We can prevent suicide

Anyway, that interesting bit of information led to many questions popping into my head. First of all what would lead someone to commit suicide? How could someone just look at himself and slice his wrist? How could you possibly hurt yourself and even worse, how could you consume some strange- smelling substance?

Secondly, what are the circumstances that lead a person to become so depressed and feeling so helpless and so alone?

Do we really think if a person was brought up by his parents in the proper way and taught to trust God and all that He does he would commit such an act? There’s truth in that, of course, but suicide is caused by many other factors.

I firmly believe that if parents pay more attention to their children and try to understand them rather than put them down and lecture to them all the time it would help. Just for someone to even think about suicide shows that that person may have a serious problem that needs urgent professional help.

Another huge contributor to suicide is, believe it or not, ourselves.

Society has taught us that boys don’t cry and by no means should show emotion. This is so stupid. We must begin teaching our boys that it is okay to cry and let out their feelings. It is okay to talk about problems they are having.

We have also attached a stigma to "mad people." Think about it. If someone told you that she was seeing a psychiatrist the first thing you would do is laugh and then talk to someone else saying "she crazy, she have problems." But it is time that we understand that everyone has problems and the way the world is today, with parents and siblings being busy, we all need someone to talk to and who else than someone as qualified as a psychiatrist. We must not laugh at people when they try to get help for themselves. We must instead encourage them and be glad that they are getting the help they need and are brave enough to admit that they need help. Another thing, we have to stop treating those schizophrenic vagrants with so much contempt. I am not saying to just run and hug the guy, that may warrant you a few blows from him, but we should treat them with respect and remember that he too has a story. He too has struggles and who knows where he came from. As funny as it sounds, the schizophrenics in and around Tabaquite attended some of the best schools, are quite educated and come from respectable families. What we must remember when we come across someone who is "mad" is that that person is a human being as well.

It is time we as a society begin to treat "mad" people with some kind of respect, it is time we start treating them as human beings and not beasts.

Remember they too have families who have tried their best to help them. How would your mother and father feel if they saw someone treating you like dirt? We must work together as a society to rid the stigma that is attached to the mentally ill because believe me, nothing is being done by the Government to help them. The Government’s perception is "they crazy, nobody care about them and therefore we can turn a blind eye too."

Well they better think again! Its job is to take care of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago, and by that I mean all the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.

It is time they take care of the mentally ill and for heaven’s sake, give the only mental health institution we have here some assistance!