Samaritans reach out to ‘men on the ropes’

The Samaritans have launched a campaign in the North West to combat suicide amongst men.

Men are three times more likely to take their own lives than women.

The advertising campaign, Men on the Ropes, aims to reduce the more than 4,000 male suicides that happen each year by persuading men in distress to talk about their problems and consider calling Samaritans’ helpline.

With its boxing theme, the campaign specifically targets working-class men in the North West in their 30s, 40s and 50s, who are the most likely of all to die by suicide, including those on the railway.

Network Rail is backing the campaign as part of its ongoing partnership with Samaritans to reduce suicides on the railway by 20 per cent.

In-depth interviews commissioned by Samaritans1 amongst men of this background found that:

• Most acknowledged that they do not discuss their emotions with friends or colleagues because this would be seen as ‘weak’;
• When trying to help friends who were in real problems, many felt that they lacked the skills to get them to talk or to help them;
• Some were or had been long-term depressed due to extended periods of unemployment, family break-down, and/or drug and gambling problems, and they thought things would not get any better;
• Many of those in their mid 40s and 50s described times in their lives when they had been violent and angry, but they now quietly accepted their situation, with their children (and sometimes their partners) being the only thing that kept them going;
• Those who are unable to find work and are dependent upon their partner’s income, feel ‘emasculated’ and ‘reduced’ to being a househusband.

Rachel Kirby-Rider, Samaritans’ Director of Communications, said: “We believe that many men don’t feel able to talk about their feelings and, instead, either bottle them up or let them spiral out of control, sometimes with tragic consequences. The main aim of our campaign is to make contacting one of our 20 branches in the North West, in confidence, 24 hours a day, an option for these men.

“Equally, we believe that talking to anyone – family, friends, colleagues, health professionals – is better than suffering in silence and we hope that the campaign will also help men feel that they are able to express their emotions in today’s society.”