Suicide Prevention Help Supports World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10th

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Suicide Prevention Help supports World Suicide Prevention Day --an annual initiative of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Suicide Prevention Help (www.suicidepreventionhelp.com)has offered those who are despairing and thinking about suicide, and the people who care about them, a Friendship Letter and a Web directory of carefully screened suicide prevention resources from around the world.

The website, which began over 10 years ago is the creation of Kenneth Hemmerick who survived a serious suicide when he was in his thirties. Hemmerick says, "I developed this website in the early days of the Web, before Google, when there was not a lot of screened resources available to those who were contemplating suicide. The Friendship Letter describes how I came to view my suicidal thoughts and feelings realistically."

"Over the years", he continues, "I have answered letters from thousands of people from all over the world and have shared a few kind words and resources that were pertinent to their particular situation."

"I support World Suicide Prevention Day and the work of the International Association for Suicide Prevention and the World Health Organization because I know first hand the horrible and lasting impact that suicide has on families and friends," he explains.

Suicide is preventable. But every year, approximately one million people die by suicide - one death every two minutes.

World Suicide Prevention Day is on September 10th.

More information on World Suicide Prevention Day can be found on the IASP website at: http://www.iasp.info/wspd/.