10th September 2018
Do not go gentle into that good night....... Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
That is the way it should be right? - living until we are old and grey, after a full, fun (sometimes heartbreaking) epic and vibrant life. The sad fact is, for so many that is not the case and the even sadder part, for so many it is preventable.
Today marks the day of World Suicide Prevention, a day that raises awareness and strives for every single person to remain committed to such a worth while cause. I am all for raising awareness, but in all honesty in my view is it deeper routed than that; it seems to me that in society the idea of someone taking their own life is something to be ashamed of, that it is immoral, a stain on humanity or a indicator of someones weakness and selfishness. It is no wonder that this appears to be embedded in societies DNA, when up until 1961 suicide was illegal in the UK (and still remains illegal in some parts of our world).
Even the expression 'suicide' still stirs up negative connotations.
Truly, how bad must one person feel within themselves, to feel no hope, no light at the end of the tunnel, to feel the only way for some peace is to end their life. For me, that is what it is, people searching for some peace. It is sad, that for so many they feel this cant be found in this life.
Pressure Cooker
So much has change the past 20 years, the explosion of technology and social media has in a lot of ways made our lives easier; we can stay in touch with anyone in any corner of the world with the flick of our hand. Yet, it can also isolate us, as we see peoples highlights of what appears to be a perfect life on all social media platforms, the perfect families, the perfect friends, the perfect hair, the perfect teeth, the perfect job - but lets call it for what it is, total and utter bullshit. No one has a 'perfect' life, we may have perfect moments along the way, but those are fleeting. For the most part, everyday life, is just that, everyday life.
People have always tried to keep up, I genuinely believe that is human nature, but with social media there is literally no escaping it, the greatest trick ever pulled, is this incessant need to be checking updates and scrolling through feeds to keep up with what everyone else is doing. I am as guilty as the next person for doing it, I am huge advocate for social media and believe it can be a great thing, but I am not blind to the serious damage it can cause to peoples self worth and self esteem.
Social media I find can also be contradictory in the sense, people on one breath share statuses about 'my door is always open' then on the other breath share posts, videos and images tearing people down. I worry these copy and paste statuses have become nothing more than a punchline, nothing more than a pointless shallow exercise.
Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.....
I am not sure who said that, but it is true. We never ever really truly know what is going through someones mind, they could appear to be the happiest person in the world but inside they are fighting with everything they have to hold on. So before you said that nasty thing, before you share that video, before you spread that little bit of gossip you heard in school or work - think that could be the last straw for that person struggling, someone could be waking up without a mother, father, sister, brother, cousin, partner or friend, all because we cant see a mental illness, we fool ourselves to believing it is not there.
For every single person who fights this fight every day of their life, I have nothing but respect and love for you, I have faced times of darkness, sadness, desperation and hopelessness - I understand those feelings all too well. For those we have lost along the way, I truly hope you have found peace, in a world far better, brighter and more beautiful than this one, I have no doubt that you have.
Until next time,
Lettie xo
* For anyone thinking about sucide, please reach out to a family member, friend or even a stranger, please visit Samaritans who can offer you support, you are loved more than you know *
* Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any images and may be subject to copyright *
Do not go gentle into that good night....... Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
That is the way it should be right? - living until we are old and grey, after a full, fun (sometimes heartbreaking) epic and vibrant life. The sad fact is, for so many that is not the case and the even sadder part, for so many it is preventable.
Today marks the day of World Suicide Prevention, a day that raises awareness and strives for every single person to remain committed to such a worth while cause. I am all for raising awareness, but in all honesty in my view is it deeper routed than that; it seems to me that in society the idea of someone taking their own life is something to be ashamed of, that it is immoral, a stain on humanity or a indicator of someones weakness and selfishness. It is no wonder that this appears to be embedded in societies DNA, when up until 1961 suicide was illegal in the UK (and still remains illegal in some parts of our world).
Even the expression 'suicide' still stirs up negative connotations.
Truly, how bad must one person feel within themselves, to feel no hope, no light at the end of the tunnel, to feel the only way for some peace is to end their life. For me, that is what it is, people searching for some peace. It is sad, that for so many they feel this cant be found in this life.
Pressure Cooker
So much has change the past 20 years, the explosion of technology and social media has in a lot of ways made our lives easier; we can stay in touch with anyone in any corner of the world with the flick of our hand. Yet, it can also isolate us, as we see peoples highlights of what appears to be a perfect life on all social media platforms, the perfect families, the perfect friends, the perfect hair, the perfect teeth, the perfect job - but lets call it for what it is, total and utter bullshit. No one has a 'perfect' life, we may have perfect moments along the way, but those are fleeting. For the most part, everyday life, is just that, everyday life.
People have always tried to keep up, I genuinely believe that is human nature, but with social media there is literally no escaping it, the greatest trick ever pulled, is this incessant need to be checking updates and scrolling through feeds to keep up with what everyone else is doing. I am as guilty as the next person for doing it, I am huge advocate for social media and believe it can be a great thing, but I am not blind to the serious damage it can cause to peoples self worth and self esteem.
Social media I find can also be contradictory in the sense, people on one breath share statuses about 'my door is always open' then on the other breath share posts, videos and images tearing people down. I worry these copy and paste statuses have become nothing more than a punchline, nothing more than a pointless shallow exercise.
Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.....
I am not sure who said that, but it is true. We never ever really truly know what is going through someones mind, they could appear to be the happiest person in the world but inside they are fighting with everything they have to hold on. So before you said that nasty thing, before you share that video, before you spread that little bit of gossip you heard in school or work - think that could be the last straw for that person struggling, someone could be waking up without a mother, father, sister, brother, cousin, partner or friend, all because we cant see a mental illness, we fool ourselves to believing it is not there.
For every single person who fights this fight every day of their life, I have nothing but respect and love for you, I have faced times of darkness, sadness, desperation and hopelessness - I understand those feelings all too well. For those we have lost along the way, I truly hope you have found peace, in a world far better, brighter and more beautiful than this one, I have no doubt that you have.
Until next time,
Lettie xo
* For anyone thinking about sucide, please reach out to a family member, friend or even a stranger, please visit Samaritans who can offer you support, you are loved more than you know *
* Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any images and may be subject to copyright *
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