On world suicide prevention day, while the world is busy raising awareness, mother pens down the worst day of her life- the way she lost her daughter Dani, to suicide.
To most people, September is just another month with the back-to-school excitement, welcoming the fall season, and the season when people get back to sipping coffee. But for this mother, the month keeps her heart racing and occupied. Grief surrounds her, and he past trauma tightens her chest.
September is suicide prevention month, and for so many people out there, it is not just to raise awareness but to remind them of their personal experience. Imagine losing your child to suicide, and the rest of your life being bound to the grief that you could do nothing for them.
Dani died by suicide at 33 years old, and her mother has penned down how her daughter’s absence echoes louder than anything in this world.
She thinks of the moments with her that she could have lived, the texts she would have received, and the mother-daughter bond between them that died the day Dani committed suicide.
When the mother sees campaigns, hashtags, and reads stories of other people around her, her wounds that never healed are reopened all over again.
February 11, 2019, was the day she lost her daughter, and her world was split. Although she did everything to protect and save her daughter from her pain but now she is a mother who is trying to pass every day grieving the loss.
The mother has stated how, on World suicide prevention day, a quiet weekend when she and her husband came back from their favorite spot near Lake Erie, pretending everything was okay, the day, September 10, reminded them of whatever had happened.
Although they couldn’t save Dani, they believe that by checking up on loved ones, people can save each other.
They put in words a raw, unfiltered story of how Dani first tried committing suicide when she was just 15. For the next 18 years, life was all about checking up on their daughter and worrying; however, they could not ever talk about it openly because of the stigma. The world, after all, is not a safe space!
Imagine the fear the parents had to go through when they feared opening up because people would label their daughter as damaged.
Now, when everything had happened, her family started 33 Forever, a non-profit organization named after Dani. They aim to support people with struggling mental health, and for those silent sufferers who have no one to hold them and to listen.
For the parents, the month and the day itself would always be bittersweet and hurtful. However, if Dan’s story can make a person feel loved and seen, the pain will have a purpose at least.
Dani’s mother emphasizes listening to your loved ones and taking every little struggle people share with you seriously. Don’t be afraid to have uncomfortable conversations. They can save lives!