I do want to say something about suicide, even though it's easy not to, because it's such a difficult and painful subject. But every day people choose to end their own life because of emotional pain, and we need to talk about why this is. In the conversation I had recently with my friend, I told him that the words, "suicide is not the answer" were a trigger for me, because what I hear in those words is, "suicide is not the answer for you." And while mentally I understand that this is people's way of saying, "please don't do this, we love you, we want you here with us" it reinforces the feeling that people do not understand the pain that we feel. In fact, when I heard it, it triggered me even though I wasn't in a particularly bad place at the time, and I realized that it was because there's such a huge lack of understanding about why people choose to commit suicide.
Read MoreIn my previous posts, I've mentioned that I've struggled with depression. I think it's a big issue right now during COVID - people out of work, cramped up at home with domestic partners that they may not be on good terms with, too much responsibility, sickness, not being able to pay the bills. Feelings of inadequacy and "no end in sight" are major underlying causes of depression, so people who have the gene are especially susceptible right now. But what specifically has gotten me thinking about this subject, and the need to talk more openly about depression is an email conversation I recently had with a friend who was trying to process the death of one of his friends who had chosen to take his own life.
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