Showing posts with label suicide prevention week. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suicide prevention week. Show all posts

11 September 2013

Shout out to a hero, Cristi Comes

I know today is 9/11 and it's expected to talk about the events of that awful day and the people who were lost in those tragic events. But you know what? I want to take today to focus on something positive, talk about someone who is doing great things to help other people.

Picture from Motherhood Unadorned.
One of the lovely things about the internet is that it helps you meet people you might not meet otherwise. Take, for example, Cristi Comes of Motherhood Unadorned. I know Cristi (online) because of both of our involvement in the online PPD community. She's one of my Warrior Mom idols, I really look up to her. She's talented and her passion for advocacy, awareness, education, and support in the PPD community are beyond description. Straight up, she rocks.

This week is National Suicide Prevention Week and Cristi has been hard at work. She's done some fantastic blog posts including a guest post from Leila (who blogs at Life As Leels) and her own blog post about ways we can fight suicide. She's been posting up a storm of links and images, such as the one to the left. She's organized an online Stella and Dot Trunk Show to benefit the American Foundation for Suicide PreventionShe's been tweeting links and... well... tweets... that are relevant, helpful, etc.

Did I mention that Cristi is fantastic and I absolutely adore her?

Cristi is one of those people who truly embodies what it means to care about other people and work to make the world a better place, to fight against the stigma and myths that surround mental illness, suicide, Postpartum Depression, and related topics. She is a shining beacon of light and hope to people who feel worn out by life, who feel like they're alone, who feel like there is no hope.

There are a lot of people out there who don't get it. WAY too many who don't get it, people who actively fight against the idea that mental illness and suicide are serious, people who think that stigma is a joke and that it's okay to mock and deride those who speak up, people who think that suicide is a joking matter (it's not a joke and it's not a game). In fact, I've got another post cooking about an instance of that exact thing happening, an instance in which Cristi speaks up and people are just inane jerks to her, but I wanted to talk about the good first, because good people like Cristi deserve the spotlight more than the jerks of the world.

Thank you, Cristi, for everything that you do. You may never know how much good you accomplish and how much you and your efforts mean to other people, but your contributions can't be measured by any human markers. Keep up the good work, you inspiring person you.

Be sure to check out Cristi's blog, twitter, and the Stella and Dot show through the links posted throughout the blog.
Photobucket

05 September 2011

Suicide Prevention Week

It has been brought to my attention that September 2 - 8 is Suicide Prevention Week. In all the craziness of moving, I totally missed that. *slaps own wrist* I don't really have any great inspiration for deeply profound things to write on the topic so I"ll just kind of ramble and post links to some resources.

Several thoughts come to mind.
1. There but for the grace of God go I. I am SO thankful that I was able to get help and get past the crisis point. I'm sad for all the people who didn't. I'm thankful for my life and for the people who reached out to me when I was in a very dark place.
2. Why is suicide such a taboo subject in our society? Awareness and openness to talk about it has come a long way but just as with other mental/emotional health topics, there's still a stigma attached. How many people might be more willing to reach out for help if they didn't feel like they'd be labeled or something?

The bottom line for me is this: if someone you know says they are thinking of hurting or killing themselves, do something about it. I had a situation where a friend of mine and my husband's said she was having suicidal ideations. My husband took her to the hospital. She told the docs he misunderstood. I went and told the docs otherwise and a lot of backstory that had to do with it. She was mad at us, and we ended up with some trouble she caused for us over it, but I wouldn't change either of our actions. We did the right thing. Do the right thing, even if you know you'll catch backlash over it. It's called integrity.

If you are the person who is thinking of hurting or killing yourself, please don't. Know that you are not alone, that there is help, that there is hope. Go to the emergency room, call 911, call a helpline. I'll post some links to some resources.
http://psychcentral.com/helpme.htm
http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
http://www.hopeline.com/
http://suicidehotlines.com/national.html
http://samaritanshope.org/

1-800-273-TALK (8255)



Something else to be aware of before I sign off: suicidal ideations can be caused by underlying medical issues, such as thyroid deficiencies or a pulmonary embolism. It's not always the result of "only" a mental/emotional health issue.

This week, make an effort to reach out to someone who is hurting. You could be the hand that saves them. If you're the one who is hurting, please don't be afraid to reach out to ask for help. The world is a better place with you in it. I mean that.
Photobucket