What the World Needs Now
This is not a sexy post...This is a sad and sickening post. This week, Sept 9-15, is Suicide Prevention Week.
I read and I hear about suicide far too often -- even once is far too often. I have had friends who have lost family members and spouses to suicide, I have lost friends to suicide, it is a sad and devastating way to lose someone. Any life lost to suicide is tragic. Most recently it seems the number of children under the age of 15 committing suicide are rising. The vast majority of these young people taking their own lives is due to bullying in some capacity, whether in person, through social media outlets such as Snapchat and other types of cyber bullying -- even right on Facebook.
As stated on bullyingstatistics.org, “Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people, resulting in about 4,400 deaths per year, according to the CDC. For every suicide among young people, there are at least 100 suicide attempts. Over 14 percent of high school students have considered suicide, and almost 7 percent have attempted it. Bullying victims are between 2 to 9 times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims, according to studies by Yale University. A study in Britain found that at least half of suicides among young people are related to bullying 10 to 14 year old girls may be at even higher risk for suicide, according to the study above. According to statistics reported by ABC News, nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or victims of bullying, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of bullying.”
There are unfortunately thousands to choose from, but I chose this particular young man’s story to share with you in hopes that you can talk to your children and teach them that bullying is wrong, that it can hurt and even kill others. He was only 9 years young. He took his life after coming out at school as being gay and being bullied and tormented and was even told to kill himself. A kidshealth.org reports, sexual bullying has become a leader in bullying that destroys and often ends lives.
We are all human. We are all vulnerable. Sex is one of the highest vulnerabilities we all experience in our lives. We must do our part in not only helping each other to feel good about ourselves, but actually accepting each other for our individuality and sexual preferences/orientations and embrace each other, not bully each other, and never hate one another. THIS HAS TO STOP! Please do your part and be part of the solution, not part of the problem. There is no room for bullies. Our world simply cannot afford bullies. If you need help, if you need someone to talk to, if you need to save your own life, please call: 800-273-TALK (8255) right now. Please let me know if there's a topic you'd like me to discuss in future posts and I gladly will. We are in this together and there is beauty in all of us!
💋,
