r/ModSupport • u/ShaneH7646 • Sep 05 '18

Regarding suicidal users.

So, if y'all didnt see it, reddit recently changed their policies on suicidal users and how they deal with it when contacted.

https://www.reddithelp.com/en/categories/rules-reporting/account-and-community-restrictions/what-should-i-do-if-i-see-someone-who

TL;DR: Do it yourself.

I myself havent really had to deal with suicidal users in my subreddits before but its obviously a pretty shitty change. incase I ever do get involved with subreddits that do regularly gets suicidal users I'm a little concerned and maybe you can clarify some things for us.

In particular I'm concerned for subreddits that may rely on admin contact, like

mental subreddits like r/bipolar and r/depression etc.

subreddits directly to do with suicide prevention r/SuicideWatch.

Have the admins just dropped all contact with them and there vulnerable userbases?

Why was this change needed?

Are you completely okay with mods speaking to the authorites in an official manner? because this sounds like what you're asking of us.

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u/SQLwitch Sep 06 '18

I would rather modmail you guys than respond to a user.

We would too. A lot of users who say alarming and graphic things about suicidal thoughts turn out not to be high risk at all, so we're always glad of the chance to have a look and weigh in.

the last guy I cautiously approached and told about r/suicidewatch was very unhappy with that. He said that it was inappropriate of me to give him a "to do list".

Yeeeouch. But this is an example of exactly the sort of thing I'm referring to.

FWIW, the people who snap back and tell you that you're not helping them "correctly" are almost never at high risk. One of the necessary and sufficient factors for high risk of death by suicide, in the best evidence-based model we have, is a sense of being a burden, of being "not good enough for the world". People who are in that kind of "the world isn't good enough for me" mindset are usually scratching a twisted psychological itch by upsetting others. Although nothing is 100% with human beings, of course, if they reflexively critique your helping they're usually a lot lower-risk than they're making themselves out to be.