You Are Not Alone

     Today, September 10, is World Suicide Prevention Day. In fact this past week, September 5-11, is National Suicide Prevention Week. As someone who struggles with her own depression and anxiety, I try to bring awareness to weeks, months or days that hit close to home with mental illnesses. Unfortunately, with my life being slightly hectic the past couple of weeks, I didn't even realize that we were coming up upon this week.
     We still live in a society that unfortunately makes it difficult for people to talk about what they are really feeling or to get help. The International Association for Suicide Prevention gives a statistic that every year 80,000 people die by suicide and up to 25 times that many make a suicide attempt. 

     That is 80,000 mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, friends, wives and husbands that believe there is no way out. Every year since 2003, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has hosted a World Suicide Prevention Day with different themes. This year's theme is "Take a minute, change a life."
     Sometimes one moment, one minute in a stranger's life, in a friend's or a loved one's life, one moment can change someone's course of life. The IASP have also spoken with ones who have attempted suicide and are still here and wanting to share their stories. The consensus between them is that they realize they don't want to die, they want someone to step into their life and ask them, but very rarely does someone actually do it.
     We live in a society that make people afraid to ask for help because we think it makes us weak, but in reality it makes us that much stronger. So today, and everyday, I stand with thousands upon thousands of other people who are lending their voices, their ears, and their shoulders to those who need someone to listen, someone to cry one, someone to speak up for them. In a world full of sadness and violence and hate, we need to lean on one another more than anything now. 
      Please take today, or tomorrow, or the day after that, etc., to ask your friends, family or even a stranger if they are okay. You might just happen to be their thread of sunlight in a dark world. 
      Until next time lovelies,

Resources:
www.iasp.info/resources/