september is suicide prevention awareness month. to be completely honest, completely transparent, i’m 22, and i have attempted 5 times. i know it’s normally not discussed online, but i think it’s important to talk about in times like these. the older you get, it does get easier to steer away from it, but i even still get the thoughts and impulses. i used to think i wouldn’t make it to 18, that surely id die by then. when i did, i didn’t know what i wanted to do with my life, and every birthday after that has been another year of being surprised i made it this far. i’ve kinda just taken it as a hint at this point from the universe that i’m not allowed to die yet since it keeps stopping me. i hope that anyone out there that is also struggling with their own thoughts and feelings and pains gets their hint too. whether it’s from your friends, whether it’s from strangers, whether it’s from a song or a butterfly that flew by at the perfect time. the world is a better place with you in it, even if you disagree with your whole heart. no matter what you think of yourself, there are people who love you, there are sunsets for you to see, eclipses and meteor showers, strangers that might be meant to meet you but haven’t yet. you don’t have to plan your whole future now, but you can plan your next step forward. i believe in you.