It’s Over, I Quit…
When the world was getting ready to welcome the new year 2020, a 16-year-old girl was huddled in a corner of a room, weighed down by her life decisions. She struggled in her 11th grade and didn't get the position she wanted as a "school counselor", making her feel like everything in her life was falling apart. She felt utterly alone, shattered, and overwhelmed. On the night of December 31st, 2019, she was on the brink of taking a drastic step to end it all…
That was heavy, wasn’t it? Maybe some of you might even think it's some storyline right out of a novel. But no it isn’t, I would like to stop you right there, because this was a true event that occurred. Their parent intervened, gave them the support and love needed. Now it's safe to say that they are happy and healthy after going through that night. The 10th of September also known as “World Suicide Prevention Day’’, is not a day to celebrate “being alive’’ but a day to “spread awareness about suicide’’.
You might expect this blog post to be like any other self-help blog post to make you more aware or sensitised towards suicide. But you know what, I am more inclined towards unconventional methods when it comes to writing. So if you have similar ideas as well why don’t you hop on the ride? And together let us go through each chapter to learn more about this day, shall we? So class, today we have a new subject being introduced called as TW- “SUICIDE AWARENESS’’, if you could just go through our brief index below it would be great. So starting with the 1st of the 4 chapters…
It's fascinating how in the English-speaking world, nearly everything has its own history, including words. Take the word "suicide," for example, which originated from two Latin terms "sui" meaning "self" and "caedere" meaning "the act of slaying." Suicide is considered the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Over the years, various reasons, such as poor health, loss of income, or intense emotional turmoil, have prompted people to contemplate this act. In the past, individuals who felt disconnected from society or were considered different often felt pressured to conform to societal norms, which could contribute to the decision to take their own lives.
I genuinely wonder how William Shakespeare, glorified suicide in most of his plays, let it be in “Julius Caesar” or even the famous “Romeo and Juliet’’. This glorification was also applied in the Indian contexts in the past. There were certain situations wherein “sacrificing oneself’’ was considered to be the duty of a “wife’’(self-immolation/sati). With reformation during the Independence era, a new era emerged where suicide was criminalised and made punishable under the law. Though it tried to prevent suicide attempts, it still did nothing to address the underlying cause.
Thankfully, by 2017, suicide was decriminalised and India introduced steps to address the cause of such acts by mandating psychiatric referrals as a treatment plan. That law shows us that India has progressed a lot when it comes to suicide prevention. That was it for the first chapter students, if anyone has any doubts do let us know by the end of the class.
Moving onto the 2nd chapter of this subject, "Why is this day significant in the Indian context?" Before I answer that question, I wanted to point out the story of Joy Lobo, the sunshine boy from the famous Hindi movie "3 Idiots". I still remember watching that movie for the first time as a kid and always feeling stuck at this one scene where he writes "I quit" on his wall and ends his life. Movies are a reflection of reality. Joy Lobo’s story mirrors the news flashes almost every other day on how either a student, a farmer or a lost soul feel ending their life is the only way out of a problem they are facing. The year 2021 was considered to be India's worst year, as there was a sudden spike in the suicide rates especially in states such as Maharashtra (22,207 suicides), Bengal (13,500), and Karnataka (13,056), among others. With the numbers presented in front of you, I want to pinpoint the different aspects that are contributing to it, let it be age, gender, socioeconomic status etc. By acknowledging these issues and working to create a more supportive and inclusive society, we can curate steps towards preventing further tragedies.
With all the information provided, I believe that most of you have grasped the main idea for today. It's important to understand that this day is recognized globally, which means it's a global pandemic. ‘World Suicide Prevention Day’ aims to prevent potential "suicidal attempts" by raising awareness about this issue. It draws attention to the fact that we let people around us know we are available to support each other during challenging times. So, let's start by discussing it more, ending the stigma surrounding the topic, educating and supporting one another, and using this day to promote compassion, love, and empathy.
If you thought that this topic or even this class had been overwhelming for many of you, I empathise with you. I recently came across a beautiful quote: “When our body goes through a discomforting situation, that’s when we know that we are truly growing’’. For our last chapter in this subject, I want to give you a simple yet meaningful homework. As human beings, we often feel stuck and want to achieve everything overnight, but I want you to pause and think of the things you are grateful for and that keep you going every day. If something you are grateful for is a person, a thing, or even an animal, don’t forget to thank them at least once a day. Finally, if you are struggling with self-harm thoughts, please seek help. Because life is more beautiful with you in it… (With that, we come to the end of this class. Thank you for being such wonderful students).
