Suicide prevention centre opens in Brussels

Suicide is the leading cause of death among young people in Belgium and five Belgians kill themselves every day. To help combat this crisis, a Namur-based suicide prevention organisation has opened a new centre in the heart of Brussels, operational from this Friday (24 January).

Operated by the group ‘Un pass dans l’impasse’, the centre will complement the nine existing sites in Wallonia.

The centre will offer psychological support through individual or family consultations to those contemplating suicide and their families.

Relatives and people who struggle with depressive thoughts but are not necessarily suicidal can also go to the centre, situated minutes from the Grand-Place at the Solidaris Brabant premises (Rue du Midi 118).

“Our goal is financial accessibility, with individual consultations in Brussels priced at €20 (partially reimbursed by health insurance) and family therapy costing €25,” said Florence Ringlet, the organisation’s director of therapy.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, requests for help in the Brussels region have risen constantly. They come from the general population, from the Brussels health and mental health services, struggling entrepreneurs, pharmacists and psychologists, Un pass dans l’impasse said.

A survey carried out by the organisation on Brussels and Wallonia residents found that 35.7% have had suicidal thoughts at some point in their lives. Moreover, 20.6% experienced them in the past six months.

“Even more worrying is the fact that 11.2% of people in Brussels and Wallonia have already planned to commit suicide,” director Thomas Thirion said in a statement. “Of these, one in five had planned to kill themselves in the last six months.”

The association also reports a 48% increase in consultations over the past four years across its nine Wallonia sites.

“We could not leave these calls unanswered,” Thirion added.

This is understandable, as suicide is the leading cause of death among 15-44-year-olds, ahead of both road accidents and cancer, the non-profit organisation’s survey on Brussels and Wallonia showed.

Its research also revealed that five Belgians kill thesleves every day, meaning that the country has the fourth highest suicide rate in Europe.

For past five years, Un pass dans l’impasse has also emphasised the need to support suffering self-employed people.

According to Inami, the number of self-employed people who have been depressed for more than a year went up 67% between 2016 and 2021, while burnout cases increased by 47%.

“All these figures cannot be ignored and demonstrate the often hidden distress amongst the self-employed,” Thirion added.