For those of you who are wondering why I wrote the previous piece, I haven't yet come up with the proper words to express or articulate my personal reasons for doing so, and I doubt if I will ever be able to share it completely with anyone other than those with whom I have in private. Suffice it to say that the complexities of suicide have been bothering me, nagging at me and plaguing me, for several months. In addition to that, very recently I was made aware of the startling number of U.S. military veteran suicides, numbering in the thousands. The young man who provided that shocking bit of information is the author of this and brought to my attention U.S. Suicide Prevention Week. I was not aware until today, that September 10 was World Suicide Prevention Day or that the first week of September was International Suicide Prevention Awareness Week. So, I suppose this could be chalked up to mere coincidence. Regardless, for me to touch on such a sensitive subject on such a public forum is almost inconceivable. All I can say is that if something like those simple yet specific words came into my mind today, then I could not let it pass.
If I can do nothing, then I must at least say something.
I am stepping so far outside my box, and well outside my comfort zone, that I hesitate to keep these posts even now.
If I can do nothing, then I must at least say something.
I am stepping so far outside my box, and well outside my comfort zone, that I hesitate to keep these posts even now.
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5 comments:
I will continue my thoughts here, from related posts. When Ben and I first met, he educated me as well, which is why he originally publish the mention blog post on my blog, to help me reach people I never reached before. Maybe to help them, the people contemplating and their loved ones. To help them know, they are not alone.
This entire conversation has made me wonder if Canada has this issue as well. I just found this article comparing US suicide rates with Canadian. I think You'll find it interesting.
http://ptsdcombat.blogspot.com/2010/04/latest-military-combat-veteran-suicide.html
Oh and I forgot to tell you.... Stepping outside the box is good. It's how we grow. How we learn. Never stop stepping outside, you'll miss so much!
K:
Thanks for the link. The odd thing about this is that although the statistics are what "grab" you, I haven't been approaching this based on the statistics. For whatever reason I am looking at this on a personal level, from the inside out. Granted, if this were a field of study that I was involved in, I know what I would want to look into, and THEN of course, the stats would come into play. So for now all I can do is offer simple words and ask questions, and pay attention to everything that crosses my path.
I suppose the statistic surprise me, because I was so disconnected from the problem before Ben came into my life. I felt like, "Why didn't I notice this before? How did I miss all this?"
I am a fixer. When I see a problem I think about all the possible ways to fix it. This is one of those problems I don't know how to fix... and it bothers me.
I forgot to add...
to look at all aspects, delve into all possibilities and offer suggestions. And, I know that I can't fix most things, but if I can't fix something, trying to make it at least function is a fine alternative.
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