About three days ago I saw what seemed to be a suicide note from one of my followers, and after reading it sent him a message both privately and publicly to hang in there.
I do this a lot; and some of you have received random messages and phone calls from me whenever I can or feel inclined to.
But more than anything it’s the comments from his friends that worried me; some mocked him, others experessed disappointment in his inability to “tough it out” and the worst were those who encouraged him to do it.
Only a few thought it wise to say kind words or try to reach out to him and encourage him not to.
For days I’ve montored his page and wondered about if he’s ok, got the help he needed and if he actually went through with it.
I even wondered how the friends who’d made fun of him would feel if he’d actually killed him self.
Well he did.
There’s so much we don’t understand about depression, mental health and the people who suffer through it; it’s easy for us to think them weak or stupid because we presume they’re just people not “tough enough” for this life.
But the truth is we all have those days when we feel the weight of the world on our shoulders, days when we’re unhappy for no reason, days when we feel like everyone’s against us, and days when we can’t even put into words how we feel.
Days like that all we need is someone to talk to, someone’s who’s willing to listen and if possible get us professional help.
People who commit suicide are just crying out for help and it’s up to us to hear their silent cry.
Unfortunately recent events have led me to believe that we’ve become a society that lacks empathy or an understanding of mental health. And because of this we sit by, make fun, humiliate and further kick people when they’re down.
Dear Kofi, I’m so sorry we didn’t hear you on time, I’m sorry on behalf of those that laughed at you, they didn’t know any better, and I’m sorry that you felt pushed to do this. May your death encourage us all to do better and look out for each other more.
Below are screen shots from comments I and others wrote on his wall leading up to his death.
** NOTE : Dear Dia is still open to all. I created it on my blog for people to share their stories or what they’re going through anonymously.
Just being able to share your story sometimes helps, and thankfully so many people leave kind words of support and in some cases professionals reach out to help. Send you story to contact@lydiaforson.com