1-800-273-TALK (8255) And My Thoughts on Suicide and Life

           Suicide. It is not a topic we like to talk about, like so many other crucial topics. It is all too easy, when people make suicidal remarks, to ignore these remarks or to tell them, "Oh, you should not even think about doing that." On Facebook, months ago, it was brought to my attention that an individual in my network had posted a status update that contained thinly-veiled suicidal references and mentioned about being "in Heaven" or something to that effect. I had not seen that post until another person mentioned that "We need to love each other better" and mentioned how this person did not get enough comments on his suicidal post (thank God, the person seems to be doing okay and occasionally posts on Facebook). But it causes me to think how we need to show each other that we care, listen to each others' concerns and not wait for a tragedy to happen. By then it can be too late!
        In the world of pop music, there are songs that casually allude to suicide. There is the "Don't Fear the Reaper" song with lyrics that make suicide appear to be an option to dealing with life when it gets to hard. In the world of so-called medicine, the late Dr. Jack Kavorkian lived to promote his particular brand of physician-assisted suicide. And over and over again, the media bring to us the heart-wrenching stories of children and young people who take their own lives as a result of the vicious bullying they experience. And suicide contributes to the epidemic of missing and unidentified people.
        In my own life, I was midiagnosed with "anxiety disorder" because the autism spectrum disorder" diagnosis (another topic) did not exist. Aside from having to take medications for to control epileptic seizures, when I was in my teens, psychiatrists placed me on a number of "anti-anxiety" drugs that produced in me deep depression, bizarre physical symptoms and, ultimately, erased inhibitions that resulted in behavior that, to this day, I cringe to even think about. And I entered the mental health system, and had suicidal thoughts because of these medication side effects, the way I responded to these meds and the way people responded to me. Because of my misdiagnosis and the inappropriate interventions I was subjected to for almost all my youth, I am much sensitized to the stigma of things like mental illness and other related disorders.
       Yes, I know that there are many other issues that surround suicide, like bullying (another topic I want to cover later), addictions, eating disorders, crime, domestic violence, human trafficking, and more, including, as already mentioned, mental illness and missing/unidentified people. Oh, and I should mention homelessness. I'm sure you can add others I have not thought of.
       There is a fine organization that exists to prevent and end suicide through education, intervention and a 24-hour hotline. The organization is called National Suicide Prevention Hotline "1-800-273-TALK (8255)." This hotline is available 24 hours a day and, according to posts I have seen on their Facebook page, you may not be able to reach anyone right away, due to the number of other callers. But you should ultimately be able to get through. This service is available to the public.
      You can get to their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/800273TALK
      Now let's get more positive here. I don't want to end this on such a gloomy, doomy note. For no matter how grim, discouraging, or even hopeless things may look, know that you have a Creator and He loves you and has a plan for you. You may not be able to see it now. Whatever you believe about God, killing, including killing one's self, is no answer to solving any problem. I feel for the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones to suicide and, months ago, I actively advocated for the families of soldiers who have lost their lives to suicide, that they should receive condolence letters from the US government, same as all the other families of troops who have given their lives for our freedoms. Like the person in my network posted earlier this year, we need to love each other better so that people will not take their lives because they don't feel cared for.
      Life is precious.