Suicide is one of the first leading causes of death in the United States. People often feel alone and isolated when going through these feelings due to shame and stigma around mental illness. This month is National Suicide Prevention Month, and oftentimes, it is difficult to reach out for help when a person is suffering […]
Suicide Prevention Month stirs up a lot of different emotions for different people. While some people use this time to show that they are here to help those who are struggling, other people feel a sense of sadness, hopelessness, or despair. The topic of suicide isn’t an easy one to talk about… as I write […]
Dear Leah, If there was a way this letter could have gotten to you tonight, I don’t think you would have even listened. The grips of depression are relentless and intoxicating. It took years of deciding that despite the love around you, you are entirely alone. You think you are ready for your life to […]
If someone had told my seven year old self that I would become a time traveller when I got older, my daydreaming imagination would have soared. Could I go back to the periods my American Girl dolls were from; could I go on adventures in the future? Could I visit people who were no longer […]
When someone is struggling, they oftentimes don’t know exactly what they are feeling. In other words, they know they aren’t feeling good, but “it” can’t be described. I, too, have had these feelings. My friends and family would ask me what was wrong, and I would say, “I don’t know. I just don’t feel right. […]
I was 15 years old when I took action to help prevent one of my close friends from taking her own life. When you’re close friends with a person there is often strong mutual trust between the two of you. You’re expected to keep each other’s secrets no matter what, but I learned that sometimes […]
“So, what now?” my therapist asks expectedly. “I don’t know; I wasn’t planning on still being alive right now,” I respond, fidgeting in my seat. I left my therapist’s office a little over two weeks prior to this session with a plan. I had just turned 25 and I felt completely defeated, like my mental […]
“Do you have a plan?” The words make me wince. I shift uncomfortably in my seat because I don’t know the answer. I wait for him to change the subject, but when I look back up my therapist is looking intently at me, his hands folded in front of him, patiently. A year ago, when […]