Tag: Suicide

Anxiety, Depression, poetrty, Poetry, Prayer, Rejection, teens, Uncategorized

I See

I See

-Copyright 2016 Diana Rasmussen

I see the scars upon your arms

My heart skipped a beat as I thought of what I could say

To take away the pain that brought you to that place

How I wish I could change the things that you’ve been through

I’m here today to sit and listen if you choose to share

I remember what it felt like

To be the girl with the scars

You are in my prayers each and every day

I ask God to shine His light

upon the darkness of your heart

Your story is not over

Things will change with a new start

I have carried you to Jesus

with my prayers to heal your heart

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:  that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.  We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. – 2 Corinthians 5: 16-21 NIV

 

According to an article from TeenHelp:

The National Library of Medicine reports the following nonsuicidal self injury (NSSI) statistics:

  • 1/3 to 1/2 of US adolescents have engaged in some type of self injury.
  • Cutting and burning are the most common types of non-suicidal self-injury.
  • 70% of teens engaging in self-injury behavior have made at least one suicide attempt.
  • 55% had made multiple suicide attempts.

 

Let us bring light into the darkness and see the hurting. We know the Healer of Souls. Lord, use us today to bring hope and healing to those who cross our paths today, in Jesus Name.

 

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Deliverance, Depression, Domestic Violence and Abuse, faith, God, Healing, Hope, Religion and Spirituality, Spirituality

Feelings Shouldn’t Always Be Trusted

Why can’t you trust your feelings? We live in a culture of I want what I want when I want it. And if it feels good do it – right? Well, that may be exactly what is wrong.  Yes, feelings are important. But they change, moment by moment. And feelings may not be based on truth.

I have had a few new followers based on my posts on suicide and cutting. Yes, I have been delivered from these things. Thank you Jesus! But looking back, I realize how much I made my feelings my God. And if my thoughts were wrong – my feelings were wrong – and my actions were destructive.

According to Psychology Today:

For if our thoughts are erroneous, or based on false assumptions, the feelings tied to these thoughts are bound to be equally distorted—and hardly to be trusted.

 

The Fickleness of Feelings

  1. Change over time

  2. Are sometimes unreliable

  3. May be based on old hurts

  4. May betray you

  5. May be based on false information

Now I am not saying we should be robots. But perhaps we should TEST the voices that we hear in our head. They are not all good. They are not all from God. I Know that when I was plagued with destructive thoughts I would replay the bad messages again and again in my head.

“You are no good”

“You deserve to die”

“Your family would be better off without you”

Now today I know that none of these things are true. They were lies from the Enemy of my Soul – the Devil, the Deceiver, and the Father of Lies. Yet in the past when I dwelt on these thoughts I ended up hurting myself.

My thoughts were not based on Truth. I believed the lies. And I was the one who suffered for it.

 

Even Dr. Dobson says our feelings should not always be trusted. According to Dr. Dobson:

We are told in 2 Corinthians 11:14 that the devil comes to us as “an angel of light,” which means he counterfeits the work of the Holy Spirit. This is why he is described in profoundly evil terms in the Bible, leaving little room for doubt as to his motives or nature. His character is presented as wicked, malignant, subtle, deceitful, fierce and cruel. He is depicted as a wolf, roaring lion and a serpent. Among the titles ascribed to Satan are these: “Murderer,” “Dragon,” “Old Serpent,” “Wicked One,” “Liar,” “Prince of Devils,” and more than 20 other names which describe a malicious and incomparably evil nature.

These scriptural descriptions of Satan are written for a purpose: we should recognize that the “Father of Lies” has earned his reputation at the expense of those he has damned! And there is no doubt in my mind that he often uses destructive impressions to implement his evil purposes.

Let us test our thoughts today. Let us take every thought captive. God does not want any of us to perish. I am praying for all my friends here battling destructive thoughts. Get help today. I had to. Just because I had a feeling doesn’t mean that it was true. Once my thoughts changed, my feelings changed, and my actions changed.

 

More Posts on Healing from Destructive Thoughts:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bullying, Spirituality, teens

Teens and Suicide

It’s the Holiday season. And not everyone is happy about it. Our teens struggle with this ever changing world and the pressures of life.  And the internet is not always helpful when you add in teen hormones.  Time and time again our children get bullied online. As a parent it is hard to keep up sometimes. They know of more apps than we even thought of. They can Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, and all those that ‘disappear’ after the message is sent.  So much online activity  without us even knowing. And let’s face it, some kids are ruthless with their words.

Recently in our small town of 5000 we have had 2 students die. They have had grief counselors at the High School to talk about suicide. It breaks my heart that this happens. To be 19 years old and just give up hope and check out. Help us see Lord those kids that need help. Open our eyes and let us bring light into the darkness. we need to start talking about it. Too many kids are dying. Join me in praying for our teens today, wherever they are.

Here are some astounding facts about teens and suicide. According to the Jason Foundation: 

  • Suicide is the SECOND leading cause of death for ages 10-24. (2013 CDC WISQARS)
  • Suicide is the SECOND leading cause of death for college-age youth and ages 12-18. (2013 CDC WISQARS)
  • More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung disease, COMBINED
  • Each day in our nation there are an average of over 5,400 attempts by young people grades 7-12.
  • Four out of Five teens who attempt suicide have given clear warning signs

Here are the Warning Signs from the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

 

  • Talking about wanting to die or to kill themselves.
  • Looking for a way to kill themselves, such as searching online or buying a gun
  • Talking about feeling hopeless or having no reason to live.
  • Talking about feeling trapped or in unbearable pain.
  • Talking about being a burden to others.
  • Increasing the use of alcohol or drugs.
  • Acting anxious or agitated; behaving recklessly.
  • Sleeping too little or too much.
  • Withdrawing or isolating themselves.
  • Showing rage or talking about seeking revenge.
  • Displaying extreme mood swings.

 

If you or someone you know exhibits any of these signs, seek help as soon as possible by calling the Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

 

Bullying, Depression, Domestic Violence and Abuse, Healing, Uncategorized

Teen suicide: Prevention is contagious, too.

Teen suicide: Prevention is contagious, too. (via The Christian Science Monitor)

Teen suicide – America’s high rates and growing prevention efforts – is the topic of this week’s cover story project. Here students at Chautauqua Lake Central High School in Mayville, N.Y., participate in a Sources of Strength suicide-prevention…

Continue reading “Teen suicide: Prevention is contagious, too.” →

Activism, Depression, Domestic Violence and Abuse, Poetry, Uncategorized

I Cut Today – a Poem Inspired by TWLOHA (Trigger Warning)

When I saw the Daily Prompt today, I knew I needed to share this poem.  I have known many cutters in my life. You can tell it in their eyes, not just the marks on their bodies.  From what I have learned, it is a way that someone in intense pain reacts in a moment of despair.  What do you do with that level of pain?  How do you express what you cannot put into words?  It may or may not turn into an addiction.   And there are triggers. I have been there.  Today, I am ok today but I have to share that I used to do this when I was in a very, very sick relationship. And I got help.  

If you know someone, or you have cut, please tell someone today. You are not alone.   Sharing how you feel brings the pain out of the darkness and into the light. There is healing.  It doesn’t have to stay this way – really…

I CUT TODAY
©2013 Diana Rasmussen

I cut today
Couldn’t cope
With life
Anyway

Welcome to
My Midnight
A moment of
raw passionate
despair

Followed those
Ugly feelings
Underground
While they
Whispered Sweet
Nothings in
My ear

Aren’t you
Tired of
Trying
To fit into
Your pretty
World of
Pretend?

Dancing with
That Demon
Death again
Paraded
around
Like he was
an old friend
Held out his
Hand and led
Me in

He says
Pour me
Just one
More round
And we
Will start
This song
And dance
All over again
While I swim
in hopelessness
With no
Way out

Should have
Shut that
liars mouth
Instead I
Fell for
It again

So no
I’m not
Healed yet
But I won’t
Quit I’ll
get him yet

Stuff all those lies
Down his own throat
Let him chew on his
Own words yet

At least
when I
bleed I
know I’m
still alive
And the battle
Isn’t over yet

“You’ll need coffee shops and sunsets and road trips. Airplanes and passports and new songs and old songs, but people more than anything else. You will need other people and you will need to be that other person to someone else, a living, breathing screaming invitation to believe better things.”
~ TWLOHA shirt

What is To Write Love on Her Arms?
To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire, and invest directly into treatment and recovery.

To Write Love on Her Arms began in Orlando, FL in 2006 when our founder, Jamie Tworkowski, wrote a story about a friend who struggled with self-injury and addiction and the five days preceding her entry into treatment. The story, which was entitled “To Write Love on Her Arms,” went viral, and T-shirts were initially printed and sold as a way to pay for that friend’s treatment. Since then, TWLOHA has become a non-profit which serves as a bridge to hope and help for people facing the same issues. (Source: http://twloha.com/faqs/general)

 

FOR MORE HELP SEE: 

TWLOHA

PDF for Self Harm by decd.sa.gov.au

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Self Injuring and Cutting – the Mayo Clinic

Suicide Prevention Resource Center 

American Foundation Suicide Prevention

The Butterfly Project

Source: http://stopthepainnow.tumblr.com/thebutterflyproject

This is my Response for  Daily Prompt: Moment of Clarity

Tell us about a time you’d been trying to solve a knotty problem — maybe it was an interpersonal problem, a life problem, a big ol’ problem — and you had a moment of clarity when the solution appeared to you, as though you were struck by lightening.

Photographers, artists, poets: show us AWESTRUCK.

 

Activism, Bullying, Domestic Violence and Abuse

Facebook post leads to arrests in cyberbullying suicide case – FOX 13 News

Facebook post leads to arrests in cyberbullying suicide case – FOX 13 News.

This is so sad.  Imagine yourself as a teenage girl, trying to fit in. Then your best friend steals your boyfriend. And people you thought were your friends turn on you. Everyone starts trashing you online. You start checking your FB page every few seconds to see what people are saying about you. And then someone says you should “drink bleach and die”.  And person after person hits the “LIKE” Button…30 people “like” this idea. How would you feel?

This teenager killed herself over it.

 Really.

 Bullied online for over a year.

Her name was Rebecca Sedwick

         she was 12 Years old

Here is a video on what to do now:

Let us all make the effort to get involved in our children’s “online lives”.

Do you read your children’s Facebook page?

It’s not a choice anymore – “friend” me or no internet in my house.

Parents – let us stand up and be parents.

No more suicides. No more not knowing.

It’s not all roses anymore.

~just another mom, Diana~

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Poetry, Uncategorized

Cry in the Rain

Cry in the Rain

(Dedicated to Mel)

©2013 Diana Rasmussen

From: flywithdreams23.blogspot.com

The lightning flashed
and thunder cracked
The day you died
the sky turned black

*
I cry in the rain
I scream in the thunder
Let go of the pain
before I go under

*
my heart withdrawn
trying to hold on
one day you’re here
next day you’re gone

*
Tears fall from my eyes
I never got to say goodbye

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Activism, Domestic Violence and Abuse, Music, Uncategorized, Videos

Why?

Suicide Prevention Awareness Day is today.  I looked up some info on TWLOA (To Write Love On Her Arms)

Here is an excerpt from Newsweek and http://twloha.com/news/newsweek-covers-suicide-epidemic•

  • “Throughout the developed world … [suicide] is now the leading cause of death for people 15 to 49, surpassing all cancers and heart disease.”
  • “In the last two decades … there’s been a 37 percent increase in the years of life lost to clinical depression, anxiety, alcohol and drug abuse, and other disorders of the mind …”
  • “The suicide rate for Americans 45 to 64 has jumped more than 30 percent in the last decade …”
  • “[Suicide] now takes more lives than war, murder, and natural disasters combined.”

Why?

By Rascal Flatts

You must have been in a
Place so dark
You couldn’t feel the light
Reachin’ for you through
That stormy cloud
Now here we are
Gathered in our little hometown
This can’t be the way
You meant to draw a crowd

[Chorus]
Oh why, that’s what I keep asking
Was there anything I could’ve
Said or done
Oh, I had no clue you were
Masking
A troubled soul, God only knows
What went wrong and why
You would leave the stage
In the middle of a song

Now in my mind I’ll keep you frozen
As a seventeen-year-old
Rounding third to score the
Winning run
You always played with passion
No matter what the game
When you took the stage
You’d shine just like the sun

[Chorus]
Oh why, that’s what I keep asking
Was there anything I could’ve
Said or done
Oh, I had no clue you were
Masking
A troubled soul, God only knows
What went wrong and why
You would leave the stage
In the middle of a song

Now the oak trees are swaying
In the early autumn breeze
A golden sun is shining on my face
Through tangled thoughts
I hear a mockingbird sing
This old world really ain’t that
Bad of a place

Oh why, there’s no comprehending
And who am I to try to
Judge or explain
Oh, but I do have one
Burning question
Who told you life wasn’t
Worth the fight
They were wrong, they lied
Now you’re gone and we cry
‘Cause it’s not like you to
Walk away
In the middle of a song

Your beautiful song
Your absolutely beautiful song