lifeline - 13 11 14
Mensline Australia - 1300 789 978
Relationships Australia - 1300 364 277

Further information on difficult times for men and the common signs of stress as well as additional resources can be found in Lifeline's tool kit - 'Men Experiencing Difficult Times' .

Lifeline is holding a fundraising lunch at Parliament House in Canberra on November 18 to raise much needed funds for our newly established Lifeline Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Hosted by award winning journalist Hugh Riminton, an exciting panel of commentators and journalists will discuss their personal views about today's taboos and what we can all do to address them.

Panellists include Jessica Rowe, Chris Uhlmann, Joe Roff, John Brogden and Professor Beverley Raphael.

Tickets are $110pp or $1,000 table 10. Includes two course meal and beverages.

To attend this exciting fundraising lunch in support of Lifeline purchase tickets online.

Q1) What is ASIST?
 
ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) is a two day interactive workshop in suicide first aid where participants learn how to recognise when someone may be at risk of suicide and respond in ways that help increase their immediate safety and link them to further help. The aims of the workshop are to enhance a caregiver's abilities to help a person at risk to avoid suicide. ASIST was developed in 1983 by LivingWorks in Canada and is now available in many countries including Australia, Norway, North America, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan and the UK. All ASIST trainers are trained by and registered with LivingWorks to ensure a consistent delivery of the program using standardised LivingWorks resources.
 
Q2) Why is ASIST important?
 
Suicide is mostly preventable; however the stigma that surrounds it makes it a difficult subject to talk about. Many people feel that they don't have the skills or the confidence to identify a person who may be at risk and therefore may avoid getting involved. ASIST provides people with a first aid model for intervention and over the course of the two days, gives participants many opportunities to explore their concerns and practice what they have learnt in a supportive environment. Participants consistently finish the two day program feeling ready, willing and able to help someone who may be at risk of suicide.
 
Q3) Why/how did you become an ASIST Trainer?
 
Lifeline Melbourne began providing ASIST training when it was first introduced to Australia in 1996 and in 2005 made it a requirement for all telephone counsellors in the Melbourne phone room to be trained in the ASIST model. The program requires two trainers for each workshop and over the course of that year, seven staff and volunteers completed the five day, train the trainer and I was one of these.
 
Q4) What training courses and sessions does LivingWorks provide?
 
In addition to ASIST, LivingWorks have also developed a half day suicide alertness program called safeTALK where participants learn how to become more alert to prevention opportunities and offer help that increases safety.
 
Q5) Who can undertake ASIST Training and what benefits do people receive from completing this training?
 
ASIST is suitable for all kinds of caregivers from professional workers, to volunteers, to anyone responding to family and friends. ASIST is underpinned by a fundamental belief that most people who are thinking about suicide want help to live. Participants are taught how to recognise not only the obvious signs that someone might be considering suicide, but also the subtle, sometimes vague signs that often get missed or ignored. The workshop prepares people to be able to work with those at risk to increase their immediate safety and then link them to further help. Skills and knowledge can be very empowering for people who want to help but don't know how and this is the main benefit that participants take away from the training.
 
Q6) Do you have any upcoming ASIST events or Training seminars?
 
We run over 40 ASIST workshops every year and many of these are open to the public to attend. We use the LivingWorks website (www.livingworks.com.au) to promote our workshops and all our dates for 2012 are listed there together with direct contact details for registration. Alternatively, people can contact me directly at kerry.dawson@wesley.org.au for details of upcoming workshops. In addition to public workshops we also run in house programs for organisations who have several people to train. 

Lifeline is seeking to improve the online self-help resources provided on our website. This site receives around 470,000  visits annually – many from people looking for information and tools to support them or someone they know. Our tool kits and fact sheets, which provide information on a variety of mental health concerns, have long been a popular and valued part of our service. We are now looking to build a more rich and interactive experience for people wanting to access support tools and information. A new look self-help section will be launched in the second half of 2012. We’ll keep you posted.

Tell us what you think
You may have received an email about a survey we were conducting to support this work. If you have already participated in the survey – thank you. If you would still like to provide some feedback or ideas about how we could improve the self-help resources on offer, please email some brief information to marketing@lifeline.org.au.  

If you wish to access the current Lifeline self-help resources visit: www.lifeline.org.au/infoservice

This project is funded by our valued corporate partner Prime Super – Sponsor of the Lifeline Information Service. 

Lifeline is truly grateful for the generosity and dedication of all of its volunteers who selflessly give their time in order to help others. We do also have to acknowledge however, that despite the best efforts of tireless Centre Managers, the demographics of communities and our volunteers are changing. Many of our volunteers work or study during the week and find it difficult to commit to overnight shifts. Lifeline has to accept this reality and stay true to our mission of supporting our callers even at some cost to our volunteering culture.  
 
Lifeline has introduced our ‘Saving Lives Overnight’ program, that involves paying Lifeline crisis supporters on the midnight – 6am shift on weeknights.  This has successfully led to a 28% increase in the call answer rate from August 2011 and a 43% decrease in queue times during these hours. Whilst 13 11 14 is still busy overnight, being able to fund 10 trained and experienced crisis supporters overnight has meant that during this time period we have been able to answer over 3,000 calls and develop just under 300 safe plans with people contacting us at risk of suicide.
 
Lifeline callers are in great need, especially during these hours, with Lifeline often being the only means of support that they can access outside of business hours. It is essential that Lifeline continues to improve this answer rate.
 
Lifeline would like to thank The QBE Foundation for their generous donation of $100k that will go towards funding part of this project.  Whilst the program has proved extremely successful, with a 28% increase in the call answer rate, we need to continue working hard to answer more calls.

Melbourne’s own “Amazing Race” the Monash Golden Key, Race Against Depression was held on Sunday 18 September and raised $8020.060 for Lifeline. 96 people in teams of three, solved clues and riddles, leading them from Birrarung Park, Federation Square to 14 different locations around Melbourne and back again. Each team had a unique journey; one team followed a route which included failed juggling attempts, leopard print shoe shopping, a David Bowie musical trivia challenge, and a blindfolded chocolate guessing game.

Lifeline would like to congratulate Monash Golden Key, on their brilliant organisation of a community fundraising event and we are grateful for their generous donation.

If you would like to organise a community fundraising event in support of Lifeline please contact our Fundraising team.