Suicide prevention essay winner: 'Talk about it'

Lauren Weber, a junior at St. Charles Catholic High School, won the first place prize of $1,000 from the Amitie suicide prevention memorial foundation for her following essay on breaking the stigma around suicide. She wrote it in her Intermediate Composition class.

 

“One of my teachers encouraged us to do it,” Lauren said. “It’s a topic that I think a lot of people don’t really think about. I tried to make some points from a teenager’s point of view and what they may be going through. It’s such a deep topic that a lot of people just try to avoid it. If it is brought up, it’s hard to talk about. I hope this makes people more comfortable to talk about it.”

By Lauren Weber
St. Charles Catholic High School

The world is constantly encountering many different issues, but some are worse than others. One of the biggest and most difficult problems in today’s society is suicide. It is such a dark and sensitive topic to discuss simply because many people have been affected by it.

Although hard, suicide is something that needs to be addressed. Breaking the stigma around suicide is an easy start in overcoming this problem, and it will also bring other benefits. We can educate people on the causes and effects of suicide, create awareness of different forms of help and become actively involved in suicide prevention. 

A reason why suicide is such a huge problem is simply because people do not know enough about the causes and effects. Schools may talk about the issue in classrooms or occasionally give presentations to students, but typically it is not discussed often. Bullying is a leading cause of suicide, and children/adolescents are not taught about how serious this can be. By being better informed, people would have a clearer understanding of how to handle different situations regarding suicide. This would allow everyone to realize that the things we do can determine the actions someone else may perform – a start to suicide awareness.

People may think of the world as a place full of happiness and joy in order to give themselves peace, but unfortunately that is not the case for everyone. Many struggle with depression and anxiety, often leading to suicidal thoughts if not addressed properly. This can be caused from problems at home, at school or many different things. No matter what the situation, people need to know that many forms of help are available. Some are just afraid to ask for support, fearing embarrassment or fear. 

An important thing people can do to stop suicide is to help those who may encounter suicidal thoughts feel as though they belong and are not alone. By doing so, these individuals will not feel as shameful and may even talk to others about their struggles, which can tremendously help change the stigma around suicide.

Many people, especially those impacted by suicide, take action to promote suicide prevention. People who suffer from suicidal thoughts need to see that others truly care for them and want them to get better. Becoming actively involved in suicide prevention is easy to do and can bring peace and relief to those struggling.

Suicide is such a dark topic, but ways to resolve the problem are plentiful and often simple. If everyone were to do one thing related to suicide prevention – making posters to hang up at a school or traveling to educate others about it – this issue could quickly be on its way to being settled. 

Instead of merely dwelling on negative issues, such as suicide, people should focus on fixing them. Changing the stigma around suicide starts with educating people on the causes and effects of suicide, making people aware of the different forms of available help and becoming actively involved in suicide prevention.