CW: Suicide
It’s World Suicide Prevention Day, and as such, it’s late in the day. I meant to write this much earlier, but it was one of those kinds of days. One of the biggest benefits of being able to slow down more is that it helps you notice people. And when you really, deeply notice people, sometimes you might discover pain and hardship that they’ve gotten really good at hiding.
You hear about “checking in on your people” a lot, but that can seem like an intimidating or awkward thing to do. Here are a few of the things I’ve learned about helping someone in a crisis:
Don’t assume life circumstances need to match a person’s emotional experience
Remember that crisis isn’t a fixed state, and a goal can simply be to buy time until it subsides
Don’t act as if you’ve got all the answers, but do a act as though you might’ve been the only one to notice or reach out
There’s lots more to be said about building a culture that stops suicide, and I recommend checking in with @afspnational @twloha or @yellowchaircollective for solid resources.
World Suicide Prevention Day
