For the Swindon and District Samaritans, and for every other Samaritans team across the country Thursday is the Samaritans Awareness Day. It’s 24/7 (24th July) so a perfect day / date to get this message across but for every member of the Samaritans team whether they are Swindon & District or anywhere else, 24/7 is every day.
Every 10 seconds, Samaritans respond to a call for help without judgement or pressure. There’s no typical person who calls and no typical problem which is talked about. What matters is how life is making you feel.
Every life lost to suicide is a tragedy and Samaritans vision is that fewer people die by suicide – we hope that by encouraging people to talk about suicidal feelings fewer people will make this choice.
Samaritans Awareness Day is on 24 July because they are here to listen 24/7 – every day and night of the year – to prevent suicide through the power of human connection.
Samaritans offer people the time and space to talk through whatever is troubling them – helping to work through what’s on their mind; this can feel like a weight has been lifted, even if nothing has changed. It can help put things in perspective, help somebody feel more positive about their future and less alone.
As Gareth, a Samaritans caller, said: ‘I don’t remember much about that call but what I do know is the person I spoke to showed me a lot of empathy and they didn’t judge me…letting me talk and explain how I was feeling. That’s what I really needed.’
Please remember, be kind to yourself today and every day and if you’re struggling to cope you can contact Samaritans free, at any time of the day or the night, 365 days of the year:
- Call: 116 123
- Email: jo@samaritans.org
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