mental health

Former All Black Zac Guildford admits he contemplated suicide

Guildford's journey back to professional rugby has taken another step forward being signed to play for Waikato in this season's Mitre 10 provincial cup competition.

RNZI reports alcohol and off-field problems have plagued Guildford's career, culminating with the New South Wales Waratahs terminating his Super rugby contract last year.

He's also played for the Hurricanes, the Crusaders and the French club Clermont, where there were also problems during his stints there.

Māori and Pacific mental health research on offer

New Zealand has joined Global Alliance to provide a grant to find better strategies to support Maori and Pacific youth with mental health problems.

The Health Research Council's Kath McPherson said mental health outcomes continued to be inequitable in New Zealand.

She said the research was needed as a recent study in the New Zealand Medical Journal shows Pacific youth in this country are three times more likely to attempt suicide.

Pacific youth plead for better mental health support

The call has come from the Pacific Youth Parliament, which was set up to give young people a taste of how political decisions are made in New Zealand.

It coincided with the publication of a new study that found Pacific youth were three times more likely to attempt suicide than other ethnicities.

Anzac Day Haka to raise awareness on men's mental health

Hundreds of people — many of whom have never done the haka before — will come together to perform the war dance in a show of support for men's mental health.

Leon Ruri is coordinating the event.

He has battled depression himself and said talking to a friend stopped him taking his life.

"I rang him up and said I can't take it anymore, I'm checking out you know. He had some strong words to say to me down the phone and was able to turn my mindset around," he said.

Mr Ruri wants to encourage men to speak more openly about mental health.

'The grief can damage your mental health'

This gathering in Nottingham looks like any group of friends, but the adults have one thing in common - they have all been widowed.

Way: Widowed and Young is a peer support organisation, introducing people in similarly tragic situations to others who can understand their complex grief.

All the members present agree that its regular meetings and internet chatroom have been an essential part of coping in the days and years since their bereavements.

Why we need each other — the power of shared experience

It's a feeling that can be heightened, if the person is someone we admire or look up to, or someone in the public eye.

Why is it so powerful to admit we are vulnerable and to see that vulnerability reflected in others?

And when others share their experience, what is it about the human psyche that draws us in to wanting to know more?

When actor Angelina Jolie revealed that she was carrying the breast and ovarian cancer gene which had claimed the life of her mother, people around the world were moved by her honesty and openness.

Gaga and Prince William team up over mental health

The singer, who headlined Coachella Festival on Saturday, had a frank chat with the Duke of Cambridge from LA.

William contacted the star after reading her open letter about living with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Over the weekend, Prince Harry revealed that he had counselling after his mother Princess Diana's death.

The forgotten women in an Indian mental health ward

Photographer Cheena Kapoor spent months documenting the women on the ward. Mental illness is "not the only war the women fight here - the stigma of social acceptance and gender discrimination is a major cause of their trauma", she says.

"The male ward is always filled with anxious faces waiting for the sons to return home, while the daughters are so easily forgotten."

These are some of their stories:

Anti-depressant prescriptions double in 10 years, claims new study

Around 61 million prescriptions were made in 2015, more than double the 30 million written in 2005, according to the University College London study.

The average patient now takes medication for six months, compared to just under four months in 1995.

But the number of people diagnosed with depression is almost unchanged.

Your experiences on anti-depressants

Lauren Harris, 23 - 'It's an easy solution for the NHS'

"I've been on various anti-depressants for the last five years, since I turned 18," Lauren tells Newsbeat.

Bereavement leave: Should you work while you're grieving?

Now there are calls from mental health experts, charities and politicians for a major rethink of how bereaved employees are treated.

The government says workers are entitled to a "reasonable" amount of unpaid leave.

While most employers are compassionate, Newsbeat has been told it can be a "huge lottery".

Amy's dad died last year. She asked for her name to be kept secret because she was worried about being identifiable to her employer.