Exposing an Unknown Population: Those Who Are Almost Left Behind After an Individual Attempts Suicide
Without naming names, when you hear the phrase “suicide attempt,” who comes to mind? I imagine more than one person entered your stream of consciousness. And was the person a celebrity? I know for myself, when I hear these words, several famous people come to mind. The news these days seems to be riddled with the words “suicide attempt.” Regardless, when we hear these words, we are reminded yet again that suicide is prevalent whether it’s completed or not.
Something else is prevalent—but not talked about. Who, during the moment of crisis, finds the person after they’ve made an attempt?
Whether or not the witness is an emergency responder, a friend, a loved one or a co-worker, this person(s) is quite possibly hurled into a mental health crisis of his or her own.
I know because I’ve been there.
My daughter is a suicide survivor. And I’m also a survivor. I survived the moment I discovered my girl after her last near fatal suicide attempt, but it came at a cost. The moment I found her—dying—I was hurled into an abyss called PTSD.
That’s how I ended up in a bottomless chasm. But did I get out?
My friend, I can tell you this much. I crawled my way out—word by word. And the result is my debut novel released March 2019 titled The Luggage Drop—a compelling, heart-wrenching, true to life story about PTSD and suicide, the enduring power of unconditional love, and the struggle to overcome that which consumes us, and the paperback is available here: amazon.com/author/stacyking.
Interestingly enough, because of I stigma, I’ve been pretty quiet about the release of the book. But today, I’m busting through the stigma, and I do hope you check it out. It’s currently free to download for Kindle Unlimited members and will be temporarily free to everyone March 27, 2019. And if you could leave an honest review on Amazon, that would help me out immensely as an author who is trying to shed light on an often shunned topic, a topic that seems taboo and hopeless. And let me know what you think of the of ending. Your feedback is important to me.
And may we start the conversation about those who are almost left behind and come together to combat, and put an end to, this devastating health problem called suicide. We can start by sharing the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number: 1-800-273-8255.