A short while ago by chance I saw a former colleague I had not seen or spoken with for years. It is always a pleasure for me to ‘bump’ into people from the past. I believe it is an opportunity for friendships to rekindle or a major healing of some sort.
Sadly, he told me that he was on his way to the funeral of a mutual friend who had taken his life by suicide the week before. Five weeks later, we received an email from the school our daughters attend advising parents of the death of one of the students of the school who had died by suicide. She was a friend of one of our daughters. The minutes, hours, days and weeks that followed this news were consumed with an outpouring of community grief and trauma that was at times unbearable.
Amidst the many tear-filled conversations and gatherings I wondered if my former colleague and the student who had suicided knew how much their life had mattered to their family and to all the people who were now grieving for their loss. I wondered how and to what extent the world had diminished as a result of the suicides.
So I decided to send a message to each and every person. The message is your life matters. You may not know it but your life matters.
Seek professional help. Reach out to organizations whose purpose is to provide access to support and suicide prevention services.
NEED HELP COPING?
- https://www.lifeline.org.au – Call 13 11 14
- https://www.beyondblue.org.au – Call 1300 22 4636
- www.youthbeyondblue.com – Call 1300 22 4636
- https://www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au – Call 1300 659 467
- https://kidshelpline.com.au – Call 1800 55 1800