Suicide Awareness Book

My name is Emmaline McDermott and I am from Wilmington, DE. If you are not familiar with where that is, it is very close to Philadelphia, PA. I am currently a 7th grade student at HB du Pont Middle School. I am going to turn 13 soon and I have loved writing ever since I was young, especially poetry. I usually write poems for fun but sometimes I have to write them in school. For example, this poem was actually inspired by Project Soapbox, an assignment I had to create in my social studies class this year. Project Soapbox empowers students to find an issue they are passionate about fixing in their communities. Suicide not only hits home for me but it's an epidemic that needs to be addressed. "700,000 people die each year due to suicide" according to the World Health Organization. I feel like my poem can help others find solace and reassurance that their are other people who are facing mental health issues. I also think bringing more attention to this topic can enable people to be more empathetic of others and help find solutions to solve this major issue. I hope you enjoy!

About the Author:

Everyday people die,
Which in turn makes others cry
Leaving those they love behind
For they feel alone inside
All emotions go away
But sadness books a long-term stay
Nearly 800,000 people die each year
This should cause us major fear
Children take their lives away
Leaving families torn
Red, White, and Blue
Our Country needs to get a clue
And stop letting lives go
Instead, we need to be the hand reaching out
To pull them out of hard times
Imagine
Where every day people die because they feel so inadequate
They feel sad and alone,
Your family, friends, and teachers
Neighbors Politicians, Local Preachers
Feel pain so bad that they take their own lives
Because they were deprived
Of the help they needed
Kids feeling sad and alone
Even when people are home
I was that kid, and I still am
A kid that fell down a slippery slope of sadness

I fell so fast and felt so alone,
Therapy was my intervention before disaster struck
Without it my families life could’ve gone totally amuck
Others go to therapy but some can’t afford it
Some people go ahead and ignore it
In order to help others we should petition to make therapy cheaper
In turn this could make the difference steeper.
On a website called SAVE it states with great force,
“There is one suicide death in the US every 11.5 minutes.”
Suicide is normalized in modern media
Unfortunently Depression is often confused with acedia
Just trust me it all starts with you
If you see someone struggling there is so much you can do
Help them along
We all may be different but
We all sing the same song
No rest until we all feel loved
Now its time to rise above
All our hate and rage
Now its time to sit and think about how we can engage
Fix the problem storming the nation
In this country we must move forward
And send mental health problems on a permanent vacation

Mental Health Love Sticker by American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Sticker by American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Mental Health Suicide Prevention Sticker by American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Mental Health Education Sticker by American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

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