A personal guide for staying safe during difficult times
This workbook is for anyone experiencing thoughts of suicide, and for the people who care about them. It is designed to be completed together — with compassion and without judgement.
A safety plan is a personalised, written plan that can help someone stay safe when they are having thoughts of suicide. It identifies warning signs, strategies that help, people to reach out to, and professional supports — so that in a moment of crisis, you don’t have to figure it all out from scratch.
Safety planning is evidence-based. Research consistently shows it reduces suicidal behaviour and increases help-seeking. The approach in this workbook is based on the Stanley-Brown Safety Planning Intervention, the most widely used and researched model in the world.
How to use this workbook
- If you are supporting someone, read the Guide for Support People first (next section).
- Work through the plan together — ideally when things are calm, not in crisis.
- Write in pencil, or save digitally — the plan should be updated as circumstances change.
- Keep this somewhere easy to find. Save the crisis numbers in your phone.
- Review the plan regularly, and after any crisis.
If you are in immediate danger, call 000 or go to your nearest emergency department.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. If you would like to book an in-person or Zoom/Teams counselling session with me, you can do so by following this link.
Go well
John Belchamber
Managing Counsellor
Sunny Coast Counselling