Suicide prevention month

It is Suicide Prevention Month.

The deeper I’ve connected with other marginalized people, the more real the topic has become for me. We are more at risk of suicide, and I mean, why wouldn’t we be?

We are constantly shamed, made invisible, and are told that our lives are worth less. We internalize the messages that are sent to us— that we don’t matter, that we shouldn’t exist, that we’re a burden, and that we should be excellent if we are going to take up oxygen. The messages get so strong and so loud that we believe it. And we succumb to it.

The struggle to be seen and supported as our full selves beats down to the point of exhaustion, defeat, and hopelessness. Sometimes it’s impossible to hold onto our self-worth. It’s heavy, for some of us more than others, and we aren’t all privileged enough to have a strong support system to help us navigate a society that wasn’t designed for us.

For Suicide Prevention Month, I ask you to pause and think about what you’re doing to make queer, Disabled, immigrant, Black, Indigenous people, and people of marginalized genders feel more seen and supported. Because that alone is suicide prevention, and advocacy in the outdoors is about more than just representation. It’s about reminding people of their value, making them feel seen, and supporting their joy.

Torres del Paine. December 2011.