Just Listen

Here's some statistics:

• EVERY DAY there are approximately 11 youth suicides.
• EVERY 2 HOURS AND 11 MINUTES a person under the age of 25 completes suicide.
• Suicide is the third leading cause of death for teens.
• Suicide is second leading cause of death in colleges.
• For every suicide completion, there are between 50 and 200 attempts.
• CDC Youth Risk Survey: 8.5% of students in grades 9-12 reported a suicide attempt in the past year.
• 25% of high-school students report suicidal thoughts.
  
• The suicide attempt rate is increasing for youths ages 10-14.
• Suicide had the same risk and protective factors as other problem behaviors, such as drugs, violence, and risky sexual activities.
• A recent survey of high-school students found that almost 1 in 5 had seriously considered suicide; more than 1 in 6 had made plans to attempt suicide; and more than 1 in 12 had made a suicide attempt in the past year.

These literally shocked me. Here lately, God has really been pushing suicide awareness on my mind. I mean, a lot of people think, "Oh, none of my friends are suicidal! They'd tell me!" I am glad to say that I have never had a friend who has committed suicide, but that doesn't mean that I never will have one in the future. Hopefully, I can be the person that helps prevent it.

Something I've learned the hard way is that not everybody is what they seem. For all we know, someone who looks happy could be having a really really tough time at home. Or someone who has a genuine smile and laugh could really be dying inside. It really kills me, thinking that maybe someone I know could be going through an extremely tough time and I don't know about it. I don't want anybody to think that I won't care.

My biggest fear is that somebody will hurt themselves because I didn't notice warning signs earlier. A lot of people just need somebody to listen to them, and somebody to understand and not judge them. I've really been trying to become more of a listener and less of a talker, but it's kind of hard for me to just shut up and listen.

Love,
Kirstin