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Crisis hotline staffer tells all

Crisis hotline staffer tells all

Bob started volunteering at Lifeline after a friend died from suicide 25 years later, he is still on the line talking to people considering ending their lives. This is what he's learnt.

Putting on his headset, Bob has no idea what call will come in next. He's arrived to volunteer at the Bendigo Lifeline call centre and every day and every call is different.

Some days he'll spend the entire shift talking to one person. Sometimes the calls are back-to-back. Some people are calling to simply ask about the weather and have human connection. Some are contemplating taking their own lives.

But the one guarantee?

Almost every call will be one of two things: incredible loneliness or someone dealing with domestic violence.

The 81-year-old is one of 10,000 volunteers in the 41 centres across the nation that receive more than a million contacts each year to the free, 24-hour helpline.

Despite being anonymous, the phone calls are all about building a connection, Bob says. He doesn't give advice, he just listens, and helps callers flesh out their own issues.

"You come to the realisation that people are calling because they need to talk, and you can't pick what calls you answer, so you listen," Bob says.

It's a hard job, but the more calls he took, the easier it got.

"Sometimes callers are so distressed they cannot think," Bob says. "They need to be slowed down and to be talking to someone they can trust." And while organisations like Lifeline just one of multiple crisis hotlines are "doing all they can" to address Australia's mental health crisis, Australian Psychological Society president Catriona Davis-McCabe says more needs to be done.

"Without government addressing the missing middle, we will continue to be overly reliant on volunteer organisations, police and emergency departments for people gripped by suicidal ideation," she says.

Affordable and accessible psychology services are what's needed, she says. But until that happens, she urges anyone in crisis to reach out to friends, family, GPs or Lifeline.
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