well, lemme see. i thought about killing myself every day from the time i was about 10 until i was about 25 or a few years after that. i finally got some effective treatment for major depression at about 25 which started to relief my mood disorder after about 6 months and i began to get days - just days, mind you, here and there - when i felt better. then weeks, then months, then years. now, when i don't know how to cope with something, i still get suicidal thoughts, but i rarely (not, never, but rarely) get that way because of depression. it's almost like a default mode for my brain. if i don't know how to cope, my first thought is always one of escape, and suicide is the ultimate back door. mostly, though, i don't actually want to or feel like acting on it, or even feel that depressed; it's just where my brain goes when i'm afraid.
now, there was a time not too long ago when i was very depressed and had a plan and means, but that time has passed and left me feeling stronger, calmer, and more resilient. finding WP has been a blessing as well.
personally i think the worst thing you can do for someone who feels suicidal is try to convince them that their life is worth living, that their pain will get better, etc. if you haven't been there, you have absolutely no idea what sense of desperation drives someone to consider killing themselves, how bad it really is. i mean c'mon. it's the biggest fear most people have - dying. the fear of being destroyed is *one* of the most traumatic experiences you can have. do you really think all someone who is considering offing themselves needs is encouragement or a reality check? the psychic pain is beyond being endurable. BS it's a selfish act. personally i think it's the self-centeredness of grief of other people that dictate that point of view.
it's a desperate act, the ultimate desperation. most of us in that place just need to be heard & loved. we are in pain beyond what you can possibly imagine. i'm not speaking for everyone, i just know when someone tries to talk me out of being hopeless it just drives me further into it. it's very isolating and feels very judgemental.
and the truth is when pain is that bad, sometimes suicide really feels like the only option. i'm not saying it is, but it sure feels that way. if you can't speak to someone from a place of true understanding, and you still want to help, find someone who can understand and leave them the f**k alone. you will do more harm than good.
before i got real help with my depression, i literally had no idea what it felt like *not* to be that depressed. i'd been there that long. i had no conscious un-depressed memory. i'd been there at least since i was five years old. you could tell me life would eventually get better, but i had no frame of reference for that. no concept of what that might be like. i literally sought help only because i was terrified of dying and the desire to die was becoming overwhelming. i knew that was irreversible. i didn't want to go there, i just didn't know what else to do or how to continue to live. i had seen multiple therapists and i sought one out one last time, and i'll never forget sitting in her office and having her look me in the eye and say, 'I know you feel like you can't get better, but i've been there myself and i'm telling you, you can do it. you can change your life.' she was the first one not to talk to me out of her education but out of her life experience. she was the first person who literally had walked the talk. and because of her, i didn't give up. i had no idea why i was hanging on, but i trusted her enough to believe when i couldn't even belief in myself or my ability to heal. and eventually it did work, and i'm very grateful for that experience.
i can still vividly remember my very first not-depressed moment. it was literally like feeling the sun come out for the first time. i had a friend tell me once as an adult she wasn't re-habilitated, she was just habilitated. that's how i felt. i wasn't given back something, i didn't recover anything. i got it for the first time in my conscious memory. that is a pretty miraculous experience and one only someone who has been there will ever really have the perspective to understand.
i treasure every day i am not depressed. true depression is a soul killer if there ever was one. i lived in fear of returning there every day for decades. now i've found i can go there and come back, so i'm not so afraid of it. i know when i can bounce back and when i need extra help.
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161 Aspie / 51 NT - Aspie Quiz (very likely an aspie)
36 - AS Quotient
115 aloof, 123 rigid, 89 prag - Aut/BAP
24 - HSP / ADD Quiz- 41, Inattention: 24, Hyperactive/Impulsive: 17
"Odd and different is beautiful" -- Tyra Banks