Has anyone had or is anyone aware of a good outcome as a result of seeing an ad for Samaritans?

[fourhundredandsomething]

There are ads with the phone number on at all our local stations. Is this a good idea?

YANBU - yes it is worth the time and money
YABU -no it doesn't work

Thank you for you opinion and experiences.

It is fairly well established that many suicides are spur of the moment things that can be prevented something or someone interrupting that suicidal train of thought. So yes a poster making someone pause and realise total strangers care - whether they actually phone or not, is worth is. Just like training station staff to reach out and ask 'you OK?' or mental health first aiders, or people who stop to talk to someone on a bridge. We will never know how many people it saves, but it will never do any harm,

There are definitely less suicides on the train line near me since they put those posters up. For a far too long while a few years ago the line was brought to a standstill at least twice a week by "a person on the tracks", I remember wondering why it became so frequent and then why it dramatically reduced, then I noticed the posters. So a positive thing from my perspective, it can't be coincidental. For a bit of paper to save lives seems like a good investment to me. Often I think it's making people pause that makes all the difference and interrupts enough to make the difference between life and death.

Op
How many.woukd you say is worth the life of a mum? Sister? Brother? Son?

If 100 save 1 life is thad worth putting them up?
How about 1000?

Personally, I'd say, if they out up a Million and just one person calls instead of ending themselves, they're worth it.

I called them once. The caller was clearly not ready for the depths of my despair and the different ways I can harm myself.

I should say could, as the going is good.

I wanted someone to understand, not just to say they're listening. Nobody could have understood back then. I feel sorry for the caller I got through to.

Can you volunteer from home? In the old days I had pictured banks of people in rows similar to Children In Need or something.

That's very kind of you to donate but you won't be able to choose how the money is spent ie on posters etc. By donating, the charity will be able to decide how best to spend the money

I've called them when I've been at my very darkest hour (abusive marriage and don't see my young children much).
What I actually appreciated about them is unlike other support services they didn't say "No, don't/you can't do that" but respected the fact that my feelings and decisions were valid to me at that particular moment in time.
They don't give you answers (in my case there are none), but I am incredibly grateful to the volunteers that have been there st 3am in the morning showing that, despite me being a complete stranger, they care ❤️

Do they pay for ads? Aren’t there also plaques with their number at the ends of platforms- permenant and not paid for?

Donating to them sounds like a great idea. There’s so much need.

I’ve rung five times. There was never anyone free to take my call, and that made me feel even worse.

Stations and the rail network are frequently the scene of suicides sadly which is why they are the location for ads - they’ve had a partnership with Network Rail since 2010.

Many years ago I phoned a few times in the middle of the night when just getting through the next minute felt nearly impossible.

When you’re in that moment of despair having easy access to a number can make all the difference to someone contemplating the quickest way to end their mental anguish.

A lot of the Samaritans' ad space at specific places has been donated, its not like buying space on a billboard or bus stop. Even though that may be equally valid.

I called them when my late dp was dying & I couldn't imagine my life without him. The person listened & cared enough to allow me time to sob & spoke to me to calm me down. I was in such a state that two nights later, I was admitted to hospita with all the symptoms of a heart attack. It was actually grief & stress, I can understand what a broken heart feels like because my symptoms felt like my heart had broken in two. If they can save one life then they are worth every penny. A boy I know threw himself under a train after a stupid argument with a girl, maybe if he had seen a poster he would have rung & spoken to someone instead of his parents having to sit & watch him die & had to make the decision to donate his organs & the train driver being so traumatised he had to be off work for months.

This is interesting, that the effect was so large as to be noticeable just at one station. I think the OP is being misunderstood (not by you). Their question was "do posters at stations work", not "is suicide something we should try to prevent". And we know that raising awareness of suicide can actually increase suicide in some contexts, so it's not a trivial question to ask at all.