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Lisa Welsh
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By Lisa D. Welsh
www.CHEERMaD.com
“It will get better,” my mother told me when I was 22-years old and -in the throws of post-traumatic stress disorder after being attacked at gun-point- had just told her I had decided to commit suicide.
“Maybe not tomorrow, or the next day, or the next, but I promise you it will get better,” she said over the phone. “But if you do this, you will never know.”
Sometimes life challenges us in ways we aren’t prepared for. I certainly wasn’t, as a young adult at the threshold of what looked to be a wonderful life. The summer before my senior year in college I was happy, in-love, healthy, optimistic and faithful until I crossed paths with a man determined to take that all away from me. He not only robbed me of valuables and innocence but he stole two years of my life as I dealt with PTSD. At the height of this I called my mother and told her I wanted to die and was prepared to do what needed to be done to make the pain go away.
I am so thankful that her words saved me that afternoon and I didn’t make a “permanent solution to what would ultimately be a temporary problem.” I lost a lot, including my confidence, my self-esteem, my boyfriend, my leadership role in college, my social life, my independence, my job and just about everything else of “myself.”
I was in so much pain that I couldn’t see myself out of it.
But somehow I fought through it with my faith, counseling and medicine. Looking back now, I understand why I wanted to die but am so thankful that I did not. Like everyone, my life hasn’t been without its challenges, but I am so grateful for the life I have now.
I share my testimonial only in hopes that it reaches someone who is in the dark place I was more than 25 years ago. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide I beg you to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
It Got Better for me and it will for you too.
It Gets Better
Steve and Pati Fehr talk about losing Jeff in "It Gets Better"
That’s also the message behind a new video featuring Steve and Pati Fehr, parents of Jeffrey Fehr, the young man who took his own life on New Year’s Eve because of bullying.
Jeffrey was a member of California POWER Allstar’s Medium Coed Level 5 team; you may recall this was the first in a stream of bullying-related suicides, up to 7 and we’re not even finished with 2012.
CHEERMaD’s exclusive interview with Mr. Fehr will run in October; National Anti-Bullying Awareness Month, as well as interviews with other parents and their kids about bullying. Also, some great resources like Cheer for a Cause and other efforts in anti-bullying.
Bullying is the most common form of violence in schools. In a recent study released by the Josephson Institute of Ethics in Los Angeles, more than 43,000 teens between the ages of 15 and 18 attending public and private schools were surveyed about bullying. Over half of them had been victims of bullying or had bullied other students.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF OCTOBER POST THIS LINK TO THE 975 SAVES LIVES PETITION AND REQUEST THAT EVERYONE YOU KNOS SIGNS THE PETITION…http://www.change.org/petitions/bully-free-zone-usa-975-saves-lives
By Lisa D. Welsh
www.CHEERMaD.com
“It will get better,” my mother told me when I was 22-years old and -in the throws of post-traumatic stress disorder after being attacked at gun-point- had just told her I had decided to commit suicide.“Maybe not tomorrow, or the next day, or the next, but I promise you it will get better,” she said over the phone. “But if you do this, you will never know.”
Sometimes life challenges us in ways we aren’t prepared for. I certainly wasn’t, as a young adult at the threshold of what looked to be a wonderful life. The summer before my senior year in college I was happy, in-love, healthy, optimistic and faithful until I crossed paths with a man determined to take that all away from me. He not only robbed me of valuables and innocence but he stole two years of my life as I dealt with PTSD. At the height of this I called my mother and told her I wanted to die and was prepared to do what needed to be done to make the pain go away.
I am so thankful that her words saved me that afternoon and I didn’t make a “permanent solution to what would ultimately be a temporary problem.” I lost a lot, including my confidence, my self-esteem, my boyfriend, my leadership role in college, my social life, my independence, my job and just about everything else of “myself.”I was in so much pain that I couldn’t see myself out of it.
But somehow I fought through it with my faith, counseling and medicine. Looking back now, I understand why I wanted to die but am so thankful that I did not. Like everyone, my life hasn’t been without its challenges, but I am so grateful for the life I have now.
I share my testimonial only in hopes that it reaches someone who is in the dark place I was more than 25 years ago. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide I beg you to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
It Got Better for me and it will for you too.
It Gets Better
SAP employees share personal messages for the It Gets Better Project. If you need help, call The Trevor Project now: 866-488-7386. For more information, please visit http://www.thetrevorproject.org and http://www.itgetsbetter.org.
Film by Adam McChane
Music by Adam McChane; Vocals by Pamela Martin
Film by Adam McChane
Music by Adam McChane; Vocals by Pamela Martin
Steve and Pati Fehr talk about losing Jeff in "It Gets Better"
That’s also the message behind a new video featuring Steve and Pati Fehr, parents of Jeffrey Fehr, the young man who took his own life on New Year’s Eve because of bullying.
Jeffrey was a member of California POWER Allstar’s Medium Coed Level 5 team; you may recall this was the first in a stream of bullying-related suicides, up to 7 and we’re not even finished with 2012.
CHEERMaD’s exclusive interview with Mr. Fehr will run in October; National Anti-Bullying Awareness Month, as well as interviews with other parents and their kids about bullying. Also, some great resources like Cheer for a Cause and other efforts in anti-bullying.
Bullying is the most common form of violence in schools. In a recent study released by the Josephson Institute of Ethics in Los Angeles, more than 43,000 teens between the ages of 15 and 18 attending public and private schools were surveyed about bullying. Over half of them had been victims of bullying or had bullied other students.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF OCTOBER POST THIS LINK TO THE 975 SAVES LIVES PETITION AND REQUEST THAT EVERYONE YOU KNOS SIGNS THE PETITION…http://www.change.org/petitions/bully-free-zone-usa-975-saves-lives
