I Survived Suicide
Aarin Harper
Life is fragile.
Today is World Suicide Prevention Day. I, along with my family, are suicide survivors. I didn’t try to end my life. Someone in my family did. I am a suicide survivor because I am living with the loss of someone I loved who did end their life. This may seem an odd way to broach the idea of a suicide prevented, by talking about one that wasn’t. It has been such a loss and I grieve my loss – our loss.
If you are contemplating ending your life – please don’t do it. If you are in immediate danger of harming yourself, call 911.
I understand your pain may be more than you feel you can bear, but instead of ending your pain in this way, I want to humbly ask you to consider that you can bear it - with the help of others to bear your feelings with you. Someone to help you sort out your thoughts and help provide clarity until you can do it on your own. Whoever they may be, someone will share the load with you. Tell a friend, loved one, acquaintance, spiritual leader, therapist, or call a hotline. Tell someone.
You can Google “how to prevent suicide” and find many valuable resources. The common component is to tell someone if you are the one that believes death is the answer. Tell someone if you are a suicide survivor and grieve. We need people to share life with. We need to be willing to reach out to others to get, and to give, help.
Life is fragile – we can be like this flower. The petals are as delicate as tissue paper but the foliage is all spiky and sharp. We can be just this way – fragile and off putting, either to protect ourselves from others or to protect others from ourselves. Let the prickliness go and be open to others.
For resource recommendations, go to the LifEdvice Resource page. Follow @LifEdvice to get more encouragement and resources.
