Real People, Real Stories FAQs

Real People, Real Stories is a Samaritans awareness campaign supported by the rail industry, aimed at men aged 20-59 years old, launching on 11 August for six weeks in England, Scotland and Wales. NFU Mutual Charitable Trust is also supporting Real People, Real Stories and Samaritans work in rural communities.

The campaign sees men who have overcome tough times sharing their stories to encourage other men, to seek help by contacting Samaritans 24/7 free on 116 123 or Samaritans.org.

Phase one of our campaign launched in March 2019 and was carefully developed and researched with the help of our target audience i.e. men who have been through tough times and struggled with life (perhaps as a result of debt, homelessness, job-loss, relationship breakdown and/or grief etc) and/or experienced suicidal thoughts.

Some of these men were asked to share their stories to inspire other men to talk about their struggles too and to seek help when they need it.

Phase two of the campaign also sees men sharing their experiences of lockdown during the pandemic and how this affected their mental health. We carried out research with almost 2,000 men aged 20-59 in July 2020 to establish some of the key impacts of the pandemic and hear their stories.

We didn’t want to create just another awareness campaign. We wanted something authentic and emotive from men who have been through tough times, sharing their really powerful, positive and hopeful stories to encourage other men to seek help before they reach crisis point.

We know that a campaign featuring people with real experience and positive stories of recovery and hope is extremely powerful in encouraging other people who are finding life tough too.[1]

[1] Niederkrotenthaler et al (2010). Role of media reports in completed and prevented suicide: Werther v. Papageno effects. British Journal of Psychiatry, 197, 234–243.

Two in five men in England, Scotland and Wales aged 20-59 don't seek support when they need to, because they prefer to solve their own problems.

Our Real People, Real Stories campaign aims to reach all men before they reach crisis point so they seek help when they need it.

We're hoping to reach millions of people with our Real People Real Stories campaign.

We have four new case study films for the campaign and their stories will be shared on TV, digital radio, inside bus panels, across digital and social channels, in the media and on our website.

We hope that this campaign will help more people stop, listen and know that Samaritans are there for anyone who’s finding life tough right now.

Our campaign will be online and on social media – we hope everyone will get behind it and share our case study videos with the hashtag #RealPeopleRealStories

Look out for real story ‘headlines’ advertising in selected towns and some rural areas.

Real People, Real Stories is supported by the rail industry to signpost men who maybe struggling to cope to Samaritans.

As well as being supported by the rail industry, NFU Mutual Charitable Trust are also helping to raise awareness of Real People, Real Stories in rural communities this year. You can find out more about the support of the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust here.

No, it is an awareness campaign. However, it is the public’s kind donations that keep Samaritan’s service running. Donations will be welcomed at samaritans.org/donate

Please do help us make the campaign a success. You canwatch the real stories from real men who have been through tough times.

You can also support by following the campaign @samaritanscharity on Instagram or sharing the video @samaritans on Twitter or Facebook at www.facebook.com/samaritanscharity, using the hashtag #RealPeopleRealStories.

Please look out for the campaign and share it with your friends, family, neighbours and colleagues to help us reach as many people as possible with this important message.

Suicide is a very complex issue and often there isn’t one main reason why someone has suicidal thoughts or decides to take their own life. If you’re worried about someone, click here for some advice on signs to look out for.

Many people struggle to cope at one point or another of their lives. Experiencing a range of emotions during these times is common.

• You might not always be able to spot these signs, and these emotions show up differently in everyone
• Feeling restless and agitated
• Feeling tearful
• Not wanting to talk to or be with people
• Not wanting to do things you usually enjoy
• Using alcohol or drugs to cope with feelings
• Finding it hard to cope with everyday things
• Not replying to messages or being distant.

Some people do not exhibit any signs of being suicidal but go on to attempt to take their own lives which underlines the complexity of this issues.

Whatever you’re going through, you can call us free 24/7 on 116 123 or email us at [email protected].

We also have online resources.

If you would like emotional support in Welsh, we have a Welsh Language Line which is free to call on 0808 164 0123.

• Listen
• Be patient, try and encourage them to move to a place of safety. Keep them talking and focus on listening to them – it may take a little while to get a response from them initially
• Talk to them about their feelings. Information about how to have difficult conversations is available on our website
• Encourage them to contact us. They can call on 116 123, email [email protected], visit one of our branches in person or send us a letter
• You can contact us on their behalf. If you call us or email, we can reach out to them. We won't tell them you asked us to do that unless you want us to
• If you think they are in immediate danger, you can call an ambulance on 999. We can call an ambulance on your behalf.

Feeling actively suicidal is often temporary, even if someone has been feeling low, anxious or struggling to cope for a long period of time. This is why getting the right kind of support at the right time is so important. Suicide is not inevitable and it is preventable.