Glossary of acceptable terms – suicide and mental health

Term	Meaning
Lived or living experience	Someone with personal experience of mental ill-health, suicide or distress. ‘Living experience’ may be preferred by some people to indicate that the personal experience is current and not in the past.
Lived or living experience of Suicide	Having experienced suicidal thoughts; survived a suicide attempt; cared for someone through suicidal crisis; or been bereaved by suicide.
Suicide	The act of deliberately killing oneself. Suicide is complex and can have many contributing factors. Alternative terms: Took their own life Died by suicide Ended their own life
Suicide attempt	A self‐inflicted, potentially injurious behaviour with a nonfatal outcome for which there is evidence (either explicit or implicit) of intent to die
Suicidal ideation, suicidal urges, contemplating suicidal, suicidal ideas	Thoughts about suicide. These thoughts may vary in intensity and duration from fleeting thoughts to a complete preoccupation with wanting to die.4 While not all people who have thoughts about suicide will attempt or die by suicide, thoughts about suicide can be very distressing and should be taken seriously. Alternative terms: Suicidal thinking Suicidal ideation (a clinical term that may be less understandable for a general audience)
Suicidal behaviour	A broad term that includes thinking about suicide, planning for suicide, attempting suicide and suicide itself
Suicidal / suicide crisis	Refers to a state or situation where someone is seriously contemplating ending their life or is planning to do so.
Self-harm	Deliberately injuring or hurting oneself, with or without the intention of dying.6 Self-harm is a complex interaction between an individual and the context they are in. Alternative terms: Self-injury Self-harming behaviour
Suicide prevention	The actions we take to prevent suicide and suicidal behaviours and to support people who have been impacted by suicide. These actions are focussed on reducing risk factors and enhancing protective factors.
Postvention	Activities or interventions occurring after a death by suicide to reduce the risk of further suicidal behaviour and to support and assist those bereaved or affected (family, friends, professionals, peers, responders, community) to cope with stressors and manage the experience of loss and grief. It is also about the expression, acknowledgement and responses to the profound grief and loss that a suicide generates.
Aftercare	Services that provide support to people following suicide attempt with the aim of increasing access to and engagement with care in order to prevent repeated self-harm. It is also for those who have experienced suicidal intensity and crisis, which may be episodic or continuing
Mental Health	Mental health is a state of wellbeing in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community. For some culturally and linguistically diverse groups, the word ‘mental’ may be taboo or have a negative connotation. A focus on wellbeing may be preferred. Alternative terms include: · Mental health and wellbeing · Mental health and emotional wellbeing · Social and emotional wellbeing · Wellbeing of the mind
Social and emotional wellbeing	In broad terms, social and emotional wellbeing is the foundation for physical and mental health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is a holistic concept which results from a network of relationships between individuals, family, kin and community. It also recognises the importance of connection to land, culture, spirituality and ancestry, and how these affect the individual.
Wellbeing	Wellbeing encompasses the health of the whole person – physical, mental, social and emotional. A person’s wellbeing can change moment to moment, day to day, month to month and year to year. It can be influenced by what’s happening in a specific moment and the actions that people take.11 Wellbeing may be preferred terminology when communicating with culturally and linguistically diverse audiences.
Distress	Distress has been used to describe non-specific symptoms of stress and concerns that affect someone’s thoughts and emotions. First-person accounts have detailed the intense physical and emotional experiences associated with distress. Despite the intensity of these experiences, distress is often seen as ‘less serious’ in the eyes of the broader community and the service system, creating a disconnect between people who experience distress and what the word indicates to health professionals and others Single words that may be used to describe this experience may be: Anxious Helplessness Pain Unrelenting Terms used to describe ‘feeling’ experiences may include: Rising panic Feeling of dread or impending doom Spiralling Feeling out of control or like everything is falling apart Intense emotion Persistent worry Racing thoughts Terms used to describe physical experiences may include: Being frozen or paralysed Breaking down in tears A rock on my chest Churning stomach Heart racing Hands shaking Limb weakness Can’t concentrate Lack of sleep.
Crisis (suicide related)	Those who are in suicidal despair, who express intense emotions and have high levels of distress.
Psychological distress	A state of emotional suffering associated with stressors and demands that are difficult to cope with in daily life.14 A clinical term used to describe the negative stress response, often involving negative affect and physiological reactivity: a type of stress that results from being overwhelmed by demands, losses, or perceived threats. Alternative terms include: Mental distress Emotional pain
Trauma	The term “trauma” refers to experiences that cause intense physical and psychological stress reactions. It can refer to a single event, multiple events, or a set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically and emotionally harmful or threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s physical, social, emotional, or spiritual wellbeing. Alternative terms include: Trauma experience
Mental ill-health	Mental ill-health is an umbrella term often used in policy documents and prevention work to describe both mental health concerns and mental illness. While it is currently used by governments and organisations, it is not a preferred term to be used in community or with people who have personal or lived experience. As the term is used differently by different stakeholders, it is necessary to consider the context in which it is used and check preferences of your audience. If used, the term ‘mental ill-health’ should be used as an umbrella term rather than to refer to mental health concerns or mental illness individually. For some culturally and linguistically diverse groups, the word ‘mental’ may be taboo or have a negative connotation. A focus on wellbeing may be preferred.
Mental health concerns / problems	A mental health concern can interfere with how a person thinks, feels and behaves, but not to the extent that it meets the criteria for a mental illness diagnosis. Mental health problems are more common and likely to resolve in time, but if a mental health problem persists or increases in severity, it may develop into a mental illness. Alternative terms include: Mental health challenges Mental health issues Mental health hurdles Mental health difficulties.
Mental illness	A mental illness is the most commonly used term to describe conditions diagnosed by a medical professional that significantly affect how a person thinks, feels and interacts with other people. Mental illnesses, such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are diagnosed according to standardised criteria. Alternative terms include: Mental disorder Mental health diagnosis
Psychosis	The word psychosis is used to describe conditions that affect the mind, where there has been some loss of contact with reality. When someone becomes ill in this way (experiencing delusions and hallucinations) it is called a psychotic episode. During a period of psychosis, a person’s thoughts and perceptions are disturbed, and the individual may have difficulty understanding what is real and what is not. Psychosis may be a symptom of a mental illness, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. However, a person may experience psychosis and never be diagnosed with schizophrenia or any other mental disorder. It can occur as a result of both mental and physical health conditions. Other causes of psychosis: Sleep deprivation General medical conditions Certain prescription medications Misuse of alcohol or other drugs
Stigma	The disapproval of, or discrimination against, an individual or group based on characteristics that serve to distinguish them from other members of a society. Stigma is complex and can result from negatively stereotyped characteristics, attitudes and responses that harm a person’s day-to-day health and wellbeing by excluding, devaluing or shaming them
Social determinant of health and wellbeing	The non-medical factors that influence health and wellbeing outcomes. They are the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider systems that shape the conditions of daily life. This includes economic policies and systems, social norms and policies, as well as political systems
Help-seeking behaviour	The process of a person actively asking for help or support in order to cope with adverse circumstances or problems. Help-seeking behaviour involves being able to recognise and express symptoms or problems as well as an understanding of how to access support and a willingness to do so. Alternative terms: Seeking help or support Accessing support
Recovery	While there is no single description or definition of recovery because recovery is different for everyone, recovery often refers to being able to create and live a meaningful and contributing life in a community of choice with or without the presence of a mental health or AOD concern. Central to all recovery paradigms are hope, self-determination, self-management, empowerment and advocacy. A person’s right to full inclusion and to a meaningful life of their own choosing, free of stigma and discrimination is also vital.
Harm reduction or harm prevention	Harm reduction refers to public health measures designed to reduce the negative individual or social effects associated with drug use. According to the International Harm Reduction Association, it’s defined as policies, programmes and practices that aim to reduce the harms associated with the use of psychoactive drugs in people unable or unwilling to stop. The defining features are the focus on the prevention of harm, rather than the prevention of drug use itself, and the focus on people who continue to use drugs. It includes needle and syringe programs, opioid substitution therapy, medically supervised injecting spaces, decriminalisation of personal use and drug checking (pill testing) services.
Trauma informed	Refers to an organisational or practice approach to delivering health and human services directed by a thorough understanding of the neurological, biological, psychological and social effects of trauma and its prevalence in society. It is a strengths-based framework that emphasises physical, psychological and emotional safety for consumers, their families, carers and service providers.
LifeLine International specific	· LifeLine International always has a second capitalised L · Members always has a capital M · Member titles are always capitalised · LLI is the accepted shortening, after first use · LLI uses English Oxford spelling

Suicide related word usage

Do say	Don’t say	Why?
‘non-fatal’ or ‘made an attempt on his/her life’	‘unsuccessful suicide’	To avoid presenting suicide as a desired outcome or glamorising a suicide attempt.
‘took their own life’, ‘died by suicide’ or ‘ended their own life’	‘successful suicide’	To avoid presenting suicide as a desired outcome.
‘died by suicide’ or ‘ended his/ her own life	‘committed’ or ‘commit suicide’	To avoid association between suicide and ‘crime’ or ‘sin’ that may alienate some people.
‘concerning rates of suicide’	‘suicide epidemic’	To avoid sensationalism and inaccuracy.
Suicidal urges, suicidal ideas, contemplating suicide, suicidal ideation	Suicidal thoughts	'thoughts' suggests a person thinks about suicide as a cognitive process. Mostly that does not happen. From a crisis perspective, cognitive processes are severely compromised by the emotional and psychological distress that a person considering suicide is going through. The normal protections offered by judgement and reasoning are not always available.

Mental health related word usage

Do say	Don't say	Why?
A person is ‘living with’ or ‘has a diagnosis of’ mental illness	‘mental patient’, ‘nutter’, ‘lunatic’, ‘psycho’, ‘schizo’, ‘deranged’, ‘mad’	Certain language sensationalises mental illness and reinforces stigma.
A person is ‘being treated for’ or ‘someone with’ a mental illness	‘victim’, ‘suffering from’, or ‘affected with’ a mental illness	Terminology that suggests a lack of quality of life for people with mental illness.
A person has a ‘diagnosis of’ or ‘is being treated for’ schizophrenia	A person is ‘a schizophrenic’, ‘an anorexic’	Labelling a person by their mental illness.
The person’s behaviour was unusual or erratic	‘crazed’, ‘deranged’, ‘mad’, ‘psychotic’	Descriptions of behaviour that imply existence of mental illness or are inaccurate.
Antidepressants, psychiatrists or psychologists, mental health hospital	‘happy pills’, ‘shrinks’, ‘mental institution’	Colloquialisms about treatment can undermine people’s willingness to seek help.
Reword any sentence that uses psychiatric or media terminology incorrectly or out of context	‘psychotic dog’, using ‘schizophrenic’ to denote duality such as ‘schizophrenic economy’	Terminology used out of context adds to misunderstanding and trivialises mental illness.

This glossary is based on Everymind’s Mindframe Guidelines. We acknowledge the long-standing contributions of the global mental health sector and the expertise of lived and living experience in helping shape this approach.

For further information and guides, see:

Everymind, Language and Stigma

Mindframe, Communicating about Suicide

Roses in the Ocean, A Guide to Safe Language

Samaritans, How to talk about suicide safely online

Preventing suicide: a resource for media professionals (who.int)