National Suicide Awareness Day (several days late)

 

*bolts in* *screeching tire sounds as I accidentally run past* *hurries back* 

HELLO! 

This post is a few day late. Why? Because I didn't know National Suicide Awareness Day was a thing until the 10th and normally I write posts well in advance of when it comes out. And then, as I was writing this on the 11th planning to post it that day, I realized it was 9/11 and wrote a different post in honor of it, then I wanted to make my post about Netflix's "Cuties" because it appalled me and I wanted to speak out about it while it was circulating. Needless to say, this got pushed back quite a bit.

So, here's National Suicide Awareness Day Pt. 2. 

Wanna honor the day with me? Here's how you can do it:

Share things

Share and repost stuff that is offering encouragement to those who have lost someone to suicide, to those who are suicidal, and  things that are honoring and remembering those who took their own lives. 

It's a pretty dark thing to talk about, and so not many want to talk about it. But that's all the more reason why we need to talk about it. Some issues grow in isolation, and depression and such things that can lead to suicide are included in that. 

Maybe we can't reach every hurting person individually, but we can at least make it more comfortable for them to get help by knowing that people are aware of suicide and that it isn't something they'll be shunned for or should be embarrassed of or anything of the sort. Let's make them aware that we don't want to further hurt them, we want to help them. 

Do that by being a voice, by posting something on your socials, by talking about it in school, at work, with a friend (assuming any situation is appropriate for it, as there are times when they are not). Even something as simple as "hey, did you know yesterday was suicide awareness day?" can make a difference. 

Prayer

Let's make today a day of prayer for those we know are suicidal, as well as for the people we've never met that are suicidal. 

From friends and family to celebrities and to total stranger that you don't even know the face or name of. Just pray for the world. 

I'd like to suggest getting a marker and drawing a semicolon on your hand, and then spray it with hairspray so it doesn't come off as you wash your hands and whatnot. 

Then you can use this semicolon as a reminder to pray for these people, people you know and people you don't. 

(Why a semicolon?

If you don't know why I suggested using a semicolon as a reminder, it's because that it has now become a symbol of hope for suicidal people. 

The semicolon is, grammatically, punctuation that joins two independent sentences into becoming one. So what does that mean? It means the sentence goes on. It could've stopped where it did, but it didn't. It kept going. 

That's what the semicolon means in this context: It goes on. Your life goes on. This doesn't have to be the end. 

It's really beautiful, isn't it?)

Tell your story

Have you experienced depression, self harming, or considered or attempted suicide? If you're comfortable with it, sharing your story may just give some other people hope during their own battles. You can do this by making a video, or a post, or even commenting down below here. Often times, all someone needs is to know that other people have made it through the same thing they're experiencing to have the courage to keep going.  

If you do it here, I ask that you don't say anything graphic and that you begin your comment with a warning for anyone liable to being triggered or disturbed even by milder things. Better safe than sorry, after all.

Reach out

You never know whose struggling with what. Today, maybe it's time you reach out to some people and just ask them how they're doing. You don't need to ask "are you suicidal" or anything like that, just remember that many people who take their own lives are people never would've been suspected of having depression or suicidal thoughts, so it's never a bad idea to give a simple check in. 

And if you're someone currently struggling with suicide, I'd like to challenge you to use this day to reach out to someone, or multiple someones, and get the help you need.

That's all, folks. Hopefully next year I'll be more prepared and can do a more thought-out and deeper post.

Have a nice day. *Salutes* 

-EJ