If you are having suicidal thoughts and don't feel that you can keep yourself safe - please seek immediate help.
You can:
•go to any hospital A&E department (accident & emergency department). Locally, use The Lister Hospital,
•call 999 and ask for an ambulance if you can't get to A&E
•ask someone else to contact 999 for you or take you to A&E immediately
If you need some support right now, but don't want to go to A&E, you can:
•contact the Samaritans on freephone 116 123. You can call them 24/7 and are there to listen to you
•contact your doctor for an emergency appointment
•call NHS 111 (England) or NHS Direct 0845 46 47 (Wales)
•contact the Single Point of Access: The Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust is a vital resource if you need urgent help for mental health issues:
Call their helpline, Single Point of Access (SPA) from 8am - 7pm: 0300 777 0707
Call their Out of Hours Helpline from 7pm - 8am: 01438 843322
We also recommend
- Mind Leaflet - Suicidal feelings
- Mind Leaflet - Supporting someone who feels suicidal
- Samaritans - The Samaritans offer you a safe place to talk any time you like, in your own way, about whatever's bothering you.
- TedTalk -Why we all need to practice emotional first aid, by psychologist and author Guy Winch
- Make a 'soothe box' -When we are extremely distressed, it's hard to think of ways to help ourselves and we can sometimes do something harmful. It can be useful to keep an `Emergency` or `Soothe` box, in a handy place, so that when we feel overwhelmingly distressed, we can find something in the box that will help us to cope and/or feel better. This link will show you how to put your box together.
Other sources of support
| Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) |
A registered charity, which exists to prevent male suicide in the UK. |
| HelpGuide |
A series of American guides on a variety of common mental and emotional health issues (including suicide prevention) |
| Papyrus - Prevention of Young Suicide |
A national charity for the prevention of young suicide. |
| SHOUT |
Free 24/7 mental health text support, text shout 85258. |
R;pple browser extension
R;pple is a crisis intervention tool that automatically surfaces mental health resources to users searching for harmful content related to self-harm or suicide. Learn more about R;pple here.
Please also see our Student Wellbeing Services page for further support and advice.
Free 24/7 Helpline via PAM Wellness
Alongside our inhouse wellbeing team we also have a Student Assistance Programme called PAM Wellness, where you can access in-the-moment confidential support or guidance. Just call 0808 196 3533 - it's free, confidential and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
PAM Wellness counsellors are there to listen to you whatever your problems, whether it is personal or student related.
You can also contact the helpline if you require any financial, legal or medical information, such as budgets, physical health and landlord issue. And if English is not your first language, let the counsellor know when you call and they'll be able to help you.