Facebook and Deepika Padukone’s foundation add tools to help those in distress

The tools were developed in collaboration with mental health organisations and input from people with personal experience of self-injury and suicide.

The tools were developed in collaboration with mental health organisations and input from people with personal experience of self-injury and suicide.

Facebook on Tuesday announced an updated tools and educational resources to help support individuals struggling with self-injury or suicidal thoughts in India.

The tools were developed in collaboration with mental health organisations and input from people with personal experience of self-injury and suicide. Earlier launched in the US with the help of Save.org, Facebook is now rolling it out in India with local partners (AASRA and The Live Love Laugh Foundation) in English and Hindi.

With the help of these new tools, you can reach out to AASRA and The Live Love Laugh Foundation directly or report the post to Facebook, if you feel that someone's post makes you concerned about their well-being.

Teams for the same are working round the clock to review reports that come in. They prioritise the most serious ones like self-injury and send help and resources to those in distress.

The resources are sent to the person who posted something concerning will include an expanded set of options -- to reach out to a friend, contact a helpline, or see tips.

Vulnerable users will then be encouraged to connect to the AASRA India helpline or the Live Love Laugh Foundation or a friend, or to seek self-help advice from resources and tips provided on how they can work through these feelings. All of these resources were created in conjunction with our clinical and academic partners.

Deepika Padukone, founder of The Live Love Laugh Foundation said, "The Live Love Laugh Foundation is committed to reducing stigma and creating awareness around mental health in India. Suicide is a complex issue but the causal relationship between mental health and suicide is well established.The rate of suicide amongst the youth in India is one of the highest in the world.We are happy to partner with Facebook in this suicide prevention initiative. It is especially important to reach out to young people out there who are feeling depressed and encourage them to reach out for help.Society as a whole needs to be educated about this so that we are sensitized to signs of depression in our friends, neighbours and relatives and can guide them towards expert assistance"