Dear colleagues and fellow community members,
We hope that you are remaining safe and well while navigating these challenging times. The COVID19 pandemic has not only affected our physical health, but it has also created significant stressors for our emotional wellbeing. CASP welcomes the increasing dialogue about both the immediate and longer-term mental health needs and concerns that have emerged, knowing that they will only continue to grow over the course of this national crisis. We have received many questions about what this will mean for suicide in Canada, as we continue to support all of those who are responding on the frontlines as well as gathering information to help us better understand what the full impact will truly be.
Now that the focus has shifted to mental health and suicide, many of us are getting requests to share both our professional opinions and personal stories about how the novel coronavirus, with its physical, emotional, social and economic consequences, has added to and changed our risk for and response to suicide. CASP appreciates the importance of talking about suicide, but always in as safe a way as possible.
KEEPING WELL - KEEPING SAFE! The Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (CASP) is aware that the physical and economic challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic may impact your mental health and emotional state of well-being. Please reach out to connect with others and to keep yourself informed from reliable sources. To support your self-care, we have identified a number of strategies and resources to help you through these challenging times. Strategies:
Resources:
Activities:
| The International Association for Suicide Prevention recently published media guidelines for reporting on suicide during the pandemic. We share those with you in the hopes that they will inform you as to how best to talk about what you are experiencing and witnessing now and in the coming days ahead. We need to tell the story in a way that has a place for hope in our mission to prevent suicide and promote life. (click on the image for the PDF complete document). |