Are you concerned about suicide in your community?
My husband has written a book on suicide prevention called 'Being a True Hero: Understanding and Preventing Suicide in Your Community'. This is a difficult topic but everyone needs to know about it. The book is not sad and depressing, it is filled with hope. It looks at the many causes of suicide from depression, bullying, addiction, loneliness, psychosis, brain injuries, sleep deprivation and failure. It has been written in a way that everyone can easily understand it. It has been carefully researched to include the latest scientific information about how mental illness affects the brain.
The book's website has free talks about suicide prevention, www.beingatruehero.com...
Here are some of the reviews,
"An easy to read and thoroughly worthwhile book."
- Dr. Sue Bagshaw, Senior of Paediatrics at the Christchurch School of Medicine
"A beacon of hope to the community... Michael's thorough research is narrated with insightful reflections from practical experience... Highly recommended to those in the Health & Teaching Professions."
- Dr. Susan Maree Taylor, Rural GP
"Michael writes about mental illness and suicide with compassion and hope. His book is useful for people who have personal experience, the people who love them, and professionals who work in the field. It is serious, at times funny, and references up to date research."
- Kay O'Connor, PhD, Counsellor
"I recently asked a friend I was concerned about if he was suicidal, it turned out he was - and needed help. Without the information in this book I never would have had the confidence to do that. The material in this book could save many lives."
- Thomas Saywell, Youth Worker
The book is available on Amazon and Kindle or through the book's website www.beingatruehero.com...
🧩😏 Riddle me this, Neighbours…
I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Do you think you know the answer?
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Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Poll: Canterbury is thriving on paper... but are you seeing evidence of Canterbury's improving economy?
As reported in the Press, Reserve Bank Governor Anna Breman recently gave a shout-out to our region, calling Canterbury a "stand-out" for how we recover from tough times. With tech firms growing and exporters investing, the business side of things is looking bright!
👉 But we know that "business growth" doesn't always mean the weekly shop gets any cheaper. While the city expands, many families feel like they’re just trying to keep their heads above water.
We want to know: With the business buzz of 2026, do you feel like things are finally looking up for your household, or does it still feel like a climb?
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17.4% Yes
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58.7% No
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23.9% In some areas ...
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