Suicide Prevention gives you balls, when you actually need ice cream.

Suicide Prevention gives you balls, when you actually need ice cream.

It was a mere 36 hours before my blog posting was due for Freshman Seminar and I still hadn't gone to an event. Luckily my friend, Dung, saved me. She was going to a suicide prevention event and I tagged along. Once we arrived I was bombarded with all types of statistics about suicide in college. One man said that "8 percent of students in college have thought seriously about suicide." It was at that very moment I realized I was part of the lucky 92%. Another woman told me about how she is trying to break down the stigma associated with mental health. She told me that the stigma is that we look down upon people that have mental health issues, but when someone has a physical issue most people are understanding. She told me her goal was to get people to think of mental health in the same way we think about physical health now, and to understand that there is nothing wrong or weak about asking for someone's help. She then offered me a red stress ball, which I politely declined. I also didn't understand how that small squishy ball would prevent someone from committing suicide, since a majority of suicide victims commit suicide as a result of depression rather than stress or anger. I think a pint of ice cream would be more helpful at that point then a cheap red ball made in china. However, I learned a lot from the experience and  now have a new outlook on suicide. I will be now be keeping my eyes peeled for those 8% that struggle, and hand them some ice cream when and if I find them.