26 First Person: Support for Suicidal Thoughts and Actions

BY TERESA SMEIGH

Editor’s Note: This chapter contains a discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide, please

• Call or text the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988
• Go to 988Lifeline for additional resources.

Suicide is a permanent solution to what, with the proper help, could be a short-term situation. It needn’t be permanent. Seek the help and support you need.

When I attempted suicide, I caught my support system off guard, including my doctors and psychiatric nurse. I had kept my feelings to myself. I survived the next day, so I called my kids and had them all crying. My daughter, the nurse, immediately took control and took me to the ER.

I went into the hospital voluntarily and out of that came the promise to never try that again, and that I would tell someone if I was feeling suicidal thoughts.

I was still thinking about it, but I kept thinking about them all crying. I didn’t want to do that to them. It made me think twice about trying again. I went into the hospital voluntarily and out of that came the promise to never try that again, and that I would tell someone if I was feeling suicidal thoughts.

On a later occasion, I was having severe hallucinations, delusions and suicidal thoughts. I kept my promise and told my son, who made sure I got to the hospital. I earned myself a new specifier of psychotic features to go along with my diagnosis of bipolar disorder type 1.

My therapist kept in touch with my daughter to find out how I was. I told my psychiatric nurse that I had been in the hospital, but the medications they gave me were messing me up and I needed to see her as soon as possible. A medication change was necessary. She listened to me and agreed.

My family came to visit me and so did my best friend. I even had an aunt come in. Most people had no visitors at all. They had no support. Support is necessary to keep you from going through with suicidal thoughts.

I know people who go through suicide attempts over and over just so they can have some support of some kind. Their family doesn’t care. They have no friends or the wrong kind of friends.

So many more people could be saved if they just had the support of people who care.

I feel so sorry for people who have no support. So many more people could be saved if they just had the support of people who care. Even the support of someone they don’t know. I have convinced people to go to the hospital and it didn’t take a major battle. I would venture most of the time that we all want help and someone to take an interest in our feelings and take the time to talk about it or drive them to the emergency room even. Show someone you care today!

About the Author

Teresa Smeigh lives in Deptford, New Jersey. She is a mental health blogger and a mental health advocate. Teresa has lived with bipolar disorder since she was a child, but she was not officially diagnosed until a breakdown several years ago forced her to seek help. She also suffers from anxiety, panic attacks, OCD, PTSD, and was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder after a recent hospital stay due to a failed suicide attempt. She is currently fairly stable due to her medical cocktail including an antidepressant, an anti-psychotic and an anti-anxiety combination, but this took many years of trying and failing before finding one that she could tolerate. Most of her life she has been without medications and that caused problems in her home and work life.