Suicidal thoughts & self-harm
You don't have to be certain you want to die to know you're struggling. Sometimes it's enough to know that life feels too painful to carry alone.
Living with suicidal thoughts or self-harm can feel incredibly isolating. You may feel as though nobody would understand what you're experiencing, or worry that speaking about it will frighten the people around you. Many people carry these thoughts in silence for weeks, months, or even years.
For some, the thoughts are fleeting. For others, they become persistent. Some people wish they could disappear, go to sleep and not wake up, or simply stop existing for a while. Others feel trapped by emotional pain that seems impossible to escape.
Self-harm can also mean different things to different people.
For some, it is a way of coping with emotions that feel too overwhelming to hold inside. For others, it brings a temporary sense of relief, release, or control when everything else feels unmanageable.
Whatever your experience, you are not alone.
Many people who experience suicidal thoughts or self-harm are trying to cope with emotional pain that has become too much to carry on their own.
Behind suicidal thoughts or self-harm, there is often a need that has gone unheard for a long time.
uicidal thoughts and self-harm are often misunderstood. They are rarely about simply wanting life to end. More often, they reflect a wish for unbearable emotional pain to stop.
These experiences can develop alongside depression, trauma, grief, anxiety, neurodivergence, relationship difficulties, loneliness, or long periods of feeling overwhelmed. Every person's story is different, and understanding that story is an important part of therapy.
We don't begin by asking, "What's wrong with you?" We begin by asking what has happened, what you've been carrying, and what has made life feel this painful.
Therapy offers a space where these experiences can be spoken about openly, without judgement or shame. Together, we'll work to understand the pain beneath the thoughts, strengthen your sense of safety, and find ways of coping that don't leave you carrying everything alone.
You don't have to wait until you're in crisis to ask for help.
If you're in immediate danger
If you're worried that you might act on suicidal thoughts, or you don't feel able to keep yourself safe, please seek immediate support. Contact 999 or 112, go to your nearest Emergency Department, or tell someone you trust as soon as you can. You deserve help, and you don't have to face this alone.
Support services
Emergency Services: 999 or 112
Samaritans: 116 123 (free, 24 hours)
Pieta: 1800 247 247 or text HELP to 51444 (24 hours)
Therapists who work with suicidal thoughts & self-harm
James Sloane
Works with adults (18+)