Reconnecting on R U OK?Day 2016

R U OK?Day 2016 saw ambassadors, communities, sector partners and corporate Australia commit to reconnecting with someone they’ve lost touch with.

An R U OK? national survey revealed Australians spend an average 46 hours of their weekly downtime looking at their TVs and digital devices, compared to an average of six hours engaging with family and friends highlighting that we’re more intimately acquainted with our devices than the highs and lows of our families’ and friends’ lives.

To highlight the impact of reconnection, R U OK? followed three pairs of long lost friends who made the journey to Dubbo, Nowra, Melbourne and Brisbane to reunite. Each pair shared their story of a time when they were struggling with life and found life changing support through their friendship.

Thousands of R U OK?Day events were held in all corners of Australia with 5,900 media reports helping to highlight the importance of connecting with those around us. The day featured a breakfast event at iconic Bondi Icebergs; a location favoured by late founder Gavin Larkin. Guest speakers, politicians and musicians were joined by the Larkin family to share messages of promise and hope for a future where we are all connected and protected from suicide.

Post campaign survey results showed a positive impact with 78 per cent of respondents having listened to someone talk about their problems in the last month and 62 per cent having asked someone face-to-face if something was troubling them. 60 per cent were more willing to ask their friends about what is troubling them.

For occasions where conversations are too big for family and friends, R U OK? continues to collaborate with the mental health sector and urged family and friends to encourage help seeking behavior by referring to crisis support services such as Lifeline and Suicide Call Back Service.

For more stories and successes from the day, watch the R U OK?Day 2016 Wrap Up.

R U OK? works throughout the year enabling meaningful conversations every day by resourcing schools with classroom activities and Conversation Corners , workplaces such as the rail, law and mining industries with conversation tips and workplace collateral along with activating a vibrant community ambassador program across the country. To find out how you can join the conversation movement, contact us at [email protected].