The topic of suicide is incredibly sensitive, and distressing to discuss, but it’s only by breaking the stigma that we can bring the subject into the light, and ensure those in need get help as soon as possible

Suicide isn’t an easy topic to talk about, but many of us have been impacted by losing a loved one or friend, or know someone who has. That’s why it’s so important that we talk about it together. Here’s what I have learned though my work as a psychotherapist, clinical supervisor, critical incident debriefer, and survivor of multiple deaths by suicide in my family, and of my beloved best friend. Please take care of yourself as you read this, as you may get triggered.

Suicide isn’t a new idea; the intentional ending of one’s own life has been practised throughout human history. It is a deeply evocative and provocative subject, and one unique to humans, so it’s not surprising that researchers clearly want to know the why, in order to answer questions about human cognition, and to understand free will and choice. Those left behind, also wondering why, want to make some sense of their bewilderment and devastation.

The World Health Organisation estimates that there are more than 700,000 completed suicides each year around the world. In the UK, the Office for National Statistics reported a total of 5,224 deaths by suicide in England and Wales in 2020 (75.1% males). For every completed suicide, many more are attempted, and this is the single most important risk factor in future attempts.

Suicide is often the end point of a journey; an accumulation of experiences, related thoughts and feelings that result in a fatal choice. Ultimately, the fact is, each individual is precious and unique, with their own experience of the world and, try as we might, we may never pin-point why they took that path, even if we had the capacity to retrace every moment of their lives.

I want to offer some definitions of suicide so that we can have a framework to use.

Suicidal ideation is generally defined as thoughts about engaging in suicidal behaviour – wanting to cause intentional, intended, and fatal self-harm. Feelings vary from mild to severe (mild thoughts that come and go and which are very common, to severe, i.e. having a clear plan). This can change from one extreme to the other within hours, or between one day and the next.

Para suicide refers to engaging in highly risky and dangerous behaviours with absolute disregard for one’s own safety, or that of others. Examples include dangerous driving at excessive speeds, excessive drinking, drug overdoses, and picking fights despite the dangers involved.

Suicide is the deliberate intent of employing one or more means to end one’s own life. Individuals with a history of previous failed attempts have been shown to have a significantly higher likelihood to end their lives through suicide.

Impulsive suicide is often driven by extreme feelings in relation to major adverse events, such as a sudden (unexp

Where there's a Will... there’s a way to embrace wellbeing, and singer, songwriter, actor, podcast host, and author Will Young seems to be on the right path, as he discusses self-mastery, the importance of intention, misconceptions about fame, and the love of a good dog

"That’s my dog snoring in the background, I’m so sorry!” Will Young explains, smiling from the other side of the screen. His handsome rescue, Domino, the source of the melodic snore, is oblivious to the conversation as Will continues, sharing the experiences that led him to write and release his most recent book, Be Yourself and Happier: The A-Z of Wellbeing.

Will has so much to offer when it comes to talking about mental health. Back in 2011, he had a breakdown, accompanied by crippling agoraphobia. This period of severe mental ill-health was also the beginning of his desire for deep personal exploration, and he went on to work with multiple therapists, trial different modalities, and proactively educate himself on the mind-body connection.

For the past eight years, Will notes, he’s been fully immersed in the world of wellbeing, and he’s eager to help others if he can, by sharing the insights he’s gained along the way.

“It’s enlightenment really,” he says, reflecting on his discoveries. “When I got into myself and broke into past traumas and behaviours, I hit a wall – a wall that I had, through survival, not wanted to climb over, or even break through. As I learnt more about my humanity, I just wanted to share it. I’m really fascinated, I love the subject of mental health and wellbeing, and it’s sort of become my passion.”

To keep the mental health conversation going and growing, Will now hosts ‘The Wellbeing Lab’ podcast, a weekly exploration of therapy and life’s challenges. He’s covered an array of topics including shopping addiction, body dysmorphic disorder, sex addiction, and loss of sex drive, and he’s spoken to experts about boundaries, somatic therapy, CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy), and dealing with rumination. Listeners write in and share their experiences, and, in turn, Will shares how certain topics resonate with him.

Putting his lived experiences front and centre of his work in wellbeing is crucial to Will. It helps him to develop an authentic connection with people who are looking for a more positive way forward, as he was. “All the stuff I do, comes from my own behaviour, so it’s from a place of absolutely no judgement,” he says. “Hopefully my book opens a door into a way of becoming what my old therapist, Louis Evans, used to call a ‘functional adult’ and gaining self-mastery, which is what we all want.”

Listening to Will talk about wellbeing and how we manage ourselves is really refreshing.

He’s taken years of therapy and study, and reframed it in a way that’s accessible. He advocates for a series of small personal behaviour tweaks and daily self-awareness practices that can make a huge difference in how we show up for ourselves and others.

Will believes that it’s imperative to start wi

Becoming a parent can flip your whole world upside down – with joy and laughter, exhaustion and new pressures – and if you’re finding it hard to recognise the person in the mirror, or the new life you’re adjusting to, you’re not alone. For those struggling with their identity after becoming a mum, our columnist Grace Victory has some words of comfort…

The minute I found out I was pregnant, everything changed – I imagine that’s the same for most expectant mothers. The realisation that this little bundle of joy is growing inside of you fills you with emotions. I cut out certain foods, I limited my caffeine, I religiously took my vitamins, and overnight I became absolutely giddy at the thought of how life was about to be.

And now that Cyprus has been Earth-side for nearly 16 months (how?), I can confidently say that life is beautiful, and chaotic, and wild, and bloody glorious. There are moments where I well-up just looking at his toes or hearing him giggle, and there are times I think “Wow… I am eternally grateful to be alive, and to see my baby grow up.” Being a mama is the best! It’s actually an honour to raise these tiny humans, and even more of an honour to recognise how much they look to you for, well… pretty much everything.

But with all that being said, being a mama can be the hardest, most exhausting job in the world, too. From the minute Cyprus opens his eyes, to the minute he goes to bed, he is go, go, go. At 6am he’s babbling, shouting, laughing, and wanting to play. People were not wrong when they said you don’t know tiredness until you have kids!

Your children become the centre of your world, whether that’s an entirely good thing or not. I know it’s important to still be you, but that honestly feels impossible at times. The moment you give birth, you are no longer your number one priority – they are. You literally have to keep this beautiful baby alive and, let’s face it, nobody actually tells you how? There is no manual to parenting that works for every parent and child across the board. I’m winging it. I’m winging it everyday, and trying my best to be a great mother. Some days I feel like I’m bossing it. Other days I feel like I’m on a loop of “No,” “Don’t touch that,” “You’re going to hurt yourself,” and (my favourite) “Cyprus… why?!”

I don’t get dressed some days. Other days, I do and then I end up with snot, tears, milk, or spaghetti hoops down me. Some evenings, I’m just too tired to cook myself a meal after Cyprus’ evening routine, so it’s either a takeaway, a sandwich, or mozzarella dippers from the freezer. There are moments of “Who am I?”, that can leave me feeling overwhelmed, underwhelmed, or completely deflated.

Becoming a mother can often feel like you’ve lost yourself, or you’ve changed so much you don’t really recognise who you used to be. Maybe you’re exclusively breastfeeding, so your body doesn’t feel like yours anymore. Maybe a traumatic birth means you’

Laura Brand is on a magical mission to help us all embrace creativity and welcome joy into our lives. Through her new book, The Joy Journal for Grown-ups, she’s gifting us with permission to be curious and play, in the most beautiful and nature-inspired ways

Close your eyes for a moment, and think back to when you were a child. What type of playful, creative activity did you love? Now ask yourself: when was the last time you did that as an adult, and what is stopping you from doing it now?

When I did this exercise, I remembered picking up rose petals from the garden and storing them in a jar with water to make ‘perfume’, building elaborate sandcastles bedecked in shells on the beach, and creating a school holiday diary covered in a Smash Hits poster, crammed full of scribbles, postcards, and pictures of day trips and family visits.

Decades later, I know that the rose petal perfume probably isn’t worth pursuing, but seeking out shells to appreciate their beauty, keeping a diary, or drawing pictures of moments that really matter to me? They sound like beautiful things to do.

Author and illustrator Laura Brand is dedicated to championing the benefits of engaging in creative play like this for people of all ages. Her personal adoration of creativity stems back to her childhood, and playtime with her own children, Mabel and Peggy, provided the catalyst for curating and writing two truly beautiful books on the subject.

“When my daughter was born I started to look for ways to be a little bit more mindful in parenthood, and in general adulthood, so I started engaging her with creativity and nature – my passions,” Laura explains. Their discoveries inspired The Joy Journal for Magical Everyday Play, the publication of which prompted heartwarming reader feedback.

“I had so many messages,” Laura beams. “From lovely parents, or the aunts, uncles, and grandparents in some cases, who said that getting outside with the children, using a little bit of imagination, and being permitted to play in a way that’s a bit slap-dash, with an emphasis on ‘have a go’, brought about feelings of nostalgia and a feeling of being nurtured.”

These comments inspired Laura to develop her new book, written for adults: The Joy Journal for Grown-ups: 50 homemade craft ideas to inspire creativity and connection. She focused on activities that she loved or wanted to learn, such as candle and soap making, creating wreaths for any occasion, and experimenting with painted glass – all beautiful, ways to slow down, find our flow, and welcome in some joy. Because, as she explains, that’s a really great thing for grown-ups to do, too.

“We are still allowed, in adulthood, to play. It’s quite hard to remember and do that, and to feel like we’re making the most of our time. The idea is to invite people to try to get into a creative mode and play, and for it not to necessarily result in these big final products or projects, but just to have a go.”

At the heart of Laura’

Is it possible to build new habits by taking advantage of old ones?

When you’re trying to make a change, whether it’s wanting to improve your work performance, make healthier choices, or to save more money, one of the challenges is ensuring the changes stick. It’s hard. Behaviour change requires discipline and, when life is busy, it’s all too easy to find excuses that prevent you from making new routines and lifestyle choices a priority.

But you do have something at your disposal that can help – your current daily habits. Yes, one of the most efficient ways to build new behaviours is to identify an existing habit that you can ‘stack’ a new behaviour on top of.

Habit stacking is a form of implementation intention and, according to life coach and therapist Claire Elmes, it’s one of the most effective techniques you can use for successfully introducing new habits.

“The idea is to use an already existing habit to help organise your new habits sensibly and logically,” says Claire. “The existing behaviour acts as a ‘trigger’, so you are teaching your brain that, when you have completed your existing habit, you then do your new one.”

How does habit stacking work?

The habit stacking formula is simple: ‘After/before [current habit], I will [new habit].’

It could be:

• Before I brush my teeth each morning, I will meditate for two minutes.
• After I sit down to eat dinner, I will think of one positive thing that happened today.
• Before I turn the light off at night, I will kiss my partner.

Habit stacking works because your current habits are well-ingrained.“Tagging new habits onto ones that we do unconsciously allows the process to feel manageable and achievable, allowing more chances for success,” says Claire.

Once you get the hang of it, you can start to create larger stacks by linking more and more habits together. You can even create general habit stacks to guide you whenever the situation is appropriate. For example:

• If I see a set of stairs, I will take them instead of using the lift/escalator.
• When I go to a party, I will introduce myself to someone I don’t know.
• If I buy a new item of clothing, I will donate one to charity.

Tips for success with habit stacking

1. Look at the bigger picture

Where and when you choose to place a habit into your routine is important. You need to think about the best window of opportunity for when you’re most likely to be successful.

“If you’re looking to include 10 minutes of yoga in your day, it would be helpful to consider where this will naturally fit into your routine,” advises Claire.

“It might be as soon as you wake up, after getting dressed, when you’re having a cup of tea/coffee, or when you’re fully ready. You might decide that after you make your coffee, you’ll do your 10 minutes of yoga while it’s cooling down, and then you can drink your coffee.”

2. Be specific with your cue

Goals like ‘read more’ or ‘eat healthier’ are worthy causes, but the inten