My Winter Ghost

Today is one of the most important days in the year to me: it’s National Suicide Prevention Day, Sept 10.

I will always be a HUGE advocate for fighting depression, suicide, and abuse. My family has a long history of depression and suicide.

My great grandfather committed suicide. My mom’s uncle also committed suicide. My mom was suicidal as a teen and 20 something. My youngest sister battled with suicide for many years as a young teen. And my middle sister fought back thoughts of suicide thanks to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, #afsp.

For those of you who battle with depression, I FEEL YOU. It’s a daily struggle for me, no matter how many amazing my career my appear, no matter how cute my puppy is or how in love I am! None of those things are a part of depression. Gratefulness, love, and joy can actually happen at the same time as depression. I just have a tendency toward it and that’s a fact. BUT I choose to believe because of seeing the immense highs and lows in my life already that things WILL always get better! And that I can initiate change always. You are allowed to find optimism even while suffering through depression. Even when you don’t think you have a choice in suffering, you STILL DO have a choice in other areas of life that can pull you away from suffering. Believe in your own secret power. It’s there waiting for you to acknowledge it.

Today, my mom is so incredibly grateful to be alive to see where her life has taken her, from an incredibly abusive family as a child, her parents dying in high school leaving her as an orphan and many battles after, to now a joyful woman in her 60s with a loving family! You can reach that point too!

My family and I all thank the @afspnational for putting together walks for suicide prevention every year. My middle sis and I participated last years walking 18 miles through the night. And it’s what made her even in her darkest moment last year, choose seeking help and sharing her pain rather than pursuing suicide. Knowledge, love, and prevention WORK. I see it. ❤️