It’s #WorldSuicidePreventionDay. In 2005, at 11 years old, I survived an attempted suicide… after spending my entire life in a home littered with domestic violence of almost every kind.
In 2014, I decided to turn my instagram into a page dedicated to spreading awareness about mental health. I didn’t think anything of it. I just thought that I would take the opportunity to impart some wisdom, provide some insight, and maybe share with someone the words I wanted to hear when I was younger.
One day, I was scrolling on instagram and I received a DM from a stranger. She had just tried to jump out of a moving vehicle with her children in the car. A police officer pulled her over for speeding. Her unsuccessful attempt at jumping out led her to come home and try to overdose on some pills. She opened up her phone, scrolled on her instagram and found me on the discover page. It was an image of me holding up a sign with resources listed down below. It was this image.
She immediately messaged me. I’ll let her tell the rest of the story.
She messaged me in 2014. This year, for the very first time, she stepped in front of an audience and told her story.
I found her again recently. She disappeared for a couple of years. I got his message this year. I cried. Like, ugly cried.
Whenever people ask me why I talk about my experience so much, I remember why I started it all. In 2006, after surviving my own attempted suicide, I thought, I needed to go to school and learn to help people just like me. I think there was a bit of me what wanted some peace of mind.. and a bit of me that wanted to save the world. But I later found that the weight of someone else’s life was far too heavy for me to carry. But I decided I’d try another way. And I found that way was through sharing my experience.
Every time I post, I remember this woman, her children, and the future of the people who sometimes feel hopeless.
If you or a loved one are experiencing domestic violence, please contact the domestic violence hotline at 1 (800) 799 - SAFE.
If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, please call the suicide prevention lifeline at 1 (800) - 273 - TALK