#797: How to Talk to Someone Who's Suicidal (Without Making It Worse) ft Charlene Heng episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 30, 2026 · 1H

#797: How to Talk to Someone Who's Suicidal (Without Making It Worse) ft Charlene Heng

from Yah Lah But

In Singapore, there is an average of one suicide death per day – and yet most of us still don’t know how to talk about it. Charlene Heng, Deputy Director at SOS Academy, Samaritans of Singapore, gets real about suicide in Singapore – the stats, the stigma, and why asking the suicide question doesn't make things worse. Whether you're worried about a friend or struggling yourself, we hope you find this helpful.𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙙𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 (𝙈𝙊𝙃)𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘥𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘵:𝘪. 𝘚𝘖𝘚’𝘴 24-𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘏𝘰𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘵 1767, 𝘰𝘳 24-𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘛𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘢𝘵 9151 1767 (𝘷𝘪𝘢 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘴𝘈𝘱𝘱)𝘪𝘪. 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 1771, 𝘚𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘦’𝘴 24/7 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 | https://yahlahbut.short.gy/CaringForLife𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗼𝗸 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴Terence: What LENS is Actually inside a Vintage Photo Booth?Haresh: Lamine Yamal's FIRST career hat-trick!Charlene: Tomorrow | Official Trailer𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀!Drop us an email at [email protected]! We’re always looking out for people to do cool stuff with, so let’s chat!𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 – "𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝘁”Get a roundup of our One Shiok Things & first dibs on our latest launches delivered straight to your inbox!Subscribe Here(00:00) Intro(00:01:02) Charlene's Personal Story And Journey Into Social Work(00:02:43) What Charlene Does At SOS(00:03:31) Has Talking About Suicide Gotten Easier Over The Years?(00:05:22) Busting The Myth: Asking About Suicide Doesn't Trigger It(00:07:03) Suicide Statistics In Singapore(00:09:13) Why Men Have Higher Suicide Rates(00:11:55) SOS Receives 5,000 Calls Every Month(00:13:29) Training Volunteers And Six Hours On The Ledge(00:15:37) What Callers Really Need When They Reach Out(00:17:01) The Emotions That Drive Suicidal Ideation(00:19:25) Who's Calling: Mostly Teenagers(00:20:48) Assessing Risk Through Text Messages(00:21:35) Anonymity And When Emergency Services Step In(00:23:41) Separating Suicide From Mental Health Stigma(00:27:46) Training Volunteers To Listen Without Judgment(00:29:41) Beyond Empathy: Validation And Affirmation(00:30:38) Three Steps To Approach Someone At Risk(00:33:30) Using The Right Language Around Suicide(00:35:47) Cultural Barriers And Stigma Around Suicide In Singapore(00:37:45) Why Everyone Should Take A Suicide First Aid Course(00:40:24) Warning Signs That Are Easy To Miss(00:41:52) Suicide As A Systemic, Not Individual, Problem(00:43:47) How Volunteers Protect Their Own Mental Health(00:47:00) What Gives Charlene Hope For The Future(00:48:11) Resources And Helplines(00:49:39) One Shiok Thing(00:57:03) Post-Interview Reflection𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲!Reddit | Telegram𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀TikTok | Instagram | Facebook𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 @𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘌𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘹𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘬 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Singapore, there is an average of one suicide death per day – and yet most of us still don’t know how to talk about it. Charlene Heng, Deputy Director at SOS Academy, Samaritans of Singapore, gets real about suicide in Singapore – the stats, the stigma, and why asking the suicide question doesn't make things worse. Whether you're worried about a friend or struggling yourself, we hope you find this helpful.𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙙𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝 (𝙈𝙊𝙃)𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘥𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘵:𝘪. 𝘚𝘖𝘚’𝘴 24-𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘏𝘰𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘵 1767, 𝘰𝘳 24-𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘛𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘢𝘵 9151 1767 (𝘷𝘪𝘢 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘴𝘈𝘱𝘱)𝘪𝘪. 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 1771, 𝘚𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘦’𝘴 24/7 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 | https://yahlahbut.short.gy/CaringForLife𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗼𝗸 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴Terence: What LENS is Actually inside a Vintage Photo Booth?Haresh: Lamine Yamal's FIRST career hat-trick!Charlene: Tomorrow | Official Trailer𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘂𝘀!Drop us an email at [email protected]! We’re always looking out for people to do cool stuff with, so let’s chat!𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 – "𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝘁”Get a roundup of our One Shiok Things & first dibs on our latest launches delivered straight to your inbox!Subscribe Here(00:00) Intro(00:01:02) Charlene's Personal Story And Journey Into Social Work(00:02:43) What Charlene Does At SOS(00:03:31) Has Talking About Suicide Gotten Easier Over The Years?(00:05:22) Busting The Myth: Asking About Suicide Doesn't Trigger It(00:07:03) Suicide Statistics In Singapore(00:09:13) Why Men Have Higher Suicide Rates(00:11:55) SOS Receives 5,000 Calls Every Month(00:13:29) Training Volunteers And Six Hours On The Ledge(00:15:37) What Callers Really Need When They Reach Out(00:17:01) The Emotions That Drive Suicidal Ideation(00:19:25) Who's Calling: Mostly Teenagers(00:20:48) Assessing Risk Through Text Messages(00:21:35) Anonymity And When Emergency Services Step In(00:23:41) Separating Suicide From Mental Health Stigma(00:27:46) Training Volunteers To Listen Without Judgment(00:29:41) Beyond Empathy: Validation And Affirmation(00:30:38) Three Steps To Approach Someone At Risk(00:33:30) Using The Right Language Around Suicide(00:35:47) Cultural Barriers And Stigma Around Suicide In Singapore(00:37:45) Why Everyone Should Take A Suicide First Aid Course(00:40:24) Warning Signs That Are Easy To Miss(00:41:52) Suicide As A Systemic, Not Individual, Problem(00:43:47) How Volunteers Protect Their Own Mental Health(00:47:00) What Gives Charlene Hope For The Future(00:48:11) Resources And Helplines(00:49:39) One Shiok Thing(00:57:03) Post-Interview Reflection𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲!Reddit | Telegram𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀TikTok | Instagram | Facebook𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 @𝘴𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘌𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘪𝘹𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘛𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘠𝘦𝘢𝘬 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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#797: How to Talk to Someone Who's Suicidal (Without Making It Worse) ft Charlene Heng

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In Singapore, there is an average of one suicide death per day – and yet most of us still don’t know how to talk about it. Charlene Heng, Deputy Director at SOS Academy, Samaritans of Singapore, gets real about suicide in Singapore – the stats, the...

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