The holidays can be a time to gather and show love and appreciation for friends and family, but for many the holiday season can also bring up feelings of loss and loneliness.
NEED2's SEA: For Adults workshop teaches the skills to have open conversations about mental health and su***de, how to identify those who may be struggling and connect them with support.
Join us December 18th, online, for this important learning opportunity and work with us to create su***de safer communities.
December 18th, online, 6:30pm-8pm PST
$25
Register on our website at www.need2.ca/courses
***dePrevention
12/02/2025
This Giving Tuesday, your donation helps bring NEED2’s Youth Su***de Prevention workshops into as many classrooms as possible this year— so every young person gets the emotional tools they need long before crisis hits.
Meet Samantha.
At 9 years old, she learned how to calm big feelings.
At 11, she learned that her emotions were experiences — not her identity.
At 13, she learned how to recognize early signs of stress and anxiety.
In high school, she learned how to reach out early and support a struggling friend safely.
Because she learned these skills early, Samantha is far less likely to engage in suicidal behaviour or rely on crisis care later in life.
This is prevention.
This is impact.
This is what your donation makes possible.
Your donation directly supports our commitment to making these workshops accessible to every school, regardless of budget. We believe every young person deserves these life-saving skills, and your generosity ensures that cost is never a barrier to access.
We are now registering for our next ASIST workshop taking place on January 19/20, 2026.
Learn the skills to help someone with thoughts of su***de and help contribute to a su***de safer community.
***deprevention ***de
11/27/2025
💙
11/22/2025
Today, on International Survivors of Su***de Loss Day, we invite you to share this image as a symbol of remembrance, connection, and hope.
We honour the loved ones we’ve lost and stand with all who carry their memory.
You are not alone. 🕯️❤️
***deLoss
11/21/2025
This online webinar is designed for community members 19yrs + who have experienced the loss of su***de and will explore the complex connection between this grief and our bodies, mind and relationships.
Current workshops open for registration.
ASIST -January 19/20
Su***de Education & Awareness (SEA): For Adults - online December 18
Learn the skills to help someone with thoughts of su***de and help contribute to a su***de safer community.
Visit our website at www.need2.ca to register or learn more.
11/03/2025
Any caring person willing to have a conversation can support someone struggling with thoughts of su***de. ASIST workshops can offer guidance and skills to make you feel more confident approaching these important interventions.
Days are get shorter and colder, and that can make it feel like spooky season in more ways than one. Lean on your connections and community.
10/29/2025
Sometimes we avoid asking someone a hard question, because are nervous about their response. Asking someone if they are thinking about su***de is an act of compassion. We can let people know that we notice them, care about them and want them to be safe by asking them directly about su***de when we are concerned.
Su***de is not a bad word. We can talk about...it actually helps!
10/27/2025
Current workshops open for registration.
ASIST -November 24/25
Su***de Education & Awareness (SEA): For Adults - online November 3rd
Learn the skills to help someone with thoughts of su***de and help contribute to a su***de safer community.
Visit our website at www.need2.ca to register or learn more.
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when NEED2 Suicide Prevention Education & Support posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Contact The Practice
Send a message to NEED2 Suicide Prevention Education & Support:
Starting as crisis phone service in 1970, NEED as it was called then, began with a few concerned folks from the University of Victoria who wanted to start a phone line to help those thinking of su***de. A decade later, NEED had received over 100,000 phone calls.
1996 saw a school based program introduced called where volunteers would deliver presentations to middle and high schools bringing awareness to the topic of su***de. NEED2 was aiming for a whole schools program where the program would be implemented in each school; 29 classes, 700 students received the presentation that school year.
In 2002 a youth focused version of the crisis line was welcomed which provided some peer based support for youth who needed to access a crisis line. NEED later became a founding partner in developing 1 800 SU***DE in BC.
As the years progressed there was a shift in how people accessed support and more people were accessing the online world. In 2007 NEED partnered with Pacific Center Family Services connecting youth to professional counseling through an email counseling program. This shift in online presence helped launch www.youthspace.ca our online crisis and emotional chat service for youth under 30 across Canada. Youth were now able to chat online with volunteers for emotional and mental health support. This ability to chat in paired with a texting option added in 2012 made NEED one of the first in Canada to offer this type of service.
But in 2010 NEED ceased its operations as a crisis line when Nanaimo took over and became the Vancouver Island Crisis line. That same year NEED re branded into NEED2 focusing on the youth based programs which meant focusing more energy on volunteer recruitment for the chat service and the new Whole school program for Su***de Education & Awareness.
Almost 50 years later, NEED2 continues to educate and prevent deaths by su***de through its youth focused programs and services and plays a role in educating the community through workshops and presentations. As well, we offer a support group for su***de loss that meets monthly where a safe space is created for folks who have lost a loved one to su***de to connect with those who can share a similar story.
