This week we hear a story of a woman’s grandfather taking his own life. He was a Navy veteran.

Timothy Lawson takes on a popular question in the military community:

 Where is the media attention?

What does it mean to truly prevent suicide?

I’ve been asked this question plenty of times and I’ve thought about it ten fold. Having this project focus on veteran suicide benefits us in two ways. First, we can better understand the tribulations of our fellow veterans and honor their stories through this programming. Second, we can pick up on the military specific situations and how to best address them, while still applying what we understand to struggles with suicide within the wider population.

I believe a lot of people who do not understand depression or PTSD or suicide will put all of these on a scale of happy to sad. Happy being a place where suicide is never considered, sad being a place where such suicidal behavior begins.

I’m sure many of us who have been there or have seen someone get to that dark place even think of it as being “okay” and “not okay.”

The opposite of depression, PTSD, suicide, or stress is not happiness or “being okay.” It’s peace. So, to combat these problems, we should avoid the rewiring and pursuit of happiness, but rather be in search of peace.

For the rest of this post, tune into the podcast or go to One2ManyProject.com/20

Tim answers two questions:

– What is the best response you’ve received for the project?– What is the worst response?

Tune in!

I’ve had hundreds of conversations about suicide. Possibly even thousands, if you count any discussion I had before I started this project. It’s not something I’ve been trying to figure out, but something I’ve been trying to understand.

This project has taught me so much about suicidal behavior. I’ve heard so many different accounts of this dark subject. Through conversation and ponder, I’ve been able to hone in on the three ideas that I believe can best derail suicidal behavior: empathy, purpose, and mentorship. There is one more idea that I’ve realized in the past month that I’ve just now gotten the words to describe.

You have to matter to someone.

For the rest of this post, listen to the podcast or go to One2ManyProject.com/18

Navy veteran Timothy Jones shares with us this week. Tim tells us about how a fellow shipmate was hazed for being gay and how it led to his suicide. This story shows us how hazing can be dangerous when dealt out in a milicious manner.

Timothy goes on to talk about his own personal struggles. He endured an assault during his Navy career and has been in a healing process ever since.

Resource: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – 1-800-273-8255

Tim answers a few more questions this week:

– How can religion fulfill a new purpose?– How has the rate changed with so many vets coming home?– How can we see the signs?

Margy Agar, a Gold Star Mom, tells her daughter’s tragic story of bullying in the military and suicide.

Weekly Q & A:

Tim answers another question from the audience. This week’s question actually comes from his first speaking appearance at the American Legion Auxiliary conference in Washington DC. Click the play button above to hear his response. His full presentation is in the video below.

Summarized: What should a family do if they can’t seem to communicate or reach out to a family member having troubles

If you’d like to submit a question for next week. Comment on Facebook or tweet at me: @One2ManyProject or @TimLawson21

I sit here in the wake of Robin Williams’ suicide wondering what I could add that others already haven’t. As much as I try to avoid news-jacking, the conversation that surrounded Williams’ death fits the point I’m making today.

I want to start this flow of thought with a line from the song Follow Your Lead by Joe Budden. Joe is one of my favorite artists and I seem to resonate with so many of his lyrics.

“Always say I’ve been through worse, what if I haven’t?”

A number of responses to Robin Williams’ suicide wondered how could someone so funny, successful, and wealthy get to such a dark place. Well, anyone that has suffered through depression will tell you it has no boundaries. Depression does not check your resume, bank account, or the amount of “Likes” on your Facebook page before it sets in. Once it gets to you, its not an emotion that turns on and off from outside stimulus like happiness, sadness, and anger. In fact, it is possible to experience a burst of happiness while still being depressed. Your conscious mind can experience the happiness while your sub-conscious is still attached to the depression. Another song by Joe Budden (excuse me while I fan boy a bit in this essay) talks about how depression becomes a part of your psyche and communicates to you:

Go to One2ManyProject.com/13 for the rest of the post.