Cromarty is s a small tight knit, highland community where everyone knows everyone else. Katie Mackay and her elder brother Calum grew up there , Calum was always seen with a beaming smile around the village, he’d speak to anyone, he was proud and protective of his wee sister. But Calum was hard on himself, judging himself against others. His death came as a complete shock to Katie and her family. It rippled hard through the community.

This episode of Speaking of Suicide is Katie’s story of how she has learnt to live with the loss of and grieve for her brother. Katie talks to Dan Holland on the beach in Cromarty about how she has felt the waves of emotion and grief come and go. She describes how she has felt herself move the different recognised stages of grief and opens up about some the tools she uses to help her through these stages of grief.

Calum still plays a big part in Katie’s life and we hear how he is remembered every time she takes her dog for a walk, how Katie has challenged herself to climb munro’s spreading the word that opening up and talking about our mental health with someone is a conversation we should all try to feel comfortable having.

You can support Katie's munro challenge here

If you need someone to talk to, you can text Mikeysline on 07786 20 77 55 or contact via messenger, webchat or twitter.  Sun-Thurs 6pm-10pm & Fri-Sat 6pm-11pm.

Or visit Mikeysline at The Hive, 19 Academy Street, Inverness, Sun-Thurs 6pm-10pm & Fri-Sat 6pm-11pm.

Speaking of Suicide is an Adventurous Audio production made thanks to the support of D&D Paving Ltd.

The music throughout the series is ‘Nana’ by Tom Ireland