Hello Everyone,

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The mods have noticed some trends and would like community feedback on what action to take regarding suicidal/suicidal ideation (SI) posts.

They are a grey area for the sub, they bring a way of relief, but it hurts some users mentally to read and see them too and it triggers others. As Reddit currently stands, there is no way for individual users to hide certain topics from an individual sub (we looked into that and support for addons such as RES broke during Reddit's API changes) There might still be methods we couldn't find, but they are difficult to access for the average user making it unfeasible.

So, we want to ask the community how much of an issue are SI posts? There are always a few loud voices, but that's not necessarily what the entire community wants.

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There are a few options we can take with this:

1. Keeping it the same as it is now.
2. The same but add NSFW tag to all SI related posts regardless of NSFW content. We would still see the title but this would hide the post content at least.
3. Regular SI posts can stay around but if a user has already Planned on suicide or is Planning on suicide gets removed/redirected to SuicideWatch sub.
4. The same as above AND include the NSFW tag on all remaining SI related posts.
5. Remove ALL suicidal posts and redirect to SuicideWatch sub.

Details on these choices:

• To clarify on what Planned + Planning means: anything of the nature of "I am going to x", "Tonight is the night", "As soon as x happens, I plan to commit S" etc.. Counts for both Title and post body. They indicate a plan of action currently or in the future. These get the most reports.
• The typical SI posts would be users venting about SI thoughts, feelings, situations, desires but -not- indicating any actual plan of action or intent to harm.
• The SuicideWatch sub dedicates their sub to this and so has more expertise in this specific area than our sub currently. Was recommended by one of our previous mods.
• If we created a new rule for this we would include other links and resources in the removal too.

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Some additional details about how things are done currently:

-We don't allow any SI posts where the user asks for tips/tricks, this is because legally this can make users complicit and its advocating violence (rule 10). Usually users don't post this.

-We don't allow comments that are complicit in OP's SI. Even positive/well intention still is advocating SI. (rule 10) Please report comments like this that you see. Usually users don't make these comments.

-Depending on the emotionally graphic nature of an SI post, currently, we try to balance letting users have their post up for a bit (8 hrs to a day or two) and get some support before removing it. Usually graphic SI posts get many reports. (even with NSFW tag and TW flair). I say "try" to balance because if a post is particularly graphic/there are many reports, we remove the post anyways (uncommon but it happens).

-We do try to keep an eye out for Repeat posters and potential karma farmers. Usually it's not a problem but it can be difficult to discern when it is one. Making too many SI posts within a month span can lead to a temp ban as spam, but we will talk to the poster first and refer them to resources and the SW sub before leading up to that. We do look at a user's situation too. (Copy + pasting posts to spam vs an update to their situation is different for instance)

-Flairs are always needed (Rule 4) on these posts. User's sometimes forget/neglect, and a mod will add the flair on once it's brought to our attention.

-We always recommend our fellow users avoid posts that aren't for them and refrain from interacting. In line with our posting guidelines: (https://www.reddit.com/r/CPTSD/wiki/peer2peersupportguide/)

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+++ Letting users speak on their experiences is important, but so is protecting members of the community. Please feel free to write a comment here if you have any additional insight or potential solutions we hadn't thought of, and feel free to discuss the topic. +++

View Poll

Hello CPTSDNextSteps! We are looking for a moderator applicant (or two) over on r/CPTSD !. The vibe is different than on CPTSDNextSteps so it's understandable if anyone wants to avoid that. But if you aren't put off we would love to bring a promising candidate on to be part of the team!

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Hello all,

If you’re interested in being a moderator here and you have the time, energy, and empathy needed for the job, we ask that you respond to the following questions (which are from previous mod applications developed by u/thewayofxen) in a private modmail message to the mods (on r/CPTSD sub):

1. What Reddit username do you browse r/CPTSD with?
2. What timezone do you live in? Also let us know if you're a night owl.
3. What is your race/ethnic background and gender?
4. Why do you want to become a moderator of r/CPTSD?
5. What about you would make you a good moderator?
6. What about you would make being a moderator challenging? (We expect most applicants be in recovery from CPTSD, so please be more specific!)
7. What, if anything, would you like to see change about r/CPTSD? What would you like to stay the same?
8. What, if anything, would you like to see change about r/CPTSD? What would you like to stay the same?
9. Anything else you want to add?

---

Helpful notes from previous mod applications posts by u/thewayofxen:

Being a moderator on r/CPTSD is essentially a part-time volunteer gig, and the exact workload it demands varies week to week, but usually totals only a few to several hours per week. Applicants should carefully consider the effect becoming a moderator will have on their recovery, and the effect their recovery will have on being a moderator. The ideal applicant will be:

• Very good at written communication, with a lot of experience in online communities.
• Far along in recovery, with a good degree of self-awareness and mindfulness.
• Comfortable with confrontation, without being especially prone to it (this is a tough balancing act and we're not expecting perfection).
• A regular user of the subreddit who is willing to check in at least a once or twice per day, most days.
• Capable of handling feedback and gentle criticism.
• A good teammate.
• Capable of not taking on too much responsibility for what goes on here. If you were to find yourself sucked in, scouring every single post for rule violations, losing sleep because someone somewhere might be hurt by a comment, you would not survive this position.
• Resilient. Moderators will be unfairly called a dictator, a Nazi, or any number of synonyms for "asshole," and they have to let that roll off without reacting. They have to be willing to use soft power, and to know the difference between someone refusing to abide by the rules and someone who's just mouthing off to save face. Moderators of mental health subreddits in particular need to know how to deal with someone who's triggered without allowing their own triggers to take over. This takes a lot of emotional labor, and is the hardest part of being a moderator (in my experience, anyway). Moderators also have to read the worst the subreddit has to offer, including angry, offensive, or disgusting posts, and they have to respond to them impartially. (This is another thing for which we can't expect perfection.)

Since that last one was such a downer, here are some upsides to being a moderator:

• People say 'Thank you' to us a lot here.
• Your work facilitates an immense amount of healing, even if you never directly participate.
• We face interesting interpersonal problems that can teach you a lot about people and about yourself. For the right person, being a moderator can be a net-positive for your recovery.
• This probably looks really good on a resume (just don't dox yourself).
• Every once in a while, someone so flagrantly and openly breaks the rules that you will not have even an ounce of doubt in your mind about whether that person should be banned, and then you get to ban them. That feels good. If you've ever felt helpless at seeing such a comment stand for however long it takes a moderator to show up, if you become a moderator, that time automatically drops to "0".

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If we haven't scared you off yet, please respond to the questions above in a private modmail message to the team (on r/CPTSD). We expect to get between several and a shit-ton of applications, so please send a message with zero expectation of a response. We'll be sifting through them over the next couple weeks and we'll let you know if we'd like to bring you on.

Thanks!

Originally written by u/itchmyrustycage

Updated by u/HumanWhoSurvived

Hello all,

One of our moderators recently stepped down, and another we were onboarding had to quit due to life circumstances. So we are looking for a candidate or two to fill. Mostly copy and pasted here so that it will show up in the feed again!

---

If you’re interested in being a moderator here and you have the time, energy, and empathy needed for the job, we ask that you respond to the following questions (which are from previous mod applications developed by u/thewayofxen) in a private modmail message to the mods:

1. What Reddit username do you browse r/CPTSD with?
2. What timezone do you live in? Also let us know if you're a night owl.
3. What is your race/ethnic background and gender?
4. Why do you want to become a moderator of r/CPTSD?
5. What about you would make you a good moderator?
6. What about you would make being a moderator challenging? (We expect most applicants be in recovery from CPTSD, so please be more specific!)
7. What, if anything, would you like to see change about r/CPTSD? What would you like to stay the same?
8. What, if anything, would you like to see change about r/CPTSD? What would you like to stay the same?
9. Anything else you want to add?

---

Helpful notes from previous mod applications posts by u/thewayofxen:

Being a moderator on r/CPTSD is essentially a part-time volunteer gig, and the exact workload it demands varies week to week, but usually totals only a few to several hours per week. Applicants should carefully consider the effect becoming a moderator will have on their recovery, and the effect their recovery will have on being a moderator. The ideal applicant will be:

• Very good at written communication, with a lot of experience in online communities.
• Far along in recovery, with a good degree of self-awareness and mindfulness.
• Comfortable with confrontation, without being especially prone to it (this is a tough balancing act and we're not expecting perfection).
• A regular user of the subreddit who is willing to check in at least a once or twice per day, most days.
• Capable of handling feedback and gentle criticism.
• A good teammate.
• Capable of not taking on too much responsibility for what goes on here. If you were to find yourself sucked in, scouring every single post for rule violations, losing sleep because someone somewhere might be hurt by a comment, you would not survive this position.
• Resilient. Moderators will be unfairly called a dictator, a Nazi, or any number of synonyms for "asshole," and they have to let that roll off without reacting. They have to be willing to use soft power, and to know the difference between someone refusing to abide by the rules and someone who's just mouthing off to save face. Moderators of mental health subreddits in particular need to know how to deal with someone who's triggered without allowing their own triggers to take over. This takes a lot of emotional labor, and is the hardest part of being a moderator (in my experience, anyway). Moderators also have to read the worst the subreddit has to offer, including angry, offensive, or disgusting posts, and they have to respond to them impartially. (This is another thing for which we can't expect perfection.)

Since that last one was such a downer, here are some upsides to being a moderator:

• People say 'Thank you' to us a lot here.
• Your work facilitates an immense amount of healing, even if you never directly participate.
• We face interesting interpersonal problems that can teach you a lot about people and about yourself. For the right person, being a moderator can be a net-positive for your recovery.
• This probably looks really good on a resume (just don't dox yourself).
• Every once in a while, someone so flagrantly and openly breaks the rules that you will not have even an ounce of doubt in your mind about whether that person should be banned, and then you get to ban them. That feels good. If you've ever felt helpless at seeing such a comment stand for however long it takes a moderator to show up, if you become a moderator, that time automatically drops to "0".

---

If we haven't scared you off yet, please respond to the questions above in a private modmail message to the team. We expect to get between several and a shit-ton of applications, so please send a message with zero expectation of a response. We'll be sifting through them over the next couple weeks and we'll let you know if we'd like to bring you on.

Thanks!

Originally written by u/itchmyrustycage

Updated by u/HumanWhoSurvived

There has been an uptick in posts and comments stigmatizing certain personality disorders and the mods would like to remind the community what is acceptable here. While it’s fine to discuss our experiences and realities, it’s not cool to jump from saying one person with x diagnosis in my life has been terrible to me so everyone with x diagnosis is terrible. We especially will not tolerate calls to hate or ostracize anyone with x diagnosis. (No Hate Speech)

This goes for personality disorders, gender, etc. too

Generalizations hurt our collective understanding of personality disorders, diagnosis, gender, and etc.

It's good to remember, people can and do make broad generalizations about those with CPTSD and those who have survived abuse too, so it behooves us to not make a similar mistake as it doesn't help us heal in the long run.

Address individual actions and accountability, not diagnosis/personality disorder/gender/etc.