Recently, Matt, Expert by Experience with Mental Health Together has been working with Derby and Derbyshire Suicide Prevention Programme to share his story.

In this powerful video, Matt opens up about his personal journey with suicide both through his own lived experience and the loss of a close friend.

The opportunity presented when Caroline Savidge, Suicide Prevention Officer and Wendy Hodgkinson Suicide Prevention Facilitator came to our Expert Peer Support meeting. This is a space where Experts and Professionals meet to collaborate on opportunities for (mental health) service design and improvement.

This video is part of a wider effort by the Derbyshire Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Team to bring lived experience into the heart of training and awareness to all health professionals, not just in mental health care. Their current focus is on supporting healthcare staff especially those outside of mental health roles to feel confident in having better conversations with patients. Lived experience voices like Matt’s are central to this mission.

“I was able to talk about my experiences with suicide, how I felt and how I recovered and moved on to be a mental health advocate. I truly hope that the videos will make a difference to many people.”  – Matt, Expert by Experience

“We are incredibly grateful to Matt, who gave up his time to help us produce a series of videos of people with lived experience of suicide. He spoke openly and eloquently about his experiences, and we know that this will help others who are struggling with their mental health. We have circulated the videos to a wide audience across the system and they have already been viewed almost 1,000 times! We are also using them on a weekly basis to enhance the training we deliver to professionals in Derbyshire, and they are having a powerful impact on audiences. Thank you, Matt, we really appreciate your support.” – Wendy Hodgkinson, Suicide Prevention and Awareness Facilitator and Caroline Savidge, Suicide Prevention Officer, Derby and Derbyshire Suicide Prevention Programme.  

Matt is committed to breaking the stigma around suicide and encouraging open, honest conversations. He also highlights the free Zero Suicide Alliance training, a 30-minute online course that equips people with the skills to spot the signs and support someone in crisis.