Guidelines for Language and Image Use in Mental Health and Suicide Prevention

In this course, Dr. Elizabeth Paton, Ph.D., Project Lead of the Mindframe Program at Everymind, notes how the stigmatising language often used to communicate about suicidality and complex experiences can negatively influence attitudes and behaviours, becoming a barrier to help-seeking. She explains the process she and her team followed to develop the Mindframe image and language guidelines and outlines the main themes of these. Dr. Paton acknowledges the disagreement which exists between stakeholders around preferred terminology, but identifies multiple examples of language which is currently preferred by most people working in the fields of suicidality and mental health. Multiple supportive resources are offered.