Facebook’s Suicide Prevention Tools Will Help People Fight Suicidal Thoughts

Social media is playing a massive role in how people all across the world share their thoughts and lives with others. Posting about suicidal thoughts or feelings is a warning sign that someone may be at risk of suicide. Now, Facebook has developed suicide prevention tools which will help to counsel and support individuals who may be having self-injury or suicidal thoughts.

The social media giant has reportedly rolled out suicide prevention tools for its users around the world. Developed in collaboration with mental health organizations, and with inputs from people who have had personal experience with self-injury and suicide, the suicide prevention tool will let users report potentially suicidal posts.

On flagging a post, users will be offered a range of options, including an option to message a person directly with suggested text, or message a mutual friend to coordinate help or even report to Facebook directly.

"Now, with the help of these new tools, if someone posts something on Facebook that makes you concerned about their well-being, you can reach out to them directly - and you also can also report the post to us," said Antigone Davis, Global Head of Safety at Facebook and researcher Jennifer Guadagno in an official statement.

"We have teams working around the world, 24/7, who review reports that come in. They prioritize the most serious reports like self-injury."

Facebook's global community operations team will monitor the post to ensure that the person isn't suicidal. If the team believes a post is a call for help or a distress signal, then the person writing the post will be sent a message asking them if they're alright along with an expanded set of assistance options - to communicate with a friend, contact a helpline, get tips and support, or skip the process entirely.

Users are also advised to immediately call local emergency services for help or visit the social giant's Help Center for information about how to deal with the situation: https://www.facebook.com/help/594991777257121/.