Suicidal Thoughts and Safety Planning

When You’re in Deep Pain

When life feels unbearable, suicidal thoughts can appear. In those moments, reaching for support can be a step toward safety and steadiness. Below you’ll find links to helplines, online safety-planning tools, and stories of hope from people who have faced similar struggles.

Immediate Help

If you or someone you are with is in immediate danger, please call 000 or go to your nearest hospital emergency department.

Helplines

You Don’t Have to Face It Alone

Suicidal thoughts can feel overwhelming, but they are not permanent. With support, they can shift. Talking to someone — whether a helpline, friend, GP, or therapist — can make a difference.

The Beyond Blue website offers practical guidance including:

Step-by-step suggestions for getting through suicidal thoughts safely
Practical ways to make your environment safer
Support options, including for people helping someone else
Tools for creating a safety plan when you’re ready
Stories of Hope– from people who have been there

Safety Planning

A safety plan is a simple guide for what to do — and who to reach for — when suicidal thoughts or self-harm urges arise. It’s something you prepare ahead of time, so that when things feel overwhelming you already have clear steps to follow to help keep you safe. It doesn’t need to be complicated — it’s about having something steady to turn to in hard moments.

A safety plan can include:

Warning signs that you’re beginning to struggle
Things that help you feel calmer or grounded
People you can call or spend time with
Professionals or services you can reach out to
Steps to keep your environment safer

You can create a plan on your own, with someone you trust, or through the free Beyond Now app (developed by Beyond Blue and Monash University).

Finding Support

You don’t need to wait until things reach a crisis point. Support might look like:

Talking to a GP about how you’ve been feeling
Reaching out to a professional support service or therapist
Letting someone close to you know you’re not okay

Even small conversations can help lighten the weight of what you’re carrying.

You Are Not Alone

If you’re feeling weighed down by thoughts of suicide or self-harm, please know you are not alone. Support is available, and there are people who will listen and care.

Helplines