Where to start
Knowing how to begin anything is often the trickiest part. If you’re feeling stuck with where to start your first post consider what brought you to the forums. This is an opportunity to introduce yourself to the community and share some of your experiences that have led you here.
Tell the forums what you need
Are you looking for resources, advice, to hear from others who have had similar experiences, or just looking to get this off your chest in a safe and supportive environment? Including this information in your post helps to let others know how to best support you.
Examples of this could look like:
“I’m just wanting a space to vent about this situation”
“I’d love to hear from anyone else who has experienced this and am open to advice”
“Does anyone have resources or techniques that have helped them?”
Keeping it concise
Try to imagine a post as a beginning of a conversation, not a monologue or a journal entry. While getting it all out can feel cathartic, large amounts of detailed text can be overwhelming. Adding information as the discussion unfolds can encourage engagement and allow others to really focus on the details of your experience.
Break it up with paragraphs and punctuation
Again, big blocks of text can appear daunting, breaking it up into smaller chunks within a post gives readers a chance to take a breath. This helps with engagement and prevents members from skimming, ensuring they don’t miss out on any key pieces on information.
Choosing a recovery-oriented title
When choosing a title, it can be natural to focus on the negative thoughts, feelings, or experiences that have brought you here. We encourage you to challenge yourself by instead approaching this with a recovery-focus, instead considering the outcome you hope will come from posting.
For example, if I was creating a thread about my experience of loneliness I might be inclined to use words such as “Alone and isolated” for my thread title. However, if I consider my goal in creating this thread, I might instead try something like “Finding connection”.
What to do while you’re waiting for a reply
Due to the nature of the forums, sometimes it may take some time to receive your first response. While you wait for the right members to find your post, and craft their thoughtful responses, we recommend introducing yourself in our Welcome thread. We also encourage you to browse the forums and provide some support yourself by posting in existing threads. Not only will this help to pass the time, but it can help to boost your sense of community and help you to start forming connections.
Click on the following links for more helpful tips like some info on our community guidelines, how to tag members in posts, and tips for communicating online.
Please keep in mind that the forums is designed to be one source of support within a broader support network and cannot offer immediate support. If you require help now please connect with any of the helplines below:
SANE support line: 1800 187 263
Lifeline: 13 11 14 or Crisis Chat
Suicide call back service: 1300 659 467 or online counselling
If in immediate danger: 000
