Sometimes patience and the right words can save a life

‘A fundamental rethink is needed in how we respond to distress among young people.’ Photograph: Stockimo/Alamy

I was very moved by Steve Mallen’s story on founding the Zero Suicide Alliance (‘I don’t intend to let my son down twice’: the bereaved father trying to end suicide, 11 August), the more so because our daughter is only alive today due to the right person happening to be in the right place and able to say the right thing at the right time. During her treatment we experienced the very best and the very worse the NHS has to offer. Putting aside the long waiting times, the inconsistencies in care, the administrative errors and the breathtakingly brutal shift from adolescent to adult services, the thing that stands out is the very limited evidence that all the expensive drugs and hospital stays actually help young people.

A fundamental rethink is needed in how we respond to distress among young people. Just as Mallen describes, sparing the time while walking in a wood to talk to a woman who was upset. Quite often what is needed is not drugs and being locked away, but time and the right words.
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