Suicide rates in Australia are most at risk from the high cost of living and other financial stresses.

Worrying new research shows that more than one-third of Australians know someone who has taken or tried to take their own life in the past year.

Worryingly, 38% of the 1,022 persons surveyed in the study by Suicide Prevention Australia reported being affected by suicide in some way.

Seventy percent of individuals reported feeling increased distress, and one in five reported engaging in suicide thoughts or actions within the preceding year.

The national top agency for suicide prevention conducted additional research and discovered that cost of living and personal debt were the most commonly mentioned pressures affecting Australians, while housing-related misery was the fastest-growing issue.

According to Nieves Murray, chief executive of Suicide Prevention Australia, the latest statistics suggest that "middle age and medium pay" Australians are disproportionately affected by the rising housing stress.

Mr. Murray noted that the results "once again highlight the clear link between the impact of rising economic and social pressures and distress levels in the community."

Suicide rates have been shown to spike two to three years after a major event. There is a rising risk of suicide in our community, and we must take immediate action to address rising rates of suffering.

Mr. Murray stated that demand for 88% of the nation's primary suicide prevention services increased over the past year.

Numerous prominent mental health advocacy groups shared these worries.

Dr. Grant Blahki, the chief clinical adviser at Beyond Blue, noted that the mental health support organization's latest survey of 15,000 Australians discovered a similar correlation between deteriorating mental health and financial difficulty.

High interest rates and the rising cost of living were proven to be significant contributors to stress, according to Dr. Blahki's research.

Even while people aren't aggressively worried about Covid as much as they were, there's still a lot of fatigue. All these problems have come at once: the pandemic, the disasters, the financial concerns.

When asked about the correlation between financial stress and mental health problems, Dr. Blahki indicated the risk was doubled for those who were financially stressed.

"That's what I see as a GP; if you've got a lot of money problems and money, stress, it's not good for your mental health, you know; people can't sleep; they feel horrible about stuff," he said.