Suicide is a highly sensitive topic, but former governor-general Quentin Bryce fears we run the risk of letting others suffer in silence if we are too reluctant to talk about it.
Former governor-general Dame Quentin Bryce says Australians have an obligation to take better care of their friends and neighbours by asking the question:"Are you OK?"Dame Quentin is among those encouraging more openness in the way suicide is talked aboutThe call comes ahead of R U OK? Day on Thursday, Dame Quentin — who is now an ambassador for The Mental Health Services Learning Network — believes Australians need to get over the fear of being told to mind their own business.
"Sure you run the risk of a rebuke — of somebody being offended — but then you just say: 'Look, I'm sorry about that'," Dame Quentin said."I understand why we hesitate to intervene, we think 'oh, that's not my business, it's a private matter,' but we can't be bystanders.Australia's suicide rate sits at 12.9 per 100,000.
According to visiting UK psychiatrist Dr Sepehr Hafizi, that is far from the highest figure in the world — that dubious distinction, he said, belongs to Lithuania.
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