Suicide is when someone intentionally puts an end to his or her own life. People may attempt suicide because they don’t have the skills for dealing with overwhelming thoughts, feelings or problems. They can become preoccupied with feelings of hopelessness, and may come to hate or reject themselves, believing they don’t deserve to live.
Because they can’t see a way out of their suffering, people who are suicidal believe that suicide is the best or only solution to their pain. They may also see suicide as a way of punishing people by making them feel guilty for hurting them or for failing to provide them with the help they need.
Often, when young people attempt suicide, their action is actually a call for help. They may not really want to end their lives, but they are suffering and don’t know how to fix it, who to turn to for help or how to ask for it. In taking dramatic action against themselves, they hope the people who love them will realize they have a problem and come to their aid.
Suicide, though, doesn’t solve problems for anyone. It is an irreversible act that devastates the person’s family, friends and school community. It can traumatize close friends and loved ones, affecting them for the rest of their lives.
Suicide is a horrible way to ask for help. Such an attempt can leave the individual’s body or face disfigured, or leave their brain and cognitive skills permanently impaired.
No matter how hopeless our problems seem, suicide should never be considered a solution, as it can never be undone. Problems always have better solutions than suicide, even if we can’t see those solutions at the time.
When we think our lives are not worth living, we must call that thought what it is: a lie. When we are in despair, our mind plays tricks on us. We lose the ability to think logically, so we believe things that aren’t true and see our problems as insurmountable (impossible to overcome).
If we ever find ourselves thinking about suicide, we must remember: this problem is not forever. Life is the most precious thing we have. It will get better if we just have patience and share our pain with those who care about us. We have family members and people in school or our community who can help us or who can refer us to a professional that can.
In the words of Christopher Robin to Winnie the Pooh:
“Promise me you will always remember: you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think.” – Christopher Robin
Christopher Robin is absolutely right. We are stronger than we think. Our life is more valuable than we think. The problems we are facing are going to go away sooner than we think. So #BeStrong. Be your own hero and save your own life. We want you and need you to be here tomorrow.
