‘Alarming’ rise in Victorian suicides sparks urgent call out for support

Shocking statistics have revealed a rise in suicides across the state, with the biggest increase in recorded history causing support centres to be overwhelmed by calls for help.

Lifeline Narrm crisis support volunteer Alisha Tarrant, who has worked for the organisation for the last 12 years to help people in crisis, is part of a team of volunteers who are overwhelmed by the demand in calls for help.

An alarming rise in the number of suicide incidents in Victoria has sparked an urgent call out for volunteers, with calls for help overwhelming crisis support centres as the state recorded the largest increase in yearly suicides in 20 years.

Lifeline has reported double the current number of volunteers in Victoria are needed to meet demand for support, with the state ranking number one nationally for number of calls made to the crisis support service.

According to Lifeline, the huge number of calls made by Victorians has put significant pressure on the national system, leaving 200,000 calls made to support centres by Australians in crisis unanswered.

Data reported by the Coroners Court of Victoria found in 2022 the state recorded its highest number of annual suicides since records began in 2000, with a 9 per cent increase in deaths compared to 2021.

Between January to March this year, 185 Victorians died by suicide, with 134 being men and 51 women and the most common age demographic between 35 to 44 years old.

Currently, Victorians account for 360,000 of the one million of calls to Lifeline each year however the state’s current resources have capacity to answer just 12 per cent of those calls.

Lifeline has opened a new support centre in Melbourne called Lifeline Narrm, the first new centre to open in the last 50 years, to bolster resources in Victoria and meet the overwhelming demand.

Lifeline Narrm and Canberra chief executive Carrie Leeson said the pandemic caused a large increase in calls for support in Victoria and the demand has not decreased since.

“We saw a 40 per cent increase in the call demand overnight when Covid struck and when the first lockdown went into effect.

“We haven't seen a decline in the rate of calls coming through.

“Anxiety, uncertainty, burnout – a lot of the all of the effects of Covid remain (and) it was exacerbated in Victoria,” Ms Leeson said.

Suicide Prevention Australia acting chief executive Matthew McLean also called for more support for suicide prevention across the nation.

“It’s clear there is distress in the community … we’re deeply concerned about the impact that cost-of-living is having on Australians.

“We need urgent action from all levels of government to address rising rates of distress and suicide.”

According to Lifeline, more than 65,000 Australians attempt suicide every year and nine die by suicide each day, with suicide being the leading cause of death between the ages of 15 and 44.

The top reasons for calls made to Lifeline are relationship breakdowns, financial distress, isolation, substance abuse and grief or loss.

Lifeline Narrm is currently urgently seeking more volunteers to answer calls made to the centre in an effort to provide more support for Victorians.

Ms Leeson said volunteers were provided with comprehensive training, with an accredited course, access to a team of trainers, supervisors and mentors.

“It is an enormous volunteer undertaking but a very rewarding one, absolutely anyone can do it if they’ve got time and empathy.

“It's such a privilege to sit on one side of a phone and talk to someone you’ll never meet but to know that you’re there for them, and you can actually really help.”

The training costs usually associated with becoming a Lifeline crisis support volunteer are being waived for the first six months of the centre opening.

Registrations to become a Lifeline Narrm volunteer can be made here.