“Almost unsurvivable”

I heard Meghan Markle say these words during her interview with Oprah and it instantly caught my attention.

Those words were familiar.

Personal.

I listened intently as she shared her emotional and extremely vulnerable story.

A story that so many of us have experienced.

A story that involves mental health struggles and suicidal thoughts.

Thinking things would be better if you just ended it all, ended the pain.

These dark thoughts creep up throughout the day and they suffocate you at night.

They make you feel like there is no other way out.

No solution.

Unfortunately, I know these thoughts.

I know this dark place that she spoke about.

Because I too, was in that space just a few short months ago.

On the outside looking in, you would have no idea, just like with her story.

You see, mental illness doesn’t discriminate.

It’s like a dark beast that comes barreling into your life and flips your world upside down.

You don’t feel like yourself.

And when Meghan spoke about it, she did it with such bravery and grace.

She admitted the courage that it takes to have the difficult conversations and to ask for help.

I applaud her for that.

That’s why it was shocking to me to see the hurtful comments and degrading things people were saying about her after the interview.

Accusing her that she’s lying and just “attention seeking”.

This is exactly WHY people DO NOT ask for help.

This is WHY people DO NOT speak about their mental health struggles.

This is WHY so many feel ashamed or embarrassed and stay silent.

It has to stop.

We have to end the stigma around mental health and stop ridiculing people.

There needs to be more empathy.

More love.

And more compassion.

We are not here to judge one another.

We should be extending a helping hand or offering a shoulder to cry on.

SUPPORTING each other through the dark times and reassuring people they are not alone.

Friends, someone you know is struggling right now and you have no idea.

So before making a hurtful comment or judging someone for how they’re feeling, think before you speak.

Words are powerful.

You never know who’s listening.

Please, be kind.

You might just save a life.