An acquaintance of mine

[j0cu]

There was a guy who was in the same high school as I was. We both were around 18 years old back then. He was pretty much like I am: decent, mild-mannered and thoughtful. He was more like an acquaintance than a friend of me. We met each other just occasionally in the high school. Sometimes we had small talks, sometimes we work together in pairs and just once we had one longer conversation about the future. After the high school and our graduation, we've never seen each other again.

Many years later when I was studying in an university, I heard sad news about this guy. He died. He committed suicide. I don’t know why and how, but it was a very big shock to his family. I believe he must have been very unhappy, unfortunate and miserable. Even so, he didn't seem to be suicidal in the high school at all. I’ve felt sorry for him. It felt like I would have been a real friend to him, not just an acquaintance.

So many times I’ve been thinking about will I suffer the same fate as he.

 

[AlexiMarie7]

Thanks for sharing. I have a similar story of the smartest guy in my year at uni committing suicide a year later. And I still remember him to this day, and occasionally think about his death.

I share this as well so that you recognise that suicide of even only acquaintances has a long lasting impact on those alive.

I sure hope it won't be your fate. Please try not to consider it an option, and get whatever support you can in place to help keep you safe. We are here for you.

 

[Tiago]

Young people committing suicide, just leaving earth like that, it must be absolutely devastating for their families. I guess we just have to remind ourselves that, no matter how much we are struggling, it's okay to reach out for help. Like you said, j0cu, you would've helped him.

I personally feel very shy when it comes to reaching out, but it's important. I never openly said to anyone that I was having suicidal thoughts, but I did mention to a teacher of mine that I was suffering from depression, and she (a teacher almost everyone hates) was really nice and kind to me that day. In fact, she seemed concerned about me for the rest of high school.

J0cu, I hope you won't have the same fate as that guy. Things can get better. We just have to hold on a while longer to see everything turning around in our favor. Until we can see some light. And in the meantime, we can try reaching out to people for support.