A Guide to Strong Advocacy
As advocates and ambassadors, it is important to present yourself as a knowledgeable source when talking about suicide and mental health issues. Shifting the dialogue surrounding mental illness can help break down the stigma and create a culture of acceptance. As you share your stories and personal experiences with mental illness, keeping a few things in mind will ensure that you continue to impact the mental health world in a positive way.
First, use appropriate language.
It is important to remain cognizant of the connotations and emotional responses that may be linked to your words. Never use the word “committed” when discussing suicide, as it implies that the mentally ill are “guilty” in some way. Avoid “successfully/unsuccessfully,” because these words suggest that there is a right or wrong way to harm yourself. Using the phrases “took their own life” or “died by suicide” are more productive. When having these discussions, also keep in mind that those who are diagnosed with mental illnesses are not “victims” nor are they “suffering.”
When speaking about others, be careful not to reduce them to their diagnosis: “she is a person with bipolar disorder” is much preferred to “she is bipolar.” Casual use of clinical terms or their slang versions (OCD, schizo, bipolar, autistic, psycho/psychotic, anorexic, junkie, etc.) can be hurtful to families affected by these disorders and trivialize the issues they face. Using “OCD” to describe an organized friend, for example, can oversimplify the disorder (not everyone with OCD is obsessed with cleanliness and may be affected by other symptoms).
Avoid details
When speaking about personal experience with trauma or suicide/suicide attempts, it can be easy to trigger others or glorify self harm. Don’t include details in your stories such as suicide method, location, or the contents of a suicide note. Be careful not to present suicide as an understandable solution to a problem nor the result of a specific trigger like a job loss or breakup.
Do your part to avoid the glamorization or sensationalization of suicide. In instances where suicide is inappropriately reported in the news, do what you can to draw attention away from specific details and instead be sure to…
…Emphasize prevention
Finally, when you are speaking out about suicide, the emphasis should always be on prevention. Suicide is a preventable loss. Refer to the wider issues surrounding mental health issues, and provide resources like the Robbie’s Hope Handbook and Suicide Prevention Hotline (1-800-273-8255 soon to be 988). Remember that adjusting your language is only a small piece of the puzzle— shifting the conversation and destigmatizing mental illness will take effort on all fronts.
For a shareable version of this guide, access this document.
Article written by Sophia Lisco, Robbie’s Hope Intern
