Editor’s Note: Cecilia Lemus, 15, is a freshman at Pleasant Creek School. She chose to attend Pleasant Creek to accelerate her graduation from high school. She says her dream is to become an author, a therapist, or a school counselor. She says she loves writing because it gets her mind off other things. She says, “My goals in life are to graduate from high school, go to college and accomplish my dreams.”
By Cecilia Lemus
Pleasant Creek School
Approximately every 40 seconds someone dies of suicide worldwide. You never know who the next person is going to be. Look at the people around you. Do they look happy, sad, mad or how do they look? I assume that you’re going to think that’s how they are. In fact, that probably isn’t how they are because many people fake smiles to hide their pain.
Now, you may be curious if the people around you are suicidal or even have a plan to kill themselves. However, if you know the warning signs of suicide and you see signs in someone, you should definitely ask them, or even ask the people around you.
Maybe when you get a chance say, “Hey, you thinking of suicide?” Don’t be scared and don’t think you are putting it in their head because that is false information. In fact, when asking someone about suicide, they are more likely to open up if you ask them directly.
Many people think people want to kill themselves because they want attention. Or they want to kill themselves because they are selfish. These two myths are ridiculous, because no, they aren’t seeking attention or being selfish. If you’re suicidal you are probably in a lot of pain. I want to ask you, how is a person seeking attention by killing themselves? By having a funeral, being in a coffin dead and people filing past, full of tears, because they are gone? I don’t see that as attention seeking. I see that person as having been in a lot of emotional pain he or she couldn’t handle.
I want to let you guys know that you aren’t alone. I am not going to sit here and say it’ll be okay, because your mind right now is probably telling you it won’t. I will tell you that at the end of all this, you can change someone’s life by sharing your experience.
