If someone says they're suicidal on internet what would you do?

[Deafsn0w]

I would comfort him/her but keep it neutral. I don't tell them to kill themselves or encourage them to not do it.

Personally, block someone is the worst thing you can do because you don't know if this guy is trolling or serious.

 

[oldgray]

depends on the situation.
if they mentioned it while we were already interacting in some way, i would offer to listen, even if i suck at comforting people, keeping it neutral.
but if i just saw a post or something, probably nothing.
it's not that i don't care, but i don't know how to approach people, it makes me very anxious and also scared i could say something wrong.

 

[Schopenhauer]

I never encourage anyone, but I don't dismiss them, either. Most of the time they really need someone to listen, with no judgements. At least that's the way I feel. Nobody can help me, but sympathy is welcome.

 

[vvvvv]

Keep it cool, casual, let them do the talking and try to understand.
People handle being suicidal in different ways, feel sad in different ways and for different reasons. Even though their reasons might seem frivolous to us, it might be very real for them.

 

[millefeui]

I give zero fucks. Their life, their choice. If they ask me what is my opinion, if they ask me for help or whatever, then it is a different matter.

 

[Virgo]

I give zero fucks. Their life, their choice. If they ask me what is my opinion, if they ask me for help or whatever, then it is a different matter.

Agreed, but plenty of suicidal people aren't "truly" suicidal.

 

[thetwilightzone]

Agreed, but plenty of suicidal people aren't "truly" suicidal.

What do you mean?

 

[worldexploder]

The same thing I do on this site.

 

[ParamitePie]

Alright, I worked for a suicide hotline, so I know how this one works. First of all, I'd ask them if they wanted to talk about it. When they say yes, I determine whether it's text or video. If the former, I leave the room every ten minutes, glance at messages for half a second and write a canned response. If the latter, I get some scotch, light up a cigarette and look disinterested until they give up. Problem averted.
Edit: the real problem is phone calls. Leave them on speaker and pretend you're listening with an occasional, bored "uh huh" or "yeah". If you've ever had a partner, you know how this one works.

 

[lv-gras]

looks at this whole site

 

[Trashcan]

It depends on the situation. If it's on some anonymous forum, I just ignore it. If it's on some social media (such as Facebook, Snapchat, etc) and they're posting to a larger audience, I ignore it. If they talk to me directly, I'll comfort them. Or sometimes I'll give them a link to this website if they don't want help, just want to know how to ctb (on anonymous forums, don't link it to people irl).

 

[Virgo]

What do you mean?

irrational impulsive suicide.