Suicide

I believe that suicide is often misunderstood.
And as Looking At Stars said, there is a stigma associated with it.
In 2010 I lost two friends to suicide and no one talks about it. It's like if it's kept quiet everyone will forget about it and that really annoys me.

I loved my two friends and I miss them everyday, but it's not my place to say that they shouldn't have taken their own lives.
I mean, if they were that unhappy with their lives then maybe that's what was best. I know they both struggled with depression for a number of years and that they always tried their best to put on a happy front. I can't blame them for finally stopping to the pretence.

In my area there had been a dramatic increase in suicide amongst young adults. It's horrible, but it's part of life.
I don't believe suicide is selfish or "immoral". Sometimes people just struggle through life and cannot enjoy it the way most of us do. I do not think it is our place to judge them for their actions, all we can do is help those who may be travelling down the same path.

(I don't usually write on forums, but I'm quite passionate about this topic)

^ Do you think that people can be helped by reducing the stigma? Maybe if people didn't feel the need to fake happiness and suicide wasn't so hushed up, then it might help those suffering depression?

^ I do think that.
That's why I said it annoyed me that people in my town pretend that suicide isn't affecting everyone.
I think we need to acknowledge that some people suffer from depression and get them the help the need. It's got to be better than hiding them in the closet like a secret just because depression isn't a well understood problem.

I absolutely hate the thought of suicide. It's just so...sad. And when people say that suicide is selfish, that tons of other people don't have this or that, then I think they're just naive to what suicide really is. Putting things in perspective won't really help, because someone with a physical disability may just as well have a happier life than a person who ever considers, attempts, or completes suicide. That is not always the fact, but it's more common than some think.

What angers me is that the suicide rate is continually increasing, and as much as people talk about it--as much as there is a promotion to try and stop it--nobody is recognizing what the main sources are. It can be because of heartbreak, and that's common, but I think that bullying is the real reason. And it's not just kids getting hit, teens calling other teens names. There's the emotional part of it that not very many people seem to understand. The acts are so simple, but they make us feel so much hatred for ourselves.

Bullying and heartbreak aren't the only things--I know that. It could be something with family, it could be rape, or...anything, really. But there's not too many logical people who actually understand, truly, why teens commit suicide. Who know that it's more than just saying that it's sad, or mourn for a second about it and then it's forgotten. You have to...know.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
Bullying is statistically true for most teens, but teens aren't the only people attempting/committing suicide. I'm 25 and I haven't really been bullied in years. A little online bullshit here or there, but nothing that has made me want to kill myself.

I think it's because asking for help for mental problems is either deemed as weak or society sees you as 'crazy'. I think everyone could benefit from counseling, no matter what.

@for dru's sins.

Well, although other people commit suicide, I'm just talking about the subject of teens. And although you may not have experienced anything recently, you're not exactly a teen--25 is considered an adult, or anything above and including 18. Although it may not seem like it, you aren't technically a teen.
It's different for everybody. Some have worse experiences than others, and that's what makes some kill themselves...and some pull through. Not just because the amount of happenings to make them kill themselves--whatever they are, in any situation--but because of the personal and emotional differences people have.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
I never said I was a teen. That's why I brought up individuals other than teens. (I was severely bullied in high school but never attempted suicide until I was an adult.)

I didn't realize you were only talking about teens though, my bad. (And, yes, statistically bullying is attributed to most teen suicide attempts/suicides.)

@for dru's sins.

Oh! Okay. I misunderstood. xD I'm sorry. But yes, even young adults (like people your age) still have a high suicide rate, next to actual teens. And that's still sad and terrible, I think.

I expect too much of people, I really I do. I know not everyone's the same; but it's just...teenagers are just so mean these days. They make other teens feel so bad about themselves, and it's like they don't even have hearts. It's just terrible to me.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
I think all schools need a 100% no bullying tolerance policy and we need anti-bullying systems in place in schools.

@ for dru's sins.

Agreed. And so many schools--including mine--keep saying that there's no bullying tolerance policy, but they don't even understand that bullying is more than just the physical and mental aspects of it. There's bullying happening every day, and they don't even know it.
This is a little off-topic, I know, but still, there's kids being left out by the cliques, sitting alone at lunch, all this kind of stuff that's happening. The teachers rarely do anything about it, and that's what makes me mad.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
I don't think a school should force kids to eat lunch together or say that it's bullying to let someone eat alone. That's pushing a boundary. You can't just force people to be friends. I ate alone at lunch quite often because I would rather read a book than listen to people bullshit and talk smack on others.

@ for dru's sins.

It's not that you're forcing people to be friends. It's that the teachers can't tell when a child wants to be alone, and is really...alone. I can tell the difference. It's probably because I can relate so much to that kind of emotional bullying. But I guess that's just me.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
I think all schools should have mandatory counseling and mental health screenings for all student so, to me, that would help with that problem.

@ for dru's sins.

Yes, I think they should, too. But when dealing with bullying, it should be more than just remedies to make sure that you're safe and they get in trouble, because that rarely stops it. All the counseling these days are just a matter of telling the students to tell a teacher when bullied or a parent, but does that stop the bullying? Not most of the time. So, that's what I think...counseling that's more than just the standard things they always tell you.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
To me, that isn't counseling. Counseling is when you sit down with a counselor one and one and discuss your problems. What you're saying sounds more to me like what they would tell you at an assembly.

@for dru's sins.

Well, in all our schools in the area, it's the same. No matter what your individual problem is, they tell you the same thing, no matter what. And I'm not even exaggerating--they just don't know what else to tell you. It's either that, or just "ignore them" or "try to talk to them." Rarely do these work for anybody, and that's why nobody ever goes to our counselor. It's like...routine. But hopefully other schools are better and they enforce it more.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
Ahhh, that's too bad. My school had an excellent counselor followed by a pretty good counselor. In addition to my idea, there would obviously need to be properly trained individuals at the school and if the students weren't getting the help they need, they would be asked to complain. (Have you tried writing a letter to the principal or superintendent? They shouldn't be paying a salary to incompetent employees.)

@for dru's sins.

If only your idea was broadcasted for all the schools. It would help kids everywhere. Actually, I would love to write to my principal or superintendent about it, but there's not much they can do because they don't really know much about counseling. Or at least the principal doesn't. I actually wrote a monologue about bullying for the counselors, but I never got around to turning it in. I'm planning to do that next year.

@ itsy bitsy spider.
But they should understand that if the student body is complaining that they aren't being helped, that the individual isn't doing their job. Just a suggestion. Good luck with your speech. I hope it helps.

@ for dru's sins.

Thank you, and I've been rewriting it ever since summer started so I can make it respectful, but to the point. I hope it works! Thanks. :)