Break the silence on youth suicide

Health Minister Jonathan Coleman chose not so speak on the subject of youth suicide. He made a speech in May about mental health - that says it all apparently.

In 2012, Northland lost 19 young people to suicide.

As a region, we've never really known how to talk about, how to discuss it sensibly.
There is concern that talking about it will make it worse, but not talking about it hasn't exactly worked either.

And we've never really had the facts of what happened aired publicly. Until now.

The NZ Herald has spent the past six months researching a series of stories on youth suicide in New Zealand.

I know for a fact that the first thing the Herald did was consider what impact the stories would have on readers - positive and negative. It is a subject that has to be reported sensibly, and sensitively, but boldly too.

The series is called Break The Silence, and the Northern Advocate has published some of the Northland stories today.

The people who agreed to take part, and share their stories, their grief, and their knowledge in the hope that it could lead to change, or even prevent a young person dying, they are brave to speak out.

Health Minister Jonathan Coleman chose not so speak on the subject. He made a speech in May about mental health - that says it all apparently.

Dr Coleman is out of touch.

However, hopefully once he reads the content of the NZ Herald series over the next few days, he will be more informed about youth suicide. Hopefully he will break his silence.

Ultimately, the people who we need to break their silence are those who are suffering, and feel like there is no point in talking to anyone.

However, you only have to read Mariah Herbert's honest, straight up words on page 25 today, to understand that the simple act of reaching out or speaking up can change, no, save, someone's life.

The Advocate's role in this series has to been to support our sister paper.

At some point, the conversation in Northland will spread to the wider suicide issue we have.

But now, the time is right to talk about our youth, and break our silence.