Suicide Prevention Week!
Hi there community! Last Sunday it was Suicide Prevention Day and through the week it got me thinking about it a lot. Some of us have struggled with suicidal thoughs at some point of our lives, many of us have been impacted by suidice in one way or another. I know it can . be in incredibly sensitive topic and I would not push any of you to talk about it if you cannot feel emotionally ready to handle it, but I must urge you to think and talk about it if possible for you because it matters.
Talking about suicide prevention can be awkward, hard and uncomfortable but we have to do it. If we don't confront this issue we will keep loosing valuable and loved people to it. If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts please consider reaching out finding the right resource for you here (if you are a teen here). If you are not personally struggle with this, I urge you to be kind to those around you and be willing to support anyone that might need a compassionate pair of ears.
Why talking about suicide prevention matters?
"Suicide is not chosen; it happens when pain exceeds resources for coping with pain." -taken from here.
The best way to treat an issue is to adress the "real problem" or the cause of said issue. The reason we can't cause any real change to the suicide rates without setting up a preventive mechanism, is because suicide is not the problem; its the solution. A very hurtful and permanent one. Preventing people from getting to their breaking point will be more efective.
How does 7 cups impact suicide prevention?
7 Cups focuses on offering emotional support to anyone that might need a listening ear. 7 Cups is meant to be a place that provides coping skills and resources for people on how to manage their pain. In doing that, we are helping people be better prepared to deal with the on going struggles of life and avoid "tipping" their pain scale onto an unbareable position.
Why our work here matters?
What we are doing here is amazing. Every day we are giving tons of users the ability to face their pain. We are giving them support and compassion to keep going forward. We are giving them the tools they need to fight agaisnt their suicidal thoughts, if or when necesary.
The work each and every one of you is doing here takes us one step closer to preventing suicide. Every compliment you give in the forums or in group support, every nice message you send in PM, every heart you give someone, every minute you offer to listen, support or even share here should be and is meant to be about building a culture of healing. The time you invest here isnt just about giving support and getting support; its about building a kinder, more compassionate and supportive world for everyone.
Lastly I want to invite you to think about why suicide prevention matters and share your reason below!
Suicide prevention should matter to us, simply because it's a huge deal. We should save people, let them know they're not alone, let them know that there is a light, they will be okay.
@Iara
hey lara,thanks for making this post.I just wanna say that it is true people dont take suicide seriously they always underastimate the person in front of them,they will call him a "Freak",if he tried to speak out and call for help,i have seen it,a friend in school people called her dramatic and boreing because she was always sad,but people never understood that it is not voluntery these people never wanted that to happen to them but they cant help it.People say suicid is selfish because they dont think of their loved ones who left them behin ,but maybe they did maybe they thought that they will be happy that way without them that no one care for them.So,i just wanted to tell the people out there to care for others,they asked your help because they trusted you so dont ruin that
Thank you for sharing, i have family, some who are blood and some who became family with love and support and trust. My brother is one of those who became family, after he lost his dad he tried to kill himself, this was before I knew him. My brother is one of the best people I have ever met in my entire life, he is super tall and I'm super short, he gives the best hugs and I always miss him, he supports me with every choice I make but always tells me the right thing to do and he is the best big brother I could ever ask for, if he wouldn't have lived I wouldn't have lived threw 6th and 7th grade alone I would have become way more deppresed and maybe even chose a path that is never worth it. Suicide is perminate. Your problems are temperary and everyone is willing to help. Don't give up on yourself because you never know what you'll miss out on in the future, my brother is now happily engaged to his husband and I love him and he is the best. Don't give up on your future just because you think you have no one.
@Iara
Suicide prevention matters because we never know what others are going through and its important that we are able to identify some of the signs. Yes we understand that we can't "save" everyone but by simply showing someone you care for them can go sooooooooooooo far. sometimes people just need to be reminded that they are not alone and it will change the way that they feel and think. Give love and hope daily. XOXO
@Iara
My husband committed suicide when I divorced him. The reason in his note said that he did not have any money. So he did not have any moniey for drugs The second part was not in the note. The note was published in the newspaper. The newspaper was in my facebook feed. Scrolling through your facebook feed is not a good way to find out something like that out. What would be a better way to find out? I do not know. Good quesiton.
He had started using drugs heavily again and became an alcoholic. Then I did. Then I quit. then I relapsed because he was in the house, I had told him he had to get help, then kicked him out when he said he did not ever want or plan to stop in this lifetime. For a long time I did not think about this. No one mentioned him to me. No one wanted to discuss it. No one would entetain a question, so I thought something was wrong with me if I ever mentioned it. So I never did. I just marched on in life. i stayed sober. I worked my ass off. But in my relationships I just kep messing up.
Now I think about this a little bit every day. I run it over and over in my mind. BUT he was always laughin and outgoing, I think. However.. when I visited him at the end in his apartment -- he seemed, for the first time ever (to me) to be depressed.
People who I mention this to on occasion (usually people I am considering dating, etc) say : Oh.i hope you do not blame yourself. I do and I do not. I do still though a bit. I think many people who were married to or loved people who killed themselves probably feel the same, but I do not know because I do not know them.
This seems like I am saying taking about suicide would help ME lol. Maybe that is true. But I meant it would help people sufffering from depression. I do not know what I mean I guess. He is not the only one I know who has taken their life.. he was simply the best loved.. by me,
@
Suicide is the own's person struggle, it has nothing with you, so there is no blame on you.
dear unknown, i can understand how awful you must feel. when people say you are not to blame for what happened that is right but that is not at all how you seem to feel. first thing we do if something like that happens we put it on us, look where we failed (not all people many do that, particularly those who care a lot about others). i hope very much that you find a way to see what he did to himself was purely his decision. i am very very sorry that this was shared on social media, the more since it was shared in an incomplete way what must have made you more sad.
Suicide prevention matters because. I had suicidal thoughts and I felt so hopeless and numb.. I didn't feel like doing anything and I was, slowly, doing less and less for my self-care. And it suck's so bad to feel so sad and angry with the world. I felt dissapointed I guess. I received help and I could get out of the crisis.
@Totheskyandbeyond
Glad to hear you got out before it got you!
@ReservedExcitement Thanks, yeah. Yaaay =)
Also sometimes people pretend to be tough on the outside but they're really struggling and nobody sees it whether they don't show or maybe they just feel there's no one trustworthy and someone that really cares and understands. So for that I like this website.
@Totheskyandbeyond
Suicide is like a sickness that happens in the mind. A mind that may be trying to make sense of a nightmare situation or just wanting to give up because there is too much pain to deal with. The perception of everything that surrounds you becomes distorted and darkened, there is no light.
I dont believe it is a simpler way , ending your life. I think its a persons way of showing they just want all the pain and suffering to end. Sadly, Ive been there, that dark room where u feel like there is no other way to end the suffering. But I am also a person who has seen the light in that dark room even if its small. Life has so many beautiful things to show us. Its the warmth of a sunrise. The light of a shooting star on a cold night. The way your dog looks at you when you walk in the door even if you were just getting the mail. Its when people lose their connections to everything that this miss out on what truly matters.
