The Crisis Centre provides educational workshops aimed at building suicide-safer communities.  Our training includes skills training, healthy coping, communication, peer support, and education to prevent and respond to crisis and suicide.

We collaborate with and support agencies, front-line workers, social workers, first responders, education providers, industries, and the general public to develop an approach to suicide prevention.

 Crisis Centre 15+ & Adult Workshops

suicideTALK  (Offered in person or over Zoom)

Ranging from 90 minutes to half a day, Living Works’ suicideTALK invites all participants—regardless of prior training or experience—to become more aware of suicide prevention opportunities in their community. Dealing openly with the stigma around suicide, this exploration focuses on the question "Should we talk about suicide?" By looking at this question in a number of different ways, session members can discover some of the beliefs and ideas about suicide in their communities—and in themselves. suicideTALK participants learn:

• How suicide is a serious community health problem that is often misunderstood
• How personal and community beliefs about suicide affect suicide stigma and safety
• How the steps taught in LivingWorks’ safeTALK program can be used to help prevent suicide
• How to get involved in life protection, preservation, and promotion activities in the community

Safe (Suicide Awareness For Everyone) TALK

Living Works’ three-hour workshop which prepares helpers to identify persons with thoughts of suicide and connect them to suicide first-aid resources.  Most people with thoughts of suicide, either directly or indirectly, invite help to stay safe.  Alert helpers know how to identify and work with these opportunities to help protect life.  Powerful videos illustrate both non-alert and alert responses.  Discussion and practice stimulate learning.  By the end of the training, participants will be better able to:

• Identify people who have thoughts of suicide
• Apply the TALK steps (Tell, Ask, Listen and Keep Safe) to connect a person with thoughts of suicide to a suicide first-aid intervention caregiver
• Move beyond common tendencies to miss, dismiss or avoid suicide. 

ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training)

Living Works’ two-day, interactive workshop that prepares caregivers to provide suicide life-assisting first-aid intervention.  This workshop is open to all caregivers, formally designated or not; adults and youth 16 plus. By the end of this workshop, participants will be better able to:

• Identify people who have thoughts of suicide
• Understand how beliefs and attitudes can affect suicide interventions
• Understand a person who is thinking about suicide’s story about suicide
• Recognize turning points that connect the person to life
• Conduct a safety assessment and develop a plan that will keep the person thinking about suicide safe for now
• Confirm the person thinking about suicide’s commitment to the safe-plan and their intent to follow it through.

ASIST caregivers complete the process that safeTALK helpers start, providing life assisting, suicide first-aid intervention.

Crisis Communication Skills for Peer Support

A three-hour workshop that teaches valuable communication skills to use when dealing with a person in crisis. This workshop uses the ADEPT Model, which outlines five important phases of active listening that are necessary to deescalate an emotional situation. Participants will learn to avoid common pitfalls such as fixing, rescuing and advice giving, and instead use communication that is empowering and respectful of a person’s self-determination regarding their own crisis situation. Anyone who interacts with people can benefit from becoming more empathic! This workshop can be modified to suit various groups such as students, people in helping professions, or supervisors/managers.