Thank-You To The Ones Who Kept Me Alive

*a trigger warning for talk of suicide and mental illness*

It’s suicide prevention month.

During the month of September, we honour the ones we have lost due to suicide and work on preventative measures.

If you or someone you love are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please phone 1-(833)-456-4566 or text 45645 to reach someone to talk to.

I think that suicide is more common than those around us may think. In fact, statistics speak for themselves.

• Approximately 12 people die by suicide each day
• Approximately 4,500 deaths by suicide per year
• Suicide rates are approximately 3 times higher among men compared to women.

Information taken directly from Statistics Canada's website.

I think conversations about suicide and mental health are necessary and need to happen more in this day and age instead of stigmatizing it. Trust me, I’ve been there before. I’ve had two stays in a mental hospital for my bipolar disorder and suicidal thoughts. It was an experience that changed my whole life.

I decided to post this at the beginning of Suicide Prevention Week. (Sunday, September 10, 2023 to Saturday, September 16, 2023) because I wanted to open up the conversation for other writers.

I remember reading a local article at the beginning of COVID where a young athlete went up to the emergency room due to mental health reasons and was released. Because of the pandemic restrictions, nobody was allowed to stay with them. Which resulted in his release. He ended up committing suicide later that evening. The system lets people down but WE don’t have to. That’s why prevention is so important. Nobody can understand how deeply that young man’s story impacted me.

What can you do to raise prevention awareness? Talk about your mental health. Listen to other people share their stories. Share as many positive preventative posts as you can. Remind people they aren’t alone in this world. Be a good person and show people how much you love them.

In honour of so many wonderful people’s battles with depression and suicidal thoughts, I thought it was time I wrote about this.

I have been working on this self help book for quite some time now and I’m in the process of publishing it. I struggle with bipolar disorder and that diagnosis changed my whole life. I can look back and see how long I struggled with it. I took the tools I was given to help with my diagnosis and turned my pain into something to be truly proud of.

My self help book is called “Thank-You For Keeping Me Alive” it’s a book for those struggling with suicide. It’s a piece of my heart because of my own mental health battle with bipolar disorder. I had to share with you today in honour of those that have lost their fight with mental illness. It’s the time to talk about it. I know that.

I lost a really good person in my life a back when we were twenty-one to suicide. He was a good friend of mine from elementary school and high school. He struggled in the dark for so many years. I miss him a lot. I will forever cherish those memories with him. Don’t take the ones you love for granted. Life is just too short you guys.

He was a writer too, and a beautiful one at that. He never got to see the light at the end of the tunnel and I wish I could relive the last time I seen him in person just one more time. He inspired me to write this book.

The problem with suicide, is that it passes the pain you’re enduring onto the ones you love. _____________________________

My mother always told me suicide is a very selfish thing to do to someone but in my mind it’s very different. Suicide is the final symptom of depression. If we treated mental health the way we treated physical aliment, like a broken leg, the world would be a different place. You cannot physically see the wound so the severity of it is often masked. It truly is the final symptom of depression- and that’s the worst part of struggling with mental illness.

I’ve written about Own Your Stigma before. I’ve always loved to support mental health organizations because of my own battle for survival. This week I will choose to represent mental health by wearing this amazing clothing brand!

Please use code 15%ROSEFEARLESS at checkout to receive your discount on Own Your Stigma merchandise.

It goes to a good business that supports mental health organizations and it’s very near and dear to my heart.

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And last but not least, light a candle tonight in honour of the ones who have lost their battles with mental illness.

There’s so much you can do to save someone’s life. Be a light. Don’t snuff someone out.

Thank-you for reading and thank-you for keeping me alive.

Remember I’ll always be the one to listen to your stories rather than hearing about your death. There are people that love you and cherish you in this world. Never forget that.

Please feel free to listen to my sad songs playlist. It’s gotten me through some dark times in my life and I’ve included every song that happened to save my life while I was struggling.

Chloe Rose Violet 🌹

Read some more of my mental health writing down below.