The walk and resulting donations are a benefit for the non-profit American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. A few of the many purposes of the AFSP include the support of scientific studies to improve the understanding of suicides and their prevention, educating the public, and providing programs and resources for survivors of suicide loss and people at risk.
Here’s a statistic I just read the other day: in 2010, there were more American soldiers (468, including enlisted soldiers and veterans) that took their own lives than those killed in combat (462). The same with 2009 according to Congressional Quarterly.
The co-worker I referenced above lost her son to suicide while he was serving in Iraq in 2007. I’ll likely never understand how she feels, what her and her family have been through, and what they continue to go through. I can only imagine that there is nothing worse. As parents, our kids are supposed to outlive us by a generation, not the other way around.
Some of Team CRANE getting ready for the Out of the Darkness Walk
During the walk around Lake Padden in Bellingham, I wondered how we can have a national dialogue about cancer, heart disease, and so on…..but suicide and mental illness seem to get relatively little visibility. This is despite the fact that suicides claim 34,000 lives per year in this country. And like cancer and heart disease it doesn’t discriminate between rich or poor, black or white, male or female, young or old.
It seems like a tall order in the face of budget reductions and cutbacks but we should be as aggressive about identifying symptoms of depression and mental illness as we are about screening for cancer. Admittedly, it’s far more challenging to understand such symptoms but the human cost of not doing so is devastating.
I won’t pretend that this blog has a big audience but if someone who reads this volunteers their time or makes a donation in some way to the AFSP, then this post has been well worth my time.
Finally, and speaking of blogs, I’d like to give a shout out to a site created by an acquaintance I’ve known since 1974. She does a remarkable job of telling her own story of battling mental illness as well as commentary on current events related to the topic. It can be found at:
7 comments:
Nice job Joe; keep up the good work.
As someone who has family members dealing with depression, talking about it is the best way to stay involved. Thanks for the post, Joe.
Well said Joe I was so proud to have you join my team and I appreciate you spreading the word about AFSP. It has not been an easy road and admitedly I was one of the uneducated before I my son was lost to suicide. It was impossible for me to see it coming him being in Iraq and I honestly believe no one there could have ever seen it coming either. That is why I feel Suicidal thoughts need to be addressed and for people to know its ok to ask for help. Lets get rid of the stigma surrounding suicide and begin saving lives! Like the banner at the walk said "Suicidal behaviour is the result of a medical condition. It is not a sign of weakness of character."
Great job Joe. Out of the Darkness was a very worthy cause. I'm glad I was able to be a member of "Team Crane". As an employee at a medical clinic, I have taken many classes to learn how to help those in crisis who may be thinking of suicide. In the case of my nephew I didn't have that chance. If he had only felt he could open up to someone, he may be with us today. We all need to stay envolved with our loved ones and comunicate, comunicate, comunicate.
One of the side effects of the medication I was taking while I was psychotic had the side effect of making me want to commit suicide. Had I had the means to do so, I would have done it in a heartbeat. My point is that the medication given me unbalanced my brain chemistry so that suicide was a seriously considered option. After they changed my meds, that symptom went away. It goes to show you that it truly is a chemical imbalance of the brain.
Thanks for all of the comments. This was a departure from what I usually write about so it was important to me that I was accurate and treated it with the passion and respect that the subject deserves.
Great job supporting a worthy cause, Joe.
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