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Artist News Education & Events
Eddy Temple-Morris and CALM call for help to kill January
By Chris Cooke | Published on Tuesday 27 January 2015
After an extended break, Eddy Temple-Morris returns to CMU today with an Eddy Says column announcing a Campaign Against Living Miserably initiative which aims to “kill January” from next year.
Eddy has written before about his support for CALM, a charity that exists to prevent male suicide in the UK. As he’s noted in past columns, while depression is, of course, a condition that can effect anyone, whatever their age, gender or background, suicide is the single biggest cause of death amongst men aged 20-45 in England and Wales.
After recalling his own recent experiences with depression, Eddy explains in his new column that January can be a particular low-point for many. “January is, if all statistics were piled on top of one another, the worst month of the year”, he writes. “It’s the apex point of couples splitting up in this country. It’s the darkest, most miserable month of them all. We know from the massive spike in calls to the CALM helpline that people, especially men, really suffer at this time of year”.
To that end Eddy and CALM have a plan for 2016: “We are taking over January and banishing it. And here’s how we’ll do it. We have to start reaching out now, firstly to bands, DJs, promoters, party starters, labels, managers, agents, venues, everybody in music…then beyond, to brands, restaurants, bars, shops, anyone, everyone, and say this to them…”
“Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 45. Bigger than anything. Cancer, drugs, cars, bikes, you name it. Men are four times more likely to kill themselves than women. And January is the critical time when more men are at risk than any other time, so let’s get together to try to stop it. Or at least staunch it. Stem the flow. Make a difference”.
To find out more about the project and how you can get involved, read the full Eddy Says column here.
