Saturday, March 23, 2024

988, the Crisis Hotline

That is the number of the national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can call, text, or click on the link to call up a chat window.

I get that someone who is in such a crisis probably isn't thinking it through. They are in real emotional pain and believe that their pain will stop if they're dead. It's a dark place to be.

Yet here is the thing: The pain doesn't go away. It gets transferred. It moves on to friends and family who will anguish over what they could have done, what signs they may have missed, and cycle through iterations of "if only I had..." It's even worse for children. It can seriously screw them up.

If life seems overwhelming and you see no way out, before you make a move to flick your off-switch, pick up the phone. Call 988 and talk it through.

8 comments:

  1. This post also serves as a humanity/compassion test. I'm betting that there will be a significant failure rate.

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  2. Thank you for posting this. We've lost 2 friends to suicide who I'd have never thought were suffering the way they were. Keep a close eye on those around you and make sure there's a safe space.

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  3. Kid I've know since he was a baby was just killed by the cops. He was in a crisis

    He died terrified ...

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  4. My wife had a friend who walked in on her husband pulling the trigger. Looked in his eyes, but too late. He may be at peace, but she will never ever find it now. Think of the pain you'd cause your loved ones.
    w3ski

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  5. My late b-i-l died basically as suicide by cop, and one of my ancestors hung himself.

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  6. I had two friends OD on fentanyl, and one at least I know was intentional. She was a mess, and I did what I could, but always wonder what else I could have done. Depression screws up your thought processes and gives you unreliable information that can be damn near impossible to find your way past. Any resources geared toward those folks at those critical times are literal life savers.

    -Doug in Sugar Pine

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  7. Thank you. I think a lot of us have been in this place. If it only helps one person, that would be great.

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  8. I still don't even know how to spell fentanyl. Most people I know, they say fentanol. I think they they are killing themselves because they have lost hope. We are not encouraged to be hopeful. If you look around in that world, there is not much to be hopeful about.
    Me, I have traditional gay values. I am not going to let them drive me to suicide. Not today.

    ReplyDelete

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