Note: This episode contains descriptions of schizophrenia and suicide. 

Suicide is the 10th most common cause of death in America, yet it is the second most common among college-aged individuals. More than half of students have had suicidal thoughts and 10.5% have seriously considered attempting suicide. Alarmingly, these numbers continue to rise every year. 

For Melissa Antonia Perez, suicide is anything but a statistic. In 2017, her older brother, Andrew, died by suicide when he was just 20 and Melissa was a college sophomore. Melissa sits down to tell me how she has dealt with his death and what her life has been like ever since.