Keeping Our Kids Alive

Book excerpt: Suicide is a confronting topic. As a parent, it may represent the greatest fear for our family. Yet, for many, there is a misguided belief that talking about suicide with young people causes further distress. Research shows otherwise — not talking about suicide can be harmful. Psychologist Lyn O’Grady has spent decades working, researching and presenting on better mental health for children, young people and families. Along the way, she has witnessed the desperate struggle with life that suicidal thoughts and feelings bring. She has also seen countless books about parenting, usually featuring simplistic recipe-type approaches that can be appealing but challenging to implement at times of crisis. So she wrote this book to explain exactly what it means to be a parent of a teenager who is struggling with suicidal thoughts and behaviours and how to help. Drawing on practical experience across a range of community settings, the lived experience of people and families who have experienced suicidality, and the latest research and theories in the field, this book helps: • to arm parents with knowledge so they can better understand what’s going on with their teenager • to provide space to reflect on their parenting and to look after themselves • to not feel alone; and • to know what to do to support their teenagers during difficult times. This book will help any parent or health worker working with families to understand how to connect and communicate with teenagers when dealing with the topic of suicide.