Ashley
Chris Brown took to twitter on March 30th with a tweet that has left us, quite frankly, shaking our heads and wondering what on earth is going on in his.
While this was just one of several tweets that are part of a small ‘rant’ – it carries the most harm with it, it packs the hardest punch. Chris insinuates, with this tweet, that if one attempts suicide and survives – that they’ve failed or worse than that even – that they did it for attention.
When one suffers from long term, debilitating depression and anxiety, they are no stranger to suicidal thoughts or thoughts of self harm. When people experience something stressful or traumatic, even if it’s just one time, they are still at risk for those same thoughts. It doesn’t take years of sadness to reach that depth of darkness, it just takes one moment and suddenly, life seems too hard to continue living.
Chris Brown’s tweet seems aimed at fellow R&B singer Kehlani who attempted to take her own life but survived. Kehlani then took to social media in a raw and honest statement about what happened, and a show of gratitude for her second chance at life.
Rumors, hateful comments, and what seems to be a feeling of guilt are the pieces that led to Kehlani’s suicide attempt and it’s a sad truth that most young adults deal with all of that on a daily basis. Some people say online bullying isn’t real because one can simply sign offline, but that statement is far from the truth. Some people say that rumors don’t mean anything if they’re based in lies, but that doesn’t mean that rumors (true or untrue) can hurt. Young adults, now more than ever, are subjected to hate in a number of ways, it’s almost as if no place is truly safe. These days, it’s hard to be yourself knowing there are so many platforms for people to bully one another.
Comments like the ones Chris Brown made on his Twitter account only go to show how much kindness is needed in this world, and how far we’ve still got to go on the path to building a better world for everyone.
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death (in the United States), and for each suicide there are 25 attempts (where the person survives). If you want a more raw look – statistics say that each year 42,773 people will die of suicide, that’s 117 people a day.
Until we, as a group of young adults, work together to spread positivity, kindness, and acceptance – as well as come together to promote forgiveness and understanding for one’s mistakes – these numbers will only continue to grow. There will only be more suicide attempts and lives taken per day, the change begins first in us.
Many people took to social media in defense of Kehlani and questioned Chris Brown’s motives, the derogatory manner of his statements, and how a young father could have such a harsh statement to make. Chris has a bit of a complicated history of his own and while it would be easy enough to throw stones, fighting fire with fire never works. Instead, we urge Chris, and anyone else to check out AFSP and other organizations that help recognize warning signs of suicide and work to help prevent it.
We at CelebMix are sending our positive thoughts to Kehlani and hope that the general public, the media, and those unassociated with the situation can allow healing to begin from the inside out, and respect the delicate time she and her loved ones are experiencing.
If you or someone you know is dealing with depression, self harm, or suicidal thoughts please get help. There are a number of online associations, hotlines, even places you can text and ask for help.
In the US
Suicide Prevention Lifeline & Crisis Text Line are two ways to get help for yourself or a loved one.
In the UK
Samaritans & HOPElineUK are two ways to get help for yourself or a loved one.
Life always gets better, it may not be tomorrow, or even the next day, but it gets better.
