Marty's Haiku - 17. The Final Cut

46 minutes ago, 84Mags said:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (United States) 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). Can also text the Crisis Text Line by sending text:   HELLO to 741741            Deaf or hard of hearing TTY 1-800-799-4889    
Veterans Crisis Line 1-800-273-8255   Text: 838255

Thanks, @84Mags.

I was thinking of adding a list of crisis helplines but, living in Ireland, I wasn't too certain how relevant the ones I know of might be for the majority of GA readers.

However, here's a list of some of the services available in Ireland:

• The Samaritans (www.samaritans.org/ireland) are available 24/7 - ring them for free on 116 123
• Also, out of hours and in an emergency, you can text the Crisis Text Service (text50808.ie) 24/7. Text HELLO to 50808 to connect with a trained Crisis Volunteer.
• Pieta House (www.pieta.ie) have a service for people in crisis. Freephone 1800 247 247 or Text  HELP to 51444
• Spunout have a list of suicide support services on spunout.ie/mental-health/suicide/suicide-support-ireland

I would also welcome, and encourage, readers in other parts of the world to add lists of support agencies and contact numbers for their own countries.

 Official website

Just now, Headstall said:

I can't say I liked this haiku, but I understand suicide is not something we can hide under a rug. You are shining a spotlight on an ongoing crisis, and I appreciate the value of such as these. 

Thanks, Gary.

I thought hard and long about publishing this piece, and nearly decided against doing so. It has been sitting in my list of completed haikus for a good while now. But, as you so rightly say, it is not something that should be hidden under a rug. 

2 minutes ago, Valkyrie said:

I'm glad you decided to publish it.     Mental health issues have been stigmatized for so long, they need to be brought out into the spotlight.  People need to realize there's nothing wrong for asking for help when they need it.  Thank you for posting this.   

Thanks, Val.

12 minutes ago, Valkyrie said:

I'm glad you decided to publish it.     Mental health issues have been stigmatized for so long, they need to be brought out into the spotlight.  People need to realize there's nothing wrong for asking for help when they need it.  Thank you for posting this.   

I agree! ❤️

I'm glad you published this.

5 minutes ago, chris191070 said:

I'm glad you published this.

Thanks, Chris. That means a lot to me. 

You can't deal with things by not talking about them. This is an eye-catching first few lines.

21 minutes ago, Geron Kees said:

You can't deal with things by not talking about them. This is an eye-catching first few lines.

True, Geron.

Sadly, the problem some people have is not feeling able to talk; or not believing anyone will understand or be able to help. The mind can lead people into some very dark and scary places at times.