Today on my An Evolving Man Podcast I speak with Chukumeka "Chukes" Maxwell about suicide awareness and prevention.

We explore what you can do if you are feeling suicidal and we also go into some depth about what you can do if someone you know or love is showing suicidal tendencies.

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Chukes is the founder of Action To Prevent Suicide CIC - a Devon based non-profit dedicated to raising funds for community-based programs focused on suicide prevention.

Born in London, to African and Caribbean parents, Chuke’s family emigrated back to Nigeria in 1965 but Chukumeka was then evacuated to the UK in 1967 as a refugee from the Biafran civil war. He has have also lived in Jamaica and Belize. Chukes has had a very eclectic working life, from training in the hotel industry after school to opening an award-winning delicatessen and later his own catering company, then re-training as a holistic deep tissue massage therapist and later as a registered Social worker.

A part-time lecturer at the University of Plymouth, Chukumeka is now also a suicide prevention trainer specializing in LivingWorks programs, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Trainer (ASIST) and safeTALK.

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Some of the questions Chukes answers and subjects he speaks about are:

- What was the boarding school, Christ's Hospital, like in the 70s?

- We talk about how we were at the same school and the importance of speaking and bringing things to light

- Chukes speaks about what drew him into suicide awareness and prevention work.

- He talks about some of the tools that you can use if you are feeling suicidal

- What is the advice he can give you if your loved ones are feeling suicidal or showing signs of depression?

- Does he advise different approaches for children and adults regarding suicidal thoughts?

- He also speaks about the importance of how to stay calm when in the company of a suicidal person.

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In order to learn more or support Chukes' work please visit: https://www.goodwillatps.org.uk/

He is currently looking at raising £1.5 million to set up a suicide prevention centre in Devon so please do support.

#suicideprevention #suicideawareness #christshospital

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Contact Details If You Are Feeling Suicidal:

The phone number to call in the UK if you are feeling suicidal is:

Samaritans: 116123

Website Hub of Hope: https://hubofhope.co.uk/

For more numbers of contact globally: https://www.supportline.org.uk/problems/suicide/

Hub of Hope App: Apple: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/hub-of-hope/id1337090866

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.chasingthestigma.hubofhope&hl=en&gl=gb

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An Evolving Man (AEM) Podcast is for men (and women) who want to grow, evolve and want support in learning how to do this.

On a regular basis there will be an interview around men's (and women's) topics ranging from self-development, relationships, spirituality, archetypes, trauma, boarding school and men's work featuring authors and leaders in this field.

The sense with these interviews is to support people during these times of change. What are the teachings, tools and practices that you can use to help you through these turbulent times?