National Suicide Prevention Week
- posted: Sep. 12, 2024
This is National Suicide Prevention Week. The first thing I want to say is if you are considering killing yourself and you are reading this post , there is a small part of you, maybe somewhere deep inside that wants to stay alive. Listen to that part and reach out to someone you know, reach out to a Mental Health Hotline, dial 988, or go to a hospital emergency room. Having a safe space for a while can make a big difference. I cannot promise you that things will automatically get better but I can promise that things will change. People that I have spoken to who are suicidal often believe that noithing will ever change. That belief is simply untrue because life is a dynamic process, constantly changing. Sometimes that realization can be enough to help us to go on. Most often though, things do look better when we step back for a bit, take a breath and get a little distance.
I am aware of one person that I know of who took her own life. The experience was devastating to all around her. First, she was no longer alive, that act destriyed her own life. Second, her mother was devastated and had a hard time herself, with continuing on. Her mother felt like she had failed her only child whom she loved deeply. As a friend of the family, I felt sad, confused, angry and cheated. Obviously, I was sad that she had been in so much pain that suicide felt like the best option. I was confused that she would act with such finality. I felt angry that she would unilaterally end her relationships including the one she had with me. I felt cheated out of the person she would have become because she was in her early twenties. Many of us who remained also felt robbed of the opportunity to help her out of such a terrible spot.I believe these feelings are shared by many who survive the suicide of someone they are close to.
People I know who have returned from the brink of suicide, tell me they are happy to have taken successful evasive actions. Their lives have not been easy, because it takes a lot to get to a space where killing oneself seem like a good idea. But in time things become more manageable and there are some good times yet to happen.
A bit of advice to people who know someone that they fear is contemplating suicide: do not fear asking them if suicide is on their mind. Most people report feeling relieved at being able to talk about their inner thoughts. Most people who contemplate suicide are afraid. Individuals with active suicidal ideation are generally willing to talk about it. Try to convince them into being hospitalized so that they remain safe until the crisis passes. Enlist the help of the Mental Health Phone Hotline, 988. Let them know that they are not alone. Every now and then, I get to go home knowing that I helped to save a life that day. That is a good feeling. It is an even better feeling to later see that person feeling happy to be alive.
- posted: Sep. 12, 2024
This is National Suicide Prevention Week. The first thing I want to say is if you are considering killing yourself and you are reading this post , there is a small part of you, maybe somewhere deep inside that wants to stay alive. Listen to that part and reach out to someone you know, reach out to a Mental Health Hotline, dial 988, or go to a hospital emergency room. Having a safe space for a while can make a big difference. I cannot promise you that things will automatically get better but I can promise that things will change. People that I have spoken to who are suicidal often believe that noithing will ever change. That belief is simply untrue because life is a dynamic process, constantly changing. Sometimes that realization can be enough to help us to go on. Most often though, things do look better when we step back for a bit, take a breath and get a little distance.
I am aware of one person that I know of who took her own life. The experience was devastating to all around her. First, she was no longer alive, that act destriyed her own life. Second, her mother was devastated and had a hard time herself, with continuing on. Her mother felt like she had failed her only child whom she loved deeply. As a friend of the family, I felt sad, confused, angry and cheated. Obviously, I was sad that she had been in so much pain that suicide felt like the best option. I was confused that she would act with such finality. I felt angry that she would unilaterally end her relationships including the one she had with me. I felt cheated out of the person she would have become because she was in her early twenties. Many of us who remained also felt robbed of the opportunity to help her out of such a terrible spot.I believe these feelings are shared by many who survive the suicide of someone they are close to.
People I know who have returned from the brink of suicide, tell me they are happy to have taken successful evasive actions. Their lives have not been easy, because it takes a lot to get to a space where killing oneself seem like a good idea. But in time things become more manageable and there are some good times yet to happen.
A bit of advice to people who know someone that they fear is contemplating suicide: do not fear asking them if suicide is on their mind. Most people report feeling relieved at being able to talk about their inner thoughts. Most people who contemplate suicide are afraid. Individuals with active suicidal ideation are generally willing to talk about it. Try to convince them into being hospitalized so that they remain safe until the crisis passes. Enlist the help of the Mental Health Phone Hotline, 988. Let them know that they are not alone. Every now and then, I get to go home knowing that I helped to save a life that day. That is a good feeling. It is an even better feeling to later see that person feeling happy to be alive.