Start Here

Hi! I’m Kayla, I study, research & teach people about suicide. I’m currently a PhD researcher looking at suicide content online as part of the Loss & Grief Research Group and the Health Education & Social Research Group under the Social Science ConneXions Research Institute at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS).

PhD Researcher focusing on suicide, specifically cybersuicide and related issues. BA (Hons) in Social Care Work. Co-Founding Director of Community Crisis Response Team – A Non-Profit organization physically travelling to people in suicidal distress. Suicide Intervention Instructor and company director at Driving Change Training & Consultancy.

I also co-host a podcast called Mental Health Hour. Every week Caitriona McMahon and I sit down and talk about life, work and mental health. You can check out Mental Health Hour here. I also take a lot of photos.

Current Side Projects

Things you might find here

  • Photos I’ve taken
  • Books I’m reading/Have enjoyed you’ll find them on the Bookshelf page
  • Some info on me and the work I’m up to
  • My blog where I write about things related to suicide, lessons from what I’ve been reading and other musings on whatever I’m coming across or enjoying
  • Some ways to connect or get in touch

Latest from the Blog

Christmas Book Cheer

A new year is upon us. Happy New Year! Here’s what’s first up on my reading hit list for 2022.

Suicide and Social Media

Where the water gets muddy is when we don’t talk about suicide. Speaking irresponsibly about suicide can lead to something called suicide contagion.

What is Suicide Contagion?

Recently I ran a poll on Instagram asking if people were aware of the concept of suicide contagion or if they knew what it was. More than 70% of people answered no. It didn’t come as any great surprise to be honest, how would people know? These are things not taught in school or via…