I count all of you as my quilting family and I see so much warmth offered to everyone in time of need and I thought I'd share a little bit of my day with you. Today is the 4th anniversary of my brother's "Angel Day"- the day he went to heaven after committing suicide.
It is and always will be a difficult day for me. I loved my baby brother so much and I knew he had mental illness issues for several years that would ebb and flow. I now know the "why" and the turmoil he had leading up to his death.
This isn't "feel sorry for me", it's about recognizing mental illness and raising awareness that there's help out there for those who need it. I've chosen to take a life altering moment and educate myself and make it my "soap box" to stand on. It is a sensitive topic but shouldn't be ignored.
So why am I writing this- to stop everyone else from becoming one of me- a survivor of suicide. Every 16 minutes there's a suicide and every 17 minutes there's another me- a survivor. I hate this statistic, but it sticks with me, day in and day out. I have such a headache today of trying to be brave and act like nothing's wrong but as the day has gone on, I'm crying more and feeling the loss more and more.
Well, need to wipe the tears and nose, get rid of the red eyes and get back to work. Just needed to make sure I get my message out there- I hope someday my pain can mean someone will get help. If you want to learn more go to ASFP.org and learn some interesting facts.
Thanks for listening.
Barb