Suicide Prevention Day

Hey there! 

As you probably know, today it's the suicide prevention day. And I've got many things to say about this topic so there we go.

There's not a fantastic magical book in how to stop suicide, in how to help someone who wants to end their own life. I can assure you that. And, that sucks. Each person is different and so is the way to help them. Let me tell you something - you cannot save the world, even if you wanted to. 

What I mean with that is that, yeah, you can't save everyone, but you can try to help as much people as you can. When we talk about stopping someone's suicide we all just imagine someone standing in a bridge about to jump or something like that, but, that's not everything. There are situations that lead to that and we can give a hand to someone before that happens. 

To know if someone's hurting to the point they want to end their lives is almost impossible, it's not something you just tell when you look at someone. However, making someone smile doesn't cost that much, does it? Helping people can be as easy as a compliment, or telling someone that you're there for them whenever they need it, or tell them you're willing to listen. Sometimes, all that someone needs is to talk to someone.

That's just my advice though.

Also, if you're hurting, don't be afraid to ask for help. Asking for help doesn't make you a coward or that you're weak - actually it takes a lot of courage to ask for it. I promise you that there are people out there who are willing to listen, who want to help you, whether they're close to you or even strangers. The point is that out there there's a lot of people who care about you, even though you probably haven't realized. 

No matter how bad it gets, there's always hope. If you can't see it, let someone show you the way, because there is a way. Stay strong, we care about you, you're loved. 

I've said it a million times, but I'll say it again. Even though I'm not a therapist, I'm always willing to listen, so, if you want to talk and can't find anyone or whatever, you can contact me on twitter, tumblr, instagram, ask.fm... 

Besides that, I'm posting below the links to online resources for help or hotlines:

http://www.samaritans.org/

http://www.suicide.org/suicide-hotlines.html

http://www.thetrevorproject.org/

http://psychcentral.com/helpme.htm

http://www.metanoia.org/suicide/

Only a game of cards.

The other day I was just thinking about life, and something came to mind - poker. I don't play poker much, but I've played several times and I really like it. Okay, let's think about poker. Someone shuffles the cards, distributes cards to all the players, and they let the game begin. 

You don't get to choose what cards you get, it's all random. You can have good luck or bad luck in the first deck of cards you get, but that isn't what matters most. 

What matters the most is what you decide to do with the deck of cards you get in the first round, and what you keep getting. What makes you win or lose a game are your choices. Sometimes you'll decide not to risk anything and it'll be the good move. Other times, you'll risk everything at one card, not knowing if you'll win or not. Maybe you win, maybe you lose. However, you have to make some sacrifices if you want to win. 

It's your choice how you decide to play. 

With experience, you'll get better. And, if you're smart enough, you'll realize that it all isn't about luck. Yeah, luck has a lot of might here, but there are people with very good luck who lose, and people with very bad luck that win. What do you say about that? 

Life's just like a game of cards. You can't choose what cards you get, but you do have the will to decide what you'll do with them. Your choices are what will make you success of fail in the end. 

School.

September's already here. 

Yeah, we all know what that means - school has already come back (for some) or is about to come. 

I'm sorry, I know most of teens hate to talk about this topic, but I'm going to talk about it. I hate to talk about it too, don't worry. However, I feel like there are some things I need to mention about it, you know, in order to give y'all some advice! 

School, or high school, or college... whatever you call it. Okay, let's not think about the studying and grades stuff for a moment, because that's not what I want to focus on. I want to focus on how to deal with school. 

A lot of people might find this post useless, the might probably not need this. Nevertheless, other might need it. 

School can be hard to deal with, and a lot of kids/teens are even afraid of going to school. Whether it's because someone's giving you a hard time or you feel like you're going to be judged, there can be many reasons why someone's afraid of going to school. It's a shame that it's even common sometimes, because nobody should ever feel afraid of going to school. Actually, if you're feeling afraid of going to school, I wanted to tell you that, I feel you. I'm not going to talk about myself here, however, I wanted you to know that I understand what you're feeling. 

The best thing you can do is try and lose that fear. 

Yeah, I know that it's pretty easy to just say it, that it's harder to do it. Fear is what's stopping you from many things, and that's what you need to get rid of. I'm not saying your fear is irrational, I'm saying that fear's stopping you from more things than you know. And it's in your hands to fight that fear. Forget about what they'll say. 

I cannot go and tell you people are going to judge you, because I'm no liar, and I want to be honest. So, yes, people will probably judge you. People always judge, always. 

I remember that once I read a quote written by a guy called Aitor Alvarez, which said: 

"Survival adice - do it, you're going to get critiziced anyway"

And, it's true. 

What I want to say with this is that, just be yourself. Be yourself and don't give a damn what they say or what they think. Stay true to yourself and don't let fear stop you from anything. 

Your attitude toward certain situations can really make the difference, and it's more than you think. 

So, when you wake up in the morning to go to school, try to concienciate yourself that what others think doesn't matter. You're going to do good. Just trust in yourself and aspire to do great things in your life. Because, you can do it. 

And, some people messing up with you or whatever can't be the reason that stops you from that. Do your thing and remember - you won't see them again when you get out of school probably, so, why letting their (negative) opinions matter?

The future.

Some people don't like to talk about their future. It's a topic they just don't like, they change the subject when someone brings it up. It's like they're scared of it or something. Well, I get it and respect it. Sometimes, the future can seem really scary. I think that most of the times, it does look scary. Future can mean uncertainty if you think about it deeply, because whatever your plans, you'll never know what tomorrow will bring to you, how things will be in the future, and how you'll react to occurrences in the future. 

However, I prefer to think about other way.

Sometimes, when I'm lying in bed at night and thinking, I start "making" plans for my future. I start imagining the future that I wish, in which some things that I find amazing do happen. Only thinking of that draws a smile on my face, and, guess what? That motivates me. It motivates me to make my dreams true. The simple thought of me in college studying what I want and living my life the way I've always wanted to live it is one of the brightest flames in my heart. 

I have no clue about the future. Nevertheless, having a goal to achieve makes me think of the future as something that could be awesome if I fight for it, if I put effort to it. Thinking of the future even makes me happy very often since it's what I fight for every day. 

I really think that if we think of the future as the time when we could be able to make our dreams true, or reach our goals, people wouldn't try to avoid it so much. There are people who like to talk about their goals, and what they plan to do - I'm one of those people. 

The future can be whatever it be. But, we can dream and fight for something we want, can't we? It's in your hands. 

Anons.

This is the Internet, and here, each person decides whether they want to show their true identity or to remain as an anon. 

Personally, I'm a person who has remained as an anon for about a year maybe in my twitter account. I wouldn't show pictures of me, and stuff like that. It was my personal decision because I didn't want people to know who I was. It's not like I had anything to hide or whatever, it was just my decision. I found it more comfortable to give advice to people and try to help them without sharing my identity. 

And I am aware that many people prefer that, and, of course I respect it. It's totally understandable and there's nothing wrong with that choice, as long as you don't lie about who you are either, of course. 

However, the point here is not about that. I wanted to give a message to everyone. 

If you want to remain as an anon, cool. But, can you do me a favor? Well, it's not a favor only to me, I think it's more like a favor to a lot of people. If you're going to spread hate, why don't you think it through and turn it all around? How? Instead of hate, you could spread some love. Someone out there might need it, and, guess what? You'll feel better with yourself, and maybe, you realize that love will always be better than hate. 

Want to try? 

Our dark side.

Today, I stopped to think about the dark sides of people. Everyone has a dark side, am I right? 

It's like the part of us that we try and hide from the whole world, the part of us we wish we could forget and bury in the ground. But, that part is still there, inside of you, and you can't let go of it. It remains there. 

I remember a quote by J.K. Rowling, writter of the Harry Potter saga in which a character said something pretty wise, and about this topic. This was the quote: 

"Besides, the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters it the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are."

The message is not only clear, but true. We all have a dark side, darkness inside of us. And we have a bright side (let's call it that way), light inside of us. The darkness inside of you can only define you if you let it become who you are. As J.K. Rowling said, what matters is the part we choose to act on - using different words, what matters is the part that becomes relevant, the one that "wins". 

At the end of the day, we all know which our dark side is, and it's up to us decide whether we want that part to become us or not. After all, our choices are what define us. 

We can't choose not to have a dark side, because everyone has one and you can't help that. Nobody's perfect, and everyone makes mistakes. But you can choose what part of you wins, and what part will end up to define you as a person. 

The darkness always has some light, and the light always has some darkness. I guess that's a part of being human. Just, remember that. 

I hope y'all are having a good Saturday/Sunday ^-^

This is your life to live.

You have this life, and you only have one. It's your own choice whatever you decide to do with it, and, even though people can influence you, after all, it's your life and choices. Any person can come to you and tell you who you should be, what you're supposed to do or be, they can tell you many things: good and bad ones. They can whether have an impact in you or not to have it at all. If it's a positive one, amazing. If it's a negative one, try to learn something out of it. 

What I'm trying to say is that you're the owner of your life, no matter what.

I've been told by many people who I'm supposed to be, what I should do and which path I should follow for the rest of my life. I only have two words as an answer: fuck that. I'm sorry if that sounds rude, it's not my intention. Nevertheless, I want to make my message really clear. I've been given many good advice, thankfully, and I "studied" them carefully, I paid attention and followed some of those which I felt like I should follow. It was my decision though. I made the decision. But I've also been given bad advice, which I used to follow and sometimes follow by mistake. As the human I am, I make mistakes. 

Months from now, maybe, I would have done what I'm supposed to, but, I've changed as a person. I've made up a list in my mind of my preferences, of what I truly want in life. And that's the path I'm going to follow, no matter how hard it can become, I don't mind.

I sat down and realized I couldn't keep just thinking of other people before myself, specially when it was about my future, my own life. If I do what others want me to do, will I be happy? No. I need to do whatever makes me happy, because it's my life. 

I'm not saying all this just to talk about my life, actually, I don't like that. I just want you to see that that's what you should do. You need to think what you really want to do, who you want to be, without thinking if other people will like it or not, or if they'll approve it. That's not how things should be. 

This is your life to live. As long as you're respectulf to others and to yourself, what else matters? 

You shouldn't let the world tell you who you have to be, you know, you should embrace who you are and realize what's best for you. What do you prefer, to live as yourself, or to live as someone else? It's your choice.