Sajid Javid has urged men to talk about their mental health as he spoke publicly for the first time about the loss of his brother, who committed suicide.
The health secretary said he still wondered if he could have acted to prevent his brother’s death and spoke of his “deeply personal” mission to prevent suicides. Javid’s brother Tariq, 51, committed suicide at a hotel near Horsham, West Sussex, in July 2018.
“Then we found out he had a physical health problem that I hadn’t talked to anyone about,” Javid said. “And if we had just found out, if he had talked to us, maybe we could have done something,” he added. “Maybe it could have made a difference. And I guess I’ll never know the answer to that.”
Suicide is the leading cause of death in men under the age of 50 and approximately three-quarters of deaths from suicide each year are from men. Javid said that despite increased awareness in some communities, there was “a stigma around talking about mental health issues,” adding, “And we need to get the message across that no matter what culture we come from. “We can all have a mental health challenge at some point in our lives, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The most important thing is to tell someone, talk to others, and seek help.”
The loss of his brother changed the way Javid interacts with friends and family, he told the Sunday Times. “I make sure I make time for people and ask them how they feel.” Javid said he was worried during the pandemic when “a family friend” developed serious mental health problems.
“Although he didn’t use the word suicide, I was concerned about the signs he was seeing and I absolutely insisted that he received support for mental health. At first he was very reluctant, but eventually he did and now he is in a much better place and I’m not sure I would have done it before this tragedy happened to my family. “
Javid, 52, added: “I am blessed with four wonderful children, three who are now young adults, and now I tell them much more about their feelings. Of course, there are mental health professionals, but there is a role. for all of us in this.
“If someone is thinking about what they can do to help, the first thing is to talk to your loved ones and friends and ask them how they feel. But don’t just ask them the question in a way that they settle. , ask them how they really feel and take your time. “
Speaking on Friday at the London headquarters of the charity Suicide Prevention Papyrus, Javid said an updated suicide prevention plan is being developed as well as better services for bereaved families and research to understand the causes of suicide.
“We need to deal with suicides with the same urgency as we treat any other major killer,” he said. “I am determined to make a difference on this issue, and one of the ways we will do that is by publishing a new 10-year suicide prevention plan. This is something that is deeply personal to me: there are too many families that they are incomplete and too much potential has been lost “.
The long-term plan for suicide prevention is seeking opinions from the public, but so far only 19% of respondents have been men, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.
In 2018, West Sussex chief forensic scientist Penelope Schofield decided Tariq Javid had taken his own life. The survey learned that he had left two letters to his partner, telling him to “go on and enjoy life,” before booking a room at a hotel near Horsham.