2 people I know recently committed suicide and another tried...

[CrashOverride]

A Pastor at a church I used to go to, in his late 30's I think. Married and had children. My friend's son, also in his late 30's, married and had kids. My other friend's 12 year old son recently tried to kill himself.

I just wanted to put this up there for us all to keep an eye out for each other. The common factor in all of these were people that were ashamed to reach out for help. If you are struggling with it yourself, know that your friends and family care about you and would probably do anything they could to help you out. Reaching out for help doesn't mean you are weak, or somehow any more "messed up" than anybody else. Taking prescribed medication shouldn't be shameful either, these are bona fide medical conditions, not simple something "just all in one's head" and requires treatment just as other medical conditions such as epilepsy.

On the flip side, we need to look for the warning signs for our own friends and family members - and if they do reach out, do our best to help them through it without being critical.

I'm an older dude. Seemingly insurmountable problems in my 20's and 30's have magically sorted themselves out. To borrow a phrase from my friend, time heals.

Sorry for the dark post, but I hope this might help someone out there because it is so terrible to see what my friends are going through right now.
God Bless

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[Furious18]

Ex committed suicide. Many years later and I think about it many many, times per day.

In hindsight, signs were there but I didn’t see them during. Addiction, hopelessness and shame seem to fuel most completed suicides. I was extremely suicidal after and a can tell you that people think their loved ones would be better off without them. Of coarse that isn’t true... it’s actually transferring your pain to the ones who love you most.

I learned that things do get better. The storm does pass.

Be kind. Talk to you’re loved ones. Watch out of isolation and loss of interest in things they enjoy and future. You may never know if someone is standing at the edge.

 

[CrashOverride]

I'm so sorry to hear about it. I have a family member that tried it three times. The thought is always back there (Why, what could I have done better, etc.) I can only imagine how much worse it would be if my family member went through it. All of your advice sounds great to me and again, sorry to hear about it.

 

[Shifting_Gears]

When I was 16-17, I knew a guy who hung himself in the shower (he was a close friend of my best friend’s father). His girlfriend found him. That’s a time or story I probably won’t forget for a long time.

It’s terrifying that people have problems they feel that ending their life is the solution to. I’m sorry about your losses and I think the best thing we can do is provide support for those that struggle with suicidal thoughts and work to take the stigma away from getting help.

I suspect many people who have committed suicide regretted the decision after they realized it was going to be successful.

 

[SteelCity_Stang]

I’ve dealt with suicidal thoughts since high school. The only reason I’ve made it over a decade is I know my parents would have a tough time with it. Many people suffering from depression put themselves through Hell day in and day out because they don’t want to transfer the pain. It’s not selfish to end their own life, they’ve thought about how their loved ones would react to the news countless times

Don’t feel guilty if you wasn’t able to get through to someone. For me, no matter how many people tell me they love and care about me, it never sinks in. To me they’re “just words”. Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t tell your loved ones how much you care, just try your best to make it sink in. Remind them constantly! Perhaps put it in writing so they can look back at it when they’re struggling.

To add, you don’t necessarily need a reason to feel depressed/suicidal. I don’t really have any insurmountable problems, I have great friends/family, a good career, and a nice Mustang lol...a life many would love to have, yet I still have those feelings. Why? I wish I knew. It’s a daily battle, gotta take it one day at a time

Sorry for the hastily written, unorganized thoughts. It’s late and has been a busy day lol

 

[gameovergt]

sorry for your loss. Please help those you know that are dealing with depression. I am going to share my own story below:

On April 3rd, 2017 my youngest kid (son age 15) woke up at my ex's house. Found her .380, put it to his head & pulled the trigger. My oldest kid (daughter 16) called to tell me as she found him. They rushed him to the hospital. I am in northeast Florida. This was in northeast Alabama. He had emergency brain surgery. Neurologist told us to let him pass on. After being in Erlanger medical center for 4 weeks transferred him to Jacksonville, FL where he underwent 2 more brain/trachea surgeries. 7 weeks of rehab at Brooks he is discharged. My son graduated high school with honors this past May & is going to community college even though he has almost none of his right frontal lobe left. I prayed (not religious at all), blamed myself. I am so proud of him. I was with him the whole time at the hospital/rehab. I am attaching a video of his 1st interview with the SAM foundation. His scars are barely visible, if you look close you can see the entry X on the left temple. I am so proud that he is brave enough to tell others his story.

 

[Strokerswild]

I'm glad he made it.

I lost a high school buddy to suicide during my first year of college. Never saw it coming. I still think of him once in a while, and it's been 30 years.

 

[gameovergt]

I'm glad he made it.

I lost a high school buddy to suicide during my first year of college. Never saw it coming. I still think of him once in a while, and it's been 30 years.

Thanks. I have a lot of blame/guilt from it all. I got custody of both kids in 2008. I raised them until the fall of 2016 when I was retiring from the Navy. They have a younger sister at their Mom's house & both wanted to go live with her to be with the lil sister. Plus we have moved a lot & they wanted to settle/finish at one high school for once. I was in flux on where to live as was stationed in Indiana. So off to Alabama they went. I am praying he can live a 'normal' life. He still has his driving permit & is cleared to drive. But is he is a little nervous/skiddish. I was so happy at his graduation(he turned 18 the same weekend).

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