It's been on my mind

they have been reacting 👍 to their threads

If you see content that you think violates SF forum guidelines, you can click on the "report" link on the bottom left-hand side of the post window. I think you could also send a message to the "Ask the Staff" forum with a link to the content that you're objecting to.

I think people are allowed to say that they're planning to kill themselves. What's not allowed is giving a specific countdown, e.g., "I'm going to kill myself on [specfic date]". They're also not allowed to mention specific suicide methods or self-harm methods.


That's a tricky issue. I generally avoid giving a like to a post where someone says something like "I hate myself, I want to kms", because it sounds like encouraging those things, even if they say other things in the post that are like-worthy.

On the other hand, sometimes people will like negative-sounding content simply because they want to show general support for the member, or to approve of the fact that they're communicating about themselves.

If there's content that the mods don't object to but that nonetheless indicates that someone is planning a suicide attempt, and it's also getting likes, maybe you can give your own reply that makes clear that you care about them and don't want them to kill themselves. That's probably the best way to respond.

I'm glad that you care about members here

They have actually mentioned what's going to help them kill themselves and I think sometime around they even mentioned the date or days

There's sometimes banned content that will stay up on the forums for a while because a mod doesn't see it.

The report post and LTA(Letters to the Admin) are the best ways to alert the staff here. That way it comes up and us on the staff can bounce thoughts off of each other on how far something seems to be going and get feedback based on how well we may know the person in question. Multiple people, multiple thoughts can be a guide on how to proceed. It is a big plus for you as a person that you care enough to ask the questions. It can be a fine line what with the nature and subject of the forum here.

Hi, Congratsbaby. I’m going to throw in my couple of cents’ worth. All of the above from staff is true. Your hesitation or disinclination to report is understandable —

But…if the person is in serious self-destructive mode and is naming methods, dates, intention, it’s an indication that their feelings are running high, which can mean their risk level of trying something harmful is higher. It’s serious.

Maybe staff missed the references or didn’t see the posts or don’t know the member very well so we’ve “let [something] go” for now. When other members notice that someone seems to be in trouble, reporting might seem like adding fuel to the fire for the person or getting the person in trouble. That is not the case. When you report a member you remain anonymous to the person. The report allows staff to deal with the content in the post(s). And most importantly, the message staff send to the person generally offers support. I can only speak for myself, but I’m pretty sure other staff do this too: I try to include “drop me a message if you want to chat.” It’s a pinch of focussed support — it can give the person a moment in which they pause and rethink things. A pause that allows them to choose life over suicide. And if staff don’t know about the post, the member doesn’t get that little sense of extra support. Reporting is important.

My suggestion to members is to report any time that a member names method(s), intent, date/timeline in a post. Reporting it allows staff to keep an eye open for the person getting into an even more serious downward spiral, and at the same time, we can delete content that can upset or harm other members. We want everyone to be safe here.

What @Sunspots said! 👍

If they dont feel able to express themselves here, then the alternative is likely that they land up on another site where they can, that is very pro choice and has almost zero moderation
And I would rather have them stay here in this environment

I can imagine most people here already have their suicide planned out in their head
I think its good to be able to talk about it in an environment that has good moderation and a supporting community

Thats my thoughts anyway
But I could be wrong ofc
Wouldnt exactly be the first time

What @Sunspots said! 👍

Hey, we haven't received a report.

Find one of the posts and hit the report button. A pop up will appear asking for the reason, pop a few words in there and hit the report button at the bottom of the popup.

If you're struggling, you can always write in Ask The Staff, giving the members name and we can have a look