mental health matters

This week I read Madness by Zac Brewer.

It's a brutal look at depression, mental health, recovery, and hope.

The Author's Note comes at the front of the book. It advises:

If, as you are reading this book, you find yourself experiencing symptoms of depression or suicidal thoughts, please seek help. You are not alone. And you can recover.

This book starts dark but explores depression, self harm, and suicide in a way that is important for young adults.

Brooke Danvers is 17 and recovering from a suicide attempt. She has just spent six weeks as a patient in Kingsdale Hospital, being watched, getting therapy, and having people constantly make sure she is doing better so that she can go home. Brooke has been suffering from depression for a very long time. She thinks that the one way she can escape her suffering is to end her own life.

Brooke's best friend is Duckie. He is hands down one of the best BFFs I've read. When RIP is written on Brooke's locker in black Sharpie, Duckie had the graffiti removed.

"It doesn't matter, Duckie. They'll just do it again anyway."Duckie leaned against the lockers and brushed a pink strand from my eyes. "It does matter. Because you're a person, not a headline ... or a punch line."

The information listed in the front of the book is an important resource for teens:

For more information on depression and how to get help, visit the Youth Resources page of the American Academy of Childhood and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). There you'll find information on finding the right care for yourself, how to recognize depression in others, and what you can do to help someone in crisis. www.aacap.org 

For further educational resources - as well as inspirational stories of recovery - visit To Write Love on Her Arms. TWLOHA is a nonprofit movement dedicated to finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide. www.twloha.com 

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline exists to provide immediate assistance to individuals in suicidal crisis by connecting them to the nearest available suicide prevention and mental health service provider through a toll free number. 1-800-273-TALK (8255)  

If you are in immediate crisis, dial 911The world is a better place with you in it.

Also check out Crisis Text Line.  www.crisistextline.org
Get free help by texting CONNECT to 741741 in the United States. You can text anytime from anywhere in the USA about any type of crisis. A live, trained Crisis Counselor receives the text and lets you know that they are here to listen.