Suicide awareness month is upon us. During this month we share with others and encourage them to reach out. I have felt compelled to share my story. Perhaps you will read about me and see yourself. Or you will see a friend, a loved one, a co-worker who needs your help. My hope is that [...]
I am sure you have heard the term cyberbullying, but have you taken time to truly think about what it is and the trauma it creates? I know we see the statistics, but do you see the person behind the statistics? Cyberbullying is any form of bullying that takes place over the internet with digital [...]
Who Remembers the Lost? Those sad few who were with us only moments before yet now, are as gone as history past Who remembers the lost? Those who left because they felt The absence they’d leave would be noticed by no one Never knowing how in error they were. Who remembers the lost? [...]
We often think of suicide victims as people struggling with depression and anxiety. Over 90% of those that die by suicide have an underlying mental illness, but there is another population at great risk: the chronically ill. Living with chronic illness and for some patients, chronic pain, takes a toll, not only physically, but emotionally [...]
Unfortunately, I will never know whether the medication I put my son on for depression and anxiety played a part in his suicide. He died January 11 of 2016. The day all my nightmares came to life. Jake struggled with mental Illness practically his entire life. We had been dealing with violent outbursts since he was [...]
I have an army behind me. It’s an invisible army. But it’s there. My army is a community of other suicide loss survivors. They get it. All of it. They personally and intimately understand the emotional energy expended fighting through the grief battle. They too have been wounded by the words and actions of [...]
Disneyland at Christmas a beautiful place Full of dreams and joy where you can leave your cares at the door. Where no matter how old you are you can act like a kid and enter a place of fantasy and grace. This year however something is different, something is wrong. The lights down Main Street [...]
Losing a loved one to suicide is often confusing and surreal. A great deal of energy is expended churning through a whirlpool of questions - especially the whys. I’ve heard it countless times from other survivors of suicide loss – why did my loved one do this when they were the first in line [...]
I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma breast cancer in 2012. After fighting for my life, I came to understand the terrible mental toll that I had paid through that season. I wrote the following post to the women in our private Facebook support group, Booby Buddies, in 2014: [...]
I believe losing a child is the most brutal loss there is, but I hope what I have learned from the death of my son can help you in some small way. To the parents reading this who have lost a child, I wish I could hug you and make the pain go away, but [...]
