YouAreEnough

IT TAKES A VILLAGE
*Sensitive Content*

Whenever I hear of someone dying by suicide I am quickly hit with a range of emotions that are very difficult to talk about. I have spoken many times about my emotions surrounding the death of a celebrity by suicide and how it pertains to my mental health, but when it takes place right in my own community, well that’s a whole other story which is exactly what happened this past week, twice.

For the majority of my life I have lived in a community that is particularly Jewish and it is also where I knew I wanted to raise my children so that they too would feel the same connection and familiarity as I always had. I also felt that in doing so my kids would feel a sense of belonging, a sense of support and a sense of comfort which I truly believe they do. While at the same time still ensuring that they know there is a whole other world outside of their community and that they learn from a young age the importance of being inclusive, being tolerant and being compassionate towards others.

When someone passes away it is always sad whether or not you know the person intimately or you hear about it through your community as it probably will have a great impact on many people you know. Either way it is difficult sometimes to know just what to say or how to react to their pain and sadness. Now imagine for a moment how you may feel when you learn that their loved one’s death was by suicide and the stigma that follows such a tragic and sudden death.

Their loved ones are not only left with the ‘normal’ pain and sadness related to their grief and loss but they are more than likely also facing a whole other range of emotions too. They are probably undergoing feelings of anger, guilt, shock & confusion as well as feelings of shame, judgment and alienation because of the stigma attached to suicide by society. If their loved one had died from a terminal illness, a tragic accident or even old age, they would not be left with a shadow cast upon their grieving process due to that same stigma.

They say that it takes a village to raise a child which to me is an analogy signifying the true importance of community. It reassures us that no matter what, we will always feel a sense of belonging, a sense of support and a sense of comfort. And when someone is grieving the loss of a loved one by suicide just knowing that they have an entire community assuring them that they do belong, that they are supported and that you are there to comfort them is the perfect way to help take the stigma out of the equation altogether.

But boy do I wish that it was that simple; that I could just snap my fingers and the stigma surrounding mental illness and suicide would be gone forever. To know that I wasn’t being judged or alienated anymore for my illness or that a loved one left behind after a suicide, who is filled with great pain and sadness, wouldn’t have to live with the added emotions of shame and guilt often brought about by society.

I am surrounded by a great community and so is my family, it’s that same great community I have lived in most of my life who have been providing me and my family with a sense of belonging, an overwhelming sense of support and a powerful sense of comfort but like any other community it’s still far from perfect. I can still see the intolerance, I can still hear the indifference and I can still feel the exclusion and it breaks my heart knowing what others have to endure too, which is why so many people choose to suffer in silence and why so many loved ones feel so alone. But it shouldn’t have to feel this way, not when you have an entire village behind you, not if each and every member of your village makes the change together.

CALL ME, MAYBE?

I’m in a bit of a catch 22 situation.  You see, my cellphone is my lifeline to the outside world.  I use it for everything, everything that is except what a telephone was first invented for; talking on it.  Of course we all know that telephones, or cell phones to be more specific are no longer just for making and receiving phone calls, instead today many of us use it to message our friends and family, play games, take selfies, listen to music or follow and update our social media platforms.  So with cell phones having so many valuable benefits in making our lives that much easier, tell me then what is the point of actually needing to use it to receive or make a phone call?

We still have a landline in our home and at least once a month for like 5 years now we discuss cancelling it because we never use it.  It rings several times a week, yet we never answer it as our caller ID (that’s if I even bother to look at it) tells us that it’s someone looking to clean out our ducts or that someone in our home has skipped a class at school (and since we only have one child left in high school, the process of elimination is pretty simple) or that the IRS is sending out a warrant for our arrest if we don’t pay them the millions of dollars they claim we owe and over time even our friends and family have stopped calling us on our landline.

I know there are times when you need to actually pick up the phone to speak with another human being and that it’s a lot more intimate when doing so as well as faster than texting someone.  I also know that sometimes you are not able to text someone if you need to book an appointment or you are driving home from work and just want to catch up with a friend while you crawl through traffic, but you see, making and receiving phone calls causes me severe anxiety and panic (okay, to be fair, everything causes me severe anxiety and panic including having to send a text message to anyone).

But guess what?  I’m not alone in my hesitation of having any direct contact over the phone with another human being.  When my phone rings my anxiety level reaches new heights thinking that something is wrong with one of my kids or husband (unless they are all tucked into bed) and if I see from my caller ID that it is actually one of them calling, my anxiety turns to immediate panic.  Ask any of them what the first words are out of my mouth when I answer the phone, I will give you a hint, it’s not hello!  They will instantly answer that question by telling you that my immediate knee jerk reaction is to say “what’s wrong?”  Not to worry though, they rarely call me unless they really need something, otherwise they know it’s best to text me.

To many of you reading this I’m sure you are thinking WTH?  How could talking on the phone cause someone severe anxiety or even panic?  Well I wish I understood more about all the crazy shit my illness causes me to do but for now just take my word for it because the symptoms are real, just as real as when I have to send out a text message or even when I receive them.  The shaking, the nausea, the heart palpitations, the racing thoughts are all real and even somewhat terrifying as the anticipation, reluctance and expectations that come along with it have also affected many relationships in my life.

Even something as simple as making a phone call to a stranger or having to call and make an appointment at a doctor’s office can take days for me to complete such a simple task.  I put it in my calendar on my phone as a reminder that I have to make the call and after moving the reminder over to the next day hoping that it will get easier as time goes by, I suddenly realize a week or two has gone by and I have yet to be able to complete the task.

Technology today has allowed us many more conveniences in life but at the same time it has also created many more avoidances too.  It’s so easy nowadays to shut off from the world with the touch of an off button, a mute button or by simply just dropping your cell phone in your purse at the end of a long work day and not retrieving it again until the next morning.  Until a few years ago I loved to talk on the phone but convenience, avoidance and severe anxiety seem to be my way to dodge the awkward silence, the disapproval or judgment in one’s voice and come on, who here really wouldn’t prefer receiving a funny meme or a cute emoji anyway?