We are all familiar with bog hops. Normally they are in celebration of something fun – a holiday season, or a type of fiction, or a type of character. But this week – Sunday 8th September to Saturday 14th September is Suicide Prevention Week and I am taking part in a bog hop to inform, educate and raise awareness of the risk faced by young people and, sadly, in particular young LGBT people.
Some figures – these are for the UK but they are just as scary everywhere else:
In the United Kingdom 12 young men kill themselves each week.
57% of gay/bisexual boys have seriously contemplated taking their own lives.
16% of gay/bisexual boys have attempted to take their own lives [3 times the percentage of straight kids].
20% of lesbians have attempted to take their own lives [4 times the percentage of straight kids].
Bullying at school and at home leading to depression, loss of friends and support groups, substance abuse as a substitute for affection, fear of being rejected by family, fears of rejection justified, homelessness, all these contribute to these horrifying statistics.
There are places one can go for help, The Samaritans, for instance, but it is reported that 60% of suicidal young men state they would not seek help and 67% say they feel there is nowhere that can offer them the emotional support they need.
That so many people are driven to despair simply because of who they are is tragic. Despite legislation that has improved equality and given some redress against harassment or discrimination, our LGBT citizens have to face it everyday in small unkindnesses that build up and up to an unmanageable burden.
What can we do – we ordinary people without medical qualifications or psychological degrees? What can we do if we don’t know anyone we suspect of being in such a state that they need real hands on help to get them through a bad patch?
Small things are good too.
We can think before we speak and if we hear someone else speaking out of turn – “Eww that’s so gay” – we can say “please don’t say that”. If we hear or witness a homophobic phrase or act, we can tell the perpetrator that they are out of order. If we see something we suspect to be bullying going on, we can step in as a witness. Anyone can do this. You don’t need to be a martial artist. You don’t need to be fit. You don’t need to be young. Just be aware that it happens and ready to step in if you see it. And remember, just because someone looks serene as a swan on the surface, it doesn’t mean they aren’t paddling frantically against the undertow.
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Elin Gregory 
Thanks for sharing these statistics. It really brings the issue to light.
Hugs! Thanks so much for participating in this hop with us. 🙂
The figures are so shocking! Thanks so much for participating…
Its horrible to think in this day and age…these poor souls see this as the only solution. These statistics are very sobering. Thank you for sharing them, Elin, and helping others to be aware of the sad reality of suicide.
Thanks for sharing
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
Sadly suicide touches so many lives. My son spent over 4 years struggling to deal with severe PTSD and TBI from his 15 months in Iraq. On Jan. 2, 2011, he decided he could no longer do it and completed suicide. He was 25 and my oldest child, my sunshine, my pride and joy and my friend. We tried for many years to get him help, he was surrounded by loving family and friends, but I think sometimes he felt like a failure because he wasn’t able to handle it on his own. My sister and her husband are both psychologists so there was never any stigma about getting help. To say that his death devastated all of us is an understatement. I will never be the person I use to be, a part of me will be broken until I’m with him again. Thank you for bringing this subject out in the open, I talk about it often. My son didn’t do this to hurt us, he just wanted the pain to stop, I know that if he had been thinking clearly, knowing all the pain that we would be in, he never would have done this, he didn’t have a mean bone in his body. We talked about suicide often, the extra hurt that came when someone chooses to take their life, how loved he was and how many people were available to help him and he promised me that if he ever felt like that, he would come to me. But one night after not sleeping for days and tired of the sounds and smells of battle assaulting him, he broke his promise and my heart. His last words were “I don’t want to die” he just wanted the pain to stop. Suicide needs to be taken out of the closet, held like a dirty little secret, a brand of shame that only adds to the ones that attempt and the survivors. Only taking it out into the light of day and talking about it loudly instead of whispering in disgust will we then start to put a halt to this overwhelming tide of suicide.
proudarmymom32(at)yahoo(dot)com
Thanks for sharing some UK facts Elin. I am winning against the ‘thats so gay’ comment i think – i take 4 kids (2mine) to school each day and each time they say this I remind them it is not appropriate, and to think how people in their year group who may be coming to terms with their sexuality will feel if they here this. The instances are decreasing.
Thank you for the information,very helpful.
Great post. It is very tragic.
The statistics are not only sad but a horrible testament to what a hostile world we’ve created. Yes, we must strive all the time to battle the big and small that makes it that way. I can’t stand the thought that any child grows up in this world thinking the love they have to give is a bad thing. Thank you for sharing with all of us.
Thank you for the statistics and for taking part in the hop.