In her office on the second floor of the old White House on Byron Street in Inverell, Meg Perceval waited for her next class.
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She instructs yoga sessions in the Federation-era rooms above Me and Mr Jones and a sushi bar on the first floor. At the back of the space, near windows overlooking Inverell's CBD, there is a mat and small singing bowl.
In the office, Damien Smith and Jacqui O'Brien from the Australian Hotel in Inverell, wearing Tribute for Andy C t-shirts, came along to talk about their friend Andy Cowperthwaite who died in 2016.
"He loved his music, loved live music," Damien said. “He was a genuine sort of bloke. Everyone got along well with him, and he was well liked in the community. He used to play music at the hotel for us. He used to come there quite regularly.
“If someone left something there that came from another town, he was the first bloke who we rang to say can we borrow some microphones, or we need some leads, or someone has blown a speaker up.
"Sure enough, he would go out of his way and drop it down."
It was the Friday before bands from Inverell and the district returned to the Aussie to play for their lost mate.
For Meg, and a new locals-only organisation - More Than Awareness - the concert would help raise funds for suicide prevention training.
Suicide is the leading cause of death for people under 40 years-old. It is the reason for national organisations like the Suicide Callback Service, beyondblue, Lifeline and Suicide Prevention Australia. But, as Meg explained, the "tragic legacy" of suicide is that statistics are gathered in hindsight.
"With suicide prevention, we have only learnt the hard way," she said.
Meg, a PhD candidate, worked in suicide prevention for almost a decade. She has based her research on an interpersonal theory.
"(The theory) talks about two aspects of people taking their life," she said. "It sounds really simple, but the first is because they want to and the second is because they can."
The theory resonates in rural areas, she said: "People who are more at risk are people who have to be exposed to pain or injury or have become habituated to the idea of death.”
Young people sometimes rehearse the idea of dying, Meg explained: "So, they may write about it, or they might write music about it.”
"But getting to the point where you are capable of taking your own life is not easy."
Meg explained this kind of dying comes from a feeling of ‘thwarted belonging’: "Their feelings of not belonging or not being worth something is not how the people around them usually feel.”
The training Meg, Damien and Jacqui envision helps those left behind to come to terms with sudden death, and for the community to see the warning signs.
"A sudden death is awful, whatever age, but suicide does have different effects on the grieving process," Meg said.
"And people, when they have this training, it is not uncommon to have people crying and people often come to me and say they had wondered what had happened all these years and now they have the answer.
"You don't have those answers until you have the answers.
“It is never to lay blame with people. You do your best with what you have and we believe suicide is preventable. That is why we are passionate about doing the work that we are doing."
Support services
BeyondBlue
Mental health professionals are available at the beyondblue Support Service via phone 24/7 on 1300 22 4636 or via online chat (3pm-12am AEST) or email responses (within 24 hours).
Suicide Call Back Service
The Suicide Call Back Service is a 24-hour, nationwide service that provides telephone and online counselling to people 15 years and over who fit one of the following categories: People who are suicidal, people caring for someone who is suicidal, people bereaved by suicide, health professionals supporting people affected by suicide.
The Suicide Call Back Service is especially suited to people who are geographically or emotionally isolated. Contact the 24/7 Helpline on: 1300 659 467.
LifeLine
Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing a personal crisis with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services. Somewhere in Australia there is a new call to Lifeline every minute. People call Lifeline’s 24 hour crisis line 13 11 14.
Suicide Prevention Australia
Suicide Prevention Australia provides national leadership for the suicide prevention sector in Australia. SPA works collaboratively to develop a community that knows how to ask for help and how to give help.