Heartfelt call for those in distress to seek help

A COUNCILLOR who said he was aware of four suspected deaths by suicide is urging people who are in distress or suffering with depression to seek help.

- RICHARD YOULE Senior local democracy reporter [e-mail]

Cllr Bryan Davies said he would like more prominent messaging and advice about mental health.

"We cannot be holding back," he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Cllr Davies said he has attended the funerals of two people in Carmarthenshire that he said were suspected of death by suicide. He said he'd been made aware more recently of two further suspected deaths by suicide.

The charity Samaritans said suicide was complex, rarely caused by one thing, and that it could be prevented.

Cllr Davies said in the past there used to be a "pull yourself together" attitude towards mental health which dissuaded people from seeking help.

"I am concerned that even these days that people are not prepared to share their worries," he said.

"My concern is that people feel they're letting friends and members of their family down."

The Plaid Cymru councillor had raised the issue at a council committee meeting on June 9 and asked what the suicide rate statistics showed and what the authority could offer vulnerable people suffering with depression.

"Are they aware that there is support available, and how do they ask for that support, or is it all in the hands of their GP?" he asked at the health and social services scrutiny meeting.