TklE ClACliAMAS PRiNT
Touching Darkness
The air was violent
On that evening day
As I watched forty blue pills
Staring back at me.
Trying not to turn away,
I took their bitterness
Into my bitterness
And washed them down
With a carbonated drink.
I then went to bed.
To lay me down to sleep.
As I closed my eyes
To the imposing world,
I prayed that I would hot
pray,
And hoped that I would not
wake.
My thoughts were shadows,
My feelings were dust,
But something inside of me
Waiting for the sound
Of my door being opened,
And my rescuers charging
in.
When I could wait no longer,
When I knew that I must not
die,
I sat upright
And felt the pounding of my
heart.
Taking hope with every
breath,
I telephoned for help.
The embarrassment was al
most worse
Than the chemical numb
ness
That was holding my hands.
The waiting was long,
Because my minute? were
few.
When they arrived, there
were questions.
How could I answer for my
actions
When the reasons were no
longer there?
______ L
Opinion
WedNEsdAy, MAy 5, 2000
Prevent the pain: know the signs, stop suicide
Lives are lost to us every day
because we know not how to
stop the onslaught of suicides
among our friends and loved
ones—today I give you some
ways.
The suicide rate among people
Make a
statement,
be heard..«
to recognize the danger signals
of someone who may attempt sui
cide.
Danger Signals:
Previous suicide attempts: be
tween 20-50 percent of people
who kill them
selves previ
ously
at
tempted sui
cide.
SalenaDeLaCruz
ages 18-24 has steadily been on
the rise. Suicide is the number
two killer among college age stu
dents—people like you; people
like me.
So what can we do to answer
the cry for help? First we need
Opinion Editor
Talking
about death
or suicide:
directly or
indirectly.
Planning for
suicide: getting affairs in order,
giving away articles of value or
paying off debts.
Depression: often expressed as
loss of pleasure, or withdrawal
from activities that had been en
joyable.
Suicide
Pain calls to some to quit
life beckons most to carry on
Agony opens up and some fall
into that pit
life beckons most to mourn and
meet each new dawn
Who weeps for those
who chose
to weep no more
Suicide steals
Suicide steals
Who hears the cries
when there are no more tries
left
Who will understand
gone too soon
to a distant land
Who will understand
Suicide steals
Suicide steals
Suicide steals
Suicide steals
To live or to die
choice
who really knows why
choice
sees some live and others die
Who weeps for those
who chose
to weep no more
Are you concerned yet? Have
you stopped to think that this
could be you or someone you
know?
Another way to help is to take
these signs seriously and know
how to respond to them. Accord
ing to the American Foundation
of Suicide Prevention, depression
and emotional outcries that pre
cede suicide are—in most
cases—both recognizable and
treatable.
Some ways to help people con
sidering suicide include willing
ness to listen; being actively in
volved in their seeking profes
sional help; in an acute crisis, tak
ing the person to the emergency
room or walk-in-clinic at a psy
chiatric hospital and follow-up on
your loved one’s treatment.
In reading this, I hope you are
more aware and more knowledge
able in what you can do to help
someone you know or even don’t
know. After all, just listening
could save a life. But I think there
is so much more to be done. I
think we should have a national
suicide awareness day .where ev
eryone could be educated about
possible signs of suicide and
treatments for people: finally, you
could wear a little blue tear drop
or ribbon as a reminder of those
we’ve lost to suicide. We all need
to do our part.
So, if you or someone you
know is experiencing any of
these signs or moods—get
help.
We could be the catalyst to
life or death; we can help wipe
away the tears and replace them
with a smile.
Questions or comments e-mail
cccprint@clackamas.cc.or.us
Suicide questions. answered
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention created questions
and answers from actual letters they received from people wanting to
understand suicide better.
Irformation obtained from http://www.afsp.org.
Q.
What percentage of college students who kill themselves are male?
Why do you think more boys than girls kill themselves?
A. 75-80 percent are boys although more girls attempt suicide.
Boys are
more involved than girls in all forms of aggressive and violent behavior.
Q. F ve heard that suicides are more frequent around the holidays? Is this
true, and if so, how much do they increase at that time?
A. Suicides are not more frequent during the holidays.
The highest rate is
in April and the summer months, June and July.
Over the course of a time
less hour,
I waited for them to save me.
There are fools who follow
shadows,
And dream of the romance
of dying,
But I have learned the way
of wisdom:
It was earned with the swal
lowing
Of a rubber stomach pump.
With charcoal stained lips,
I was wheeled away
To a place where they prom
ised to help me.
Three days, I stayed there,
Finding a different way
To undo the tangles of my
life.
Sometimes I fear;
There are many more days
ahead,
But whatever difficulties un
fold,
I will never walk that way
again.
With my own hands,
I have touched the dark
ness.
I ask you to learn my lesson,
I ask you to trust my words:
Darkness is cold;
Hold onto the light.
-Andrew Lias
Lias is a 'survivor of suicide' who
chose to use poetry to help him
self. He has written a collection
called "Songs of Phoenix." To
read more go to
http://myweb. wco.com.
Gone too soon
the loss of one
diminshes us all
Gone too soon
Ido.
A. J. Mahari (soul)
In memory of Anne W.
Who can help?
Q.
What is the biggest cause of suicide among college students?
A.
95 percent are suffering from mental illness, usually depression. If
depressed, substance abuse, anxiety, impulsiveness, rage, hopelessness,
and desperation increase the risk.
Clackamas County Crisis Hotline- (503) 655-8724
Q. Apart from talking to a suicidal person and encouraging him/her to go
Multnomah County Hotline- (503) 238-7555
for counseling, what else can we do to prevent this?
Survivors of Loss through Suicide-(503) 226-7620
A. Going withsomeone to the counselor often helps.
Suicide Bereavement Support-(503) 657-1181
listen to you, you may need to talk to someone who might influence him or
her. Saving a life is more importantthan violating a confidence.
If the person won’t