Prince William calls for action to help men with suicidal thoughts during his visit to James’ Place in London | UK News

The Duke of Cambridge believes more needs to be done to help men who are contemplating suicide, saying the problem is not being resolved “as quickly as we should”.

Prince William is speaking at the opening of James ‘Place, a new center in London provides free support to men in crisis of suicide.

Revealing the plaque in front of supporters, clinic staff and the men who received help, he said: “It’s always emotional and overwhelming for me to be able to go to places like this, knowing that there’s something for everyone to come here for . . . In particular, I think what’s most essential to me today is that there’s always a solution.”

He added: “I think men sometimes get too lost in the details, in the weeds they forget the bigger picture and maybe there’s a little bit of support that can move them forward and have hope and a brighter future.

“So I think you’re going to give a lot of men the support they need and a brighter future, a lot of guys that right now may not feel like they can get through it. but will get over it.”

William opened the original James’ Place in Liverpool in 2018, after speaking with co-founder Clare Milford Haven as part of his focus on mental health.

Clare founded the charity after the death of her son, James, when he was just 21 years old.

According to the Office for National Statistics, suicide is the leading cause of death in men under the age of 50.

During his visit to central London, William was shown one of the unconventional ways they try to encourage men to open up.

The exercise ‘Put your cards on the table’ uses a set of cards that describe their feelings to help men put into words what they are thinking, doing and feeling.

Derek Wilson, who went to James’ Place in Liverpool for help, told the prince: “This is a radiant moment for me, sir, because as you know men don’t talk about these issues. “

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Speaking openly about his experience, he said: “Obviously I was trying to put an end to my life, work pressure and such, and I just went out one day thinking people would better without me.”

He went on to describe how he was initially told he would have to wait six weeks for help and how his wife explained to doctors he couldn’t wait that long because he was in a time of crisis.

William replied: “We hear this a lot, duration is the deciding factor.

“We’re not really solving problems as quickly as we should.”

Breaking the stigma around mental health has been a cornerstone of Prince William’s royal work since the launch of the Heads Together campaign in 2016.

Through his charity, the Royal Foundation, he has focused specifically on projects that encourage men to talk driven by his own experience working for the Air Ambulance service East Anglian.