September 10 Suicide Awareness Day, Suicide is Never the Answer, Let's save lives!!!

hi,
 

Today is September 10th National Suicide Awareness Day.  Let's all stand up and share and recognize this tragic event that just could be prevented if we can all notice the signs.
 

If you are a caring person, please share and let anyone in your community or worldwide that you care about them enough to save their lives.  I would like to be the person writing this in hopes that somehow it reaches someone who could be thinking of ending their lives and when they read this it could make them change their mind.
 

It's never an easy thing either to lose a loved one.  I've got a relative who lost her son last year to it right around this time.  He was a Marine and suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome.  It's an unbearable thing to have to bury your son or daughter or anyone in your family who has decided that they wanted an out.
 

For those of you that are thinking, please don't do it!  Is it really that bad that you need to end your life?  You are never worthless and you have a lot to live for.  Think about all the people who will be angry with you after your death.  They will be too, because they will be angry that you decided to leave them all behind.
 

A long, long time ago I had a weak moment for one weekend where I at least thought of it, but what stopped me was my kids.  I thought of what it would be like for the oldest to arrive home and find Mom dead in the bathroom after taking pills.  Ultimately, I could never do it.  I really knew deep down that I could never kill myself in any way, shape or form.  And my sole reason (a real stupid one) was because I had finished my first romance novel, Lustful Evangelean and had an editor read it.  It needed a lot of work, but there were also really good things about it.  Well, on this fateful evening while I was in the car waiting in the rain for my oldest to get out of his school dance party, I thought "What if I never get my book published?"  It was really silly, but it had always been my goal to publish and get famous for my artwork and writings.  I did get self published last year.  
 

This event was at least five or seven years ago.  It was the year all my kids were in school full time and I think it had something to do with a mid life crisis too.  You know, when you think, now what?  What am I going to do with the rest of my life?
 

Well, immediately after thinking of it, I got angry with myself told my ex (husband at the time) and my sister and my immediate family.  Never told my kids.  And I got someone to talk to about it.  My sister basically said, "If you ever call me and tell me what you plan to do again, I'm going to have the cops right on your doorstep."

My Dad said, "You've got to play this game of life as long as you can."
 

You know what?  I never looked back to that traumatic few weeks.  Okay, the weekend where I kind of thought about it.  And then the few weeks it took just to get past my anger for having the thoughts.

Nothing has ever again surfaced and I just decided at the time to change my life around and enjoy every beautiful day as it comes.  Life is short, but why end it early if you don't have to?
 

I didn't want anyone to have to be dressing up for my funeral and I plan to be dancing with my kids at their weddings.  I've got four kids, a new boyfriend (over a year since we met), very good friends with my ex and his family, a great family clan, one self published book and many more to come with ebooks with Kindle Publishing.  
 

Hopefully, The Glorious Money Tree (first in a children's fantasy/adult novel trilogy) will be done by next year and will be published.
 

It's an awesome story about a little girl, Sally Driscoll who hatches an idea to gather coins from all of her friends and together they plant them to grow a money tree.  All of the characters in the book, including the adults have stories to contribute to the fairies, elves, goblins, angels, mermaids, mother nature, etc... as they all have met them.  There's good and bad magical creatures.  And there is also tragedy that will strike someone and Sally is going to wish that the money tree would grow the money.  Throughout the novels, there will be lots of obstacles, challenges and changes, some romance, good family values and thoughts on raising children, and ultimately all the characters will have to decide whether or not they want to hold onto the magic.
 

Now, think about this.  If I had indeed decided to end my life (so thankful each and every day I didn't), do you think this novel, and all the other novels, artwork, knitting, sewing, all my endeavors would have even come into existence?  They wouldn't because I would have ended things and I wouldn't even be here to tell you all of my stories about my life, here, on my blog,  The Authentic Life    http://jennyjofaypaperdolls.blogspot.com/ , in my published novel, or anywhere else where I now have chosen to share all my thoughts and opinions withyou all.
 

I am perhaps somewhat like an open book (although I still have things I would take to my grave), because I think it is important to share and get it out there.  I figure that if I share what I have been through, even the mistakes I have made, if I can help someone else climb out of the struggles with their day, then I am happy.
 

I care what people think, but I live for the moment, not in the past.  Every thing is a memory and I keep the good and discard the bad.
 

Personally, I love waking up early each day and having lots of time to spend with my children, family, friends, my boyfriend, and anyone else that enters my life.  I'm a 5:30 - 6am riser and I end my evenings with a cool movie and time out around 11pm.  Last night, I watched The Birds.  Awesome movie.
 

I love having each new day to fulfill all my dreams.  I've got three novels in progress.  The Glorious Money Tree trilogy, The Thief Who Wouldn't Learn, and Red Ribbons the sequel to my first published novel.  I've got more novels in my head, three or four other novels that were done years ago and need editing, artwork I would like to do more of, Gothic Paper doll line to someday create, more headbands and bracelets to knit, a yo yo blanket to finish someday and many other creative adventures.  
 

I want to live well over 100 so that I can accomplish all these things and more and leave a legacy for my children, two boys and two girls.  I've always been a family girl that grew out of a close knit family.  I knew all my second cousins growing up and my Nana's house was always occupied by lots of loved ones.
 

Who wants to kill themselves and leave everything behind is beyond me.  Even if you think you have it bad, think again as there is always someone worse off than you.  There has to be something good in your life worth living for.
 

Did you break up with someone?  Get off the ground and pick yourself off the ground and realize that you aren't the only one and there are millions of other people out there.  And do you need a man or woman to be happy?  Many people are by themselves and they still have a very fulfilled life.
 

Find it within yourself to be strong, to survive the days that make it seem like you can't go on.  You know better than that, and there is a mountain inside you that is telling you to climb it, look out to the vast beyond, and to see the bright sun that is your savior.
 

You are the most remarkable human being, because you are on this earth for a purpose.  To live, be loved, learn to grow and understand who you are and who you mean to the world.

Believe me when I say this, the world is a much better place with YOU IN IT!  Nobody wants to have to bury you before your time.  Do you realize when they have to do this, you are leaving the VOID that won't go away for one split second of their every waking day?
 

THINK ABOUT THAT AND THINK ABOUT IT A SECOND TIME.  IS THAT WHAT YOU REALLY WANT?  NO YOU DON'T.

STOP IT RIGHT NOW.

Jennifer Jo Fay

Copyrighted September 10, 2012

 

 

Note:  I don't always believe in re posting my writings.  I do re post my novel chapters at Triond to share with my writer friends there and I'm trying out Expertscolumns for some of the articles I write at Triond.

But this one, I think needs to be shared as much as possible as it is a very tragic issue and it's too bad to lose millions of good people because they thought they couldn't find a way out and wanted to go to God.

It's up to all of us to stop them from doing so.  Sometimes it is hard to know when to spot the signs.  Also, if it has happened and it's water under the bridge, you have to not feel guilty with yourself for not stopping it from happening.  You didn't see it coming. 

Suicide Is Never The Answer

Suicide is never the answer

Dear Suicidal Loved Ones,
We know you are thinking of it. And some of you we don't. But this is a message to stay in this world that is full of beautiful people. And you are one of them. We don't know all of you, but we feel your pain. We grieve for you. We are all here to listen to you if only you will let us in. You need us. Please reach out to us and let us breathe with you. We're always beside you waiting for your reply. If you don't try to let us hear your pain, we won't know you and you could end up on the other side. An angel waiting for us to visit and stay in the rooms we will dwell in. But we're not ready to go yet, we love it here on earth. Our roots are in deep and we wish we could stay forever. But death meets us all someday. Stupid God wasn't thinking when he gave us all a curfew. What a crapper.
So stay in our world awhile.
But we know you are in pain. You're probably feeling worthless, not loving yourself and feeling upset when you think everyone is against you and hating you. People aren't hating you. They are just sometimes being mean, because it is in their nature and they don't realize they are causing pain. And if you're feeling a lot of pain, it's probably because you need a positive change in your life. Guess what? Only you can turn yourself around. It is you that got yourself there and you need to try as hard as you can to get yourself out. There are so many of you out there that give up too soon. Some do, and guess who misses them. The family and friends and everyone that knew them. And it's those people who get angry for not seeing the bomb before it devastated them. And they will be scarred forever. Do you want your family and friends to be scarred like that? Do you want your children or spouse to find you dead? Think what it will do to them.
Then, the real plan to end my life began maybe four to six years ago. I started writing my first novel two years before the plan arrived. The novel was called Lustful Evangelean. Two years later, I finished it and had a local editor edit it. She gave me the five page evaluation., Well, it needed a lot of work and there were also some really good points to it. I started to edit it.
One night, when the plan arrived, I was sitting outside in the van waiting for my oldest son's junior high dance to end. It was a rainy night, and I watched the drops hit and roll down the windshield. I felt a wave of grief come over me. I suddenly thought, what if I never published my book? I became down in the dumps that night. And for a real stupid reason. I went in to collect my son who was busy gathering with all of his friends.
Inside my mind, I was hitting my mid life crisis. The kids were older and where was I headed?
Suicidal thoughts entered my clogged up brain. I brought my son home and silently thought of death. The next night, I went out to dinner with my husband and we went to see a movie. I struggled through dinner and put up my mask. He was completely unaware. Suddenly, I felt like I could end it. What was left for me? We left the restaurant and went to see a movie that was all about death. People kept getting shot. And I sat lifelessly through that movie. Before the movie started there was a little info about Keith Ledger. I think he had already committed suicide. I thought, wow if he could, so could I.
We came home that night and I had dreams of killing myself. This was over the weekend. I had a plan. I was going to take pills on Monday while my children were in school and my son was going to arrive home in the afternoon and find me dead. I had kind of thought of drowning in my tub and slicing myself, but knew I could never do that, but I thought I might be able to take some pills. Yeah. That was what I was going to do. Then over the weekend, I took longer naps and I panicked. I knew I didn't want to do it after all. And you know what stopped me?
My children.
I didn't want to see them scarred forever. After that, I got really angry with myself for thinking those thoughts. I told my husband and he wanted me to get some help. I told my sister, brother and father. They all had things to say to me. My father said never do that. He said, "Stay in this game called life as long as you can." He had other things to say, but that's the one that has stuck in my head.
Of course, my brother said to never do that.
My sister said the same thing. Then she said, "If you ever call me and say something about that again, I'm going to have the police right at your doorstep. We want you to be here to dance with your children when they get married. I don't want to be getting dressed for your funeral."
These things stuck and I am so glad they are my family. Your family will miss you when you choose to end your life. That week following my plan, I got so angry with myself. My kids preschool teacher took a trip with me to see my doctor to discuss it. She has been like a really close friend through my mother's death, my divorce and that. She is a really important friend even though I don't see her all the time.
There are also hotlines you can call to get help, before you decide to end it.
So, just know that you are never alone and there are people who are there to reach out to you.
And recently, I have felt that there may be one of our fellow hubbers that might be thinking of it. I don't know for sure as I don't know her. But I told her that we're all here to help her as we want her to stay in our community. She want's to escape into her cave for a while. But we all have told her, to do it if she must, but to come back. And we want her to leave her hubs up, because her writing is beautiful. She is like my yellow rose, and she is a beautiful person on the inside. She is loved and should know that she is never worthless.
So any of you that are reading this and deciding that you want your young life to be done, please don't do it. Our world is a much finer place with you in it. When you choose death over life we all die a little right along with you.


SO STAY AND CHOOSE LIFE!

Jennifer JO Fay

If anyone likes paperdolls or knows someone who likes paper dolls, check out my paperdoll post on each of my blogs where my paper dolls are for sale:

http://jennyjofaypaperdolls.blogspot.com/
http://jenniferpaperdolls.blogspot.com/  The Official Paper Doll Blog
http://mommiedearest101.blogspot.com/ 
http://yourstrulycraftygal.blogspot.com/
http://prolificpoetrychick.blogspot.com/