Our UK (and European) Peer Support Suicide Group

We meet fortnightly on a Sunday afternoon at 3pm, with social zoom hangouts in between. Our meetings last for 90 minutes and we follow the same format each time. Our meetings are co facilitated by Heather, Nancy and Lisa Marie, we work together to use our ongoing lived experience of suicide, along with peer specialisms in grief, Wellness Recovery Action Planning, somatics, creative writing and Open Dialogue to facilitate the conversation that we share.

Our purpose is to provide a non clinical, compassionate, confidential place for people to come and talk about their own experiences of suicide and their own relationship to suicide. Members have reflected that having a consistent, confidential and curious community to talk with takes the pressure off the rest of their lives. People who come to our meetings do so on an as they feel basis, which no records kept, no checking in or limitations on their attendance. We recognise that for many of us, suicide is something we need to talk about more than once and that there is no hierarchy of suicide, all suicide experiences count, all deserve care.

Many people in the Europe are living with the constant companion of suicide, their reasons for wanting to die as are individual as each persons circumstances. Rather than taking a suicide prevention approach of trying to assess or safeguard members, we make space for each person to be exactly as they are. Some people attend because they want to speak about their lives and they want other people to respond, others come to share a difficult thing and sit quietly, others join us in offering deep listening and silent support. There is no one way to be in our group.

When I asked the group how the group space feels to them, they said:

• Non judgemental

• Validating

• Kind

• Compassionate

• Strength

• Autonomy

• Humour

• Shared humanity

• Non coercive

• Welcoming to new people.