The Difficult Conversation: Dubbo podcast focuses on suicide impacts with tradies in sight
The lives of Dubbo locals like Paul Hausia, who have been touched by suicide, are the focus of a new podcast called The Difficult Conversation.
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Dubbo residents who’ve lost loved ones as a result of suicide and a man who has recently tried to end his life have shared details of their experiences in a new podcast designed to reduce stigma and help people in need.
The podcast is the brainchild of Bruno Efoti, a popular Dubbo leader who founded the Tradies in Sight organisation to improve the mental health of men in country communities.
Episode one of The Difficult Conversation recently became available on YouTube and Spotify.
Paul Hausia is one of the Dubbo residents who speaks to Mr Efoti about his experience in the podcast.
After his beloved sister Amelia went missing in Canberra on Christmas Day in 1992, Mr Hausia said he blamed himself and could not stop thinking about what could have been done to prevent her disappearance.
“I was drinking every single weekend, I was fighting every single weekend,” he said.
“I’d never been a person that would talk about their feelings and sensitivities.
“I couldn’t get it right with relationships and I became angry, I shut down most of the time.”
After years of suffering in silence and not being able to reach out for help, Mr Hausia said he attempted to end his life in 2010 and again, three months ago.
“As men we don’t tend to talk about our sensitivities unless we’ve got a gut full of alcohol and that’s when things are said wrong, people get angry, people get frustrated and before you know it you end up saying and doing things you really don’t want to do or say,” he said.
“I know I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past, not just with myself but also with the people around me.
“If I’m feeling like that how many other men are feeling the same?”
With support and encouragement from his peers, Mr Hausia overcame one of the hardest challenges of all when he sought professional support.
Since that time his outlook on life has improved and he’s using his experience to help others understand they’re not alone by sharing his story with Mr Efoti.
“Even though I was airing it to the rest of the community, I wasn’t concerned about being judged because I had someone in front of me I could really trust,” he said.
Rural Adversity Mental Health Program (RAMHP) co-ordinator Camilla Herbig said more people like Mr Hausia were opening up more about their mental health experiences because society has made it “more okay”.
“Over the last 10 to 20 years we’ve seen plenty of projects and stigma reduction activities which are really encouraging people to talk about their lived experience and the subsequent benefits which can come from sharing,” she said.
“If we can be encouraging people to share in a safe way when they’re ready and in a place to do that safely there can be lots of benefits to them personally and those around them.
“We know quite often there might be people who when they’re unwell or when they’re struggling they can feel quite alone and hearing that someone else has been through something similar can be very helpful. We don’t all need to have clinical skills to help another person.”
Lifeline — 13 11 14
Beyond Blue — 1300 22 4636
Suicide Call Back Service — 1300 659 467