Well possibly some do it to seek attention...to my mind it seems a little ludicrous to go to the lengths of all that, to gain attention from some people who you do not know at all, if that is what they intend. Having said that many are very seriously suicidal, sometimes the overdose does not seem like it, but they are suffering from serious mental health issues, depression and so forth. It is the case that the help is not available as it should be, that people are labeled as attention seekers, personality disorder, when they do not fit in any box, take a wander across to anyones blog experiencing mental health issues and you will find similar accounts. It is well known that cup of tea is often the answer to someone in extreme suicidal thoughts, crisis teams, the thought being they actually secretly work for the tea makers :) Experiencing pain of deep depression suicidal thoughts and so on, no one in that place is thinking of seeking any attention but ending the pain.... Very, very different to someone who stated here is seeking attention....though still can not get my head round it, can think of better places to go than the hospital.....it is one of the most uninviting places i can imagine to go especially sat in A & E for hours on end.......:) My concern is that a limited number of people may prevent people who have real problems from receiving the help and support they truly need to lead their life's to their full potential, that the term attention seekers can then be applied to anyone and everyone in those people who overdose. People with genuine problems, may be put off by the fear of being associated with the same thing. It is a fact that someone who is genuine can and is sometimes viewed in the wrong category, the nice guidelines state that people who self harm should be treated with the same dignity and respect as any other patient and the distress they experience should be taken into account. 170,000 people a year attend emergency departments because they have self harmed, of those an estimated 80,000 never receive a physiological assessment or follow up,source NICE can be downloaded off their site. Now if people were receiving the care and support, perhaps attention seekers would/could be dealt with and not be regular and perhaps the people who genuinely need help may receive some help, i would go further and say that the percentage in those figures who are classed as receiving help was not adequate and they ended up walking away from the system. It took months to get an assessment, mental health is under resourced, to someone in deep distress, depression, suicidal thoughts, that is some wait......they may even appear back, not because they are attention seeking but they are so distressed, suicidal still, am sure you have experienced in A & E how difficult it can be to access mental health services? Julie