The mere fact the Embrace 4 Bipolar movement has garnered such strong support marks a quantum leap forward for this community.

Mental illness, for so long only whispered in cloistered corners, is slowly being dragged out of the shadows.

The same can’t be said for suicide.

It’s not easy to confront the darker side of the human condition.

Perhaps it’s our own fragility that stops us talking about it more.

Or perhaps it’s the profound sadness of someone taking their own life.

The media has a duty to start these conversations.

It’s a duty it has largely failed.

Media outlets are well-versed on how not to talk about suicide – don’t glamorise it, don’t discuss how a person took their own life.

But in trying to walk the tightrope between sensitive reporting and sensationalisation, it has been fused into immobility. 

And that’s a shame. Because it’s a conversation we desperately need to have.

The current system of silence only adds to the stigma and makes it harder for people to know where to go for help and harder for people to know how to help.

It also masks the impact suicide has on family and friends.

Those of us who have lost a loved one by their own hand - and sadly it’s not an exclusive club - know too well the intense sorrow and questioning of those left behind.

Suicide is happening in Wagga. A lot.

But you wouldn’t read about it.

The only way to find a solution is to admit there’s a problem.

The natural step is for you to simply talk about the issue and tear away some of the stigma clinging so fiercely to suicide that it’s sometimes not even discussed in the families it’s torn apart.

We must look up from our electronic gadgets long enough to gaze into the eyes of those we love and have an honest discussion.

Suicide is a mistake.

It’s an irrational decision made in a moment of madness, but it’s consequences are both tragic and final.