Local Police Staion can be a great place to call in a threatened suicide crisis.

Doog · ‎03-05-2021

Hi everyone, I've been around for a few years now, mainly just coping and improving with much work on myself, but also with my emergency supply of my own private meds my Doctor approves as a go to in crisis. Two days ago I was confronted with a desperate call from my son who informed me his girlfriend wanted to end her life. For all the years of random counselling, and reading about mental illness, I suddenly found myself in a panic.

I called Headspace, as she is just 18 and they directed me to Police. Having no confirmed location on the girl, I was unable to call 000. So I called my local Police Station. For those who are unaware, as I was, you can call your local Police for these emergencies. They were so helpful and stayed on the lin with me as we tried to get my son to coax her location.

She was at work we found half hour later, and Police dispatched a unit to protect her. She was transferred to Ambulance and taken to hospital for further assessment. So if you guys find yourself in a panic over anyone, Local Police are amazing when you have no location to call triple zero.

I certainly would never have thought to call them. Hope it helps someone.

Croix · ‎03-05-2021

Dear Doog~

Thank you for telling us about your successful encounter, I was most impressed wiht several things, starting of course with the success, your son's GF ended up getting to the assistance she needed.

It sounds like a pretty desperate situation and I admire the way you have handled it. It is very easy to lose one's head and you have done the opposite, having sought out appropriate advice from Headspace and then used your local police who I'm glad to say, were in a position to help.

Getting via proxy the young lady to reveal her location must have been difficult, frustrating and very worrying - but you got there.

The other thing that I really liked was your son attracts enough confidence his GF looks to him in a crisis, partly no doubt due to your upbringing of your son, which has also led him to regard you as the person to look to for effective understanding and assistance.

Looking to the future I'm sure you son will need support, and possibly you may too, after all this is an ongoing situation, it probably does not just end just with this occasion. So may I suggest you and you son get together to work out what will make you both better able to cope?

I'd expect you would have already thought it may also be appropriate for the young lady's family to be involved, depending on circumstances.

Croix

eight · ‎04-05-2021

i've tried it before when i had to report a suicidal minor being abandoned. turns out cops are so busy it takes them hours to do a 5 minute drive and we were fabulists because it's not illegal or an emergency, just an argument, go home.

mine sure can talk it up about how high the crime rates are and the thin blue line but from my experience they aren't all that great at the protecting and serving thing. if mine was like yours would probably save an er trip and a few 000 calls and a lot of unpaid suicide counselling

geoff · ‎05-05-2021

Hello Doog, this is a great comment for people concerned about anybody and really understand the complexities someone can be in to protect a person from ending their life.

In a situation like this, there are no second guesses and action needs to be taken to protect the life of someone, and when your son rings you in desperation about what his girlfriend, who you probably know, intends to do, then somehow you are able to raise yourself to a higher level, where your instincts click in and suddenly know what you should be doing, different to how your son feels because first thing for him to do was ring you, that's what we hope our children will do if a situation like this arises.

We always hope that when this happens, the police take immediate action, but concerned as to how she currently is.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

Doog · ‎07-05-2021

Thank you Geoff for your concern. She if fine for now, but her parents have booked her in to what she referred to as "Rehab" however in Regional Victoria there a several programs she could be accessing at her age (18). That's a positive sign, as she has loving support groups around her, which already disproves the myth that mostly the lonely, substance abused and unloved would go to these depths of self loathing. That's absolutely not true. So never make an assumption on how safe you think your loved one, friend or colleague is because they are not living alone. One can be surrounded by 100 loving people and never sound the warning bell. If you are the one they call, it's real. Take action please.

Doog · ‎07-05-2021

Thank you Croix for your kind response. I've been an occasional member here since probably 2016 or so, along with my own counselling, but for several years uncomfortable with how I was still breaking down at random emotionally so would call in here to make an emotional post. That helped immensely as I did not have a network of support. I was on my own, so thank you Headspace for allowing me to vent my despair. Talking to even "invisible" people is part of the healing process, especially when they reply with heart warming comments!

My son and I had our own journeys coming from a manipulative abusive ex spouse. My son went to Headspace for 2 years which is why I thought to call them first given the girl's age.

As for the negative response from some people about the local Police, it's absolutely not true. They took all the details they could, along with a description and even a "possible location". She lied to my son in the beginning and said she was out skating, so the Police immediately had "eyes" on the local skate park while I was on the phone. They also could find a proper photo from FB profiling, so maybe it's different in a major city, but the Police didn't dismiss me as a pest at all. I even called them to thank them in the evening when she was safely in hospital. The Police get tired of chasing drug lords, they react quickly when they can save an innocent life. Thanks guys!!! xx

Matchy69 · ‎07-05-2021

Hi and thankyou for this thread.When I had a family member in the force he would respond immediately to a call like that.Unfortunately he couldn't make it in time all the time.To deal with these calls through a career does effect these first respondents for the rest of their lives and some of them become a statistic themselves.We should be greatful for them and cannot imagine what they have seen.

Croix · ‎07-05-2021

Dear Eight~

Firstly I'm saddened you had a situation involving a suicidal minor, this is something that can leave a mark on any person permanently. I do hope the situation was resolved and that young person now has a happier life.

I would quite agree that having the expectation of speedy assistance from the police not being met can be a shattering experience and can perhaps leave one with a distrust of all police, even all emergency services.

I admit I'm prejudiced having been part of that 'thin blue line', even so I am not silly enough as to want to defend all police everywhere on every occasion.

However I'd not want you to think that the vast majority of officers I have met and worked with were anything other than as reliable and responsive as was possible under the circumstances they faced at the time.

If you give up on all of them you may be shutting yourself off from a potential valuable resource in the future and that is my main concern

Croix

Doog · ‎07-05-2021

Eight, I am sorry you had a bad experience. You know you can call the Police even for a "Welfare check" on somebody you cannot reach physically? If it is at their home I mean and you cannot get there. Even if you believe the Police cannot help you, don't not try! Somebody else is depending on you to try.

eight · ‎09-05-2021

lmao nah. weve had suicide attempts and i can tell you for sure he has lost all his trust in the cops and honestly who can argue? people keep telling me i need to trust the police but even outside of my personal experiences they don't make a stunning impression in public (ive seen so many cops doing things for pr where they have guns but no bodycams. david elliot threw a tantrum on live tv two weeks ago and wanted people to lose their jobs because.... kids old enough to go to jail have opinions about police)

i just get angry when i see cops now. especially on their pr tours. id love to listen but i can't hear over me thinking "his life wouldve been so much better if they listened and realised how dangerous it was maybe i wouldnt have to be in a codependency" i dont like being this disillusioned i really wish i could be as trusting as everyone else its hard to convince someone after his 2 suicide attempts since reporting to cops yeah i know they thought you being ditched by your parents after dark and almost committing suicide was an unimportant family argument and handed you back to them but think about how these people got help and you didn't