4 years ago, my family fell apart, mental health took over. My grandma Laverne was the best grandma in the world and treated us all with kindness and never didn’t have a smile on her face. One day she lost it all her depression that had been building up inside her couldn’t take it any longer and she took her own life. My mom (her daughter) had the biggest heart and fell apart when she found out, she was on a work trip in a different state and couldn’t say goodbye or even just see her body to give her peace. My mom really struggled and didn’t understand why she would do this, nothing made sense. She showed no symptoms of being depressed. A year went by and my mom was still having a very difficult time grieving through everything that had happened, she was very hard on herself and blamed herself.

July 21st, 2017, I was visiting my sister in Duluth Minnesota and I received the worst phone call of my life, my mom took her own life due to suicide as well. she had a fun-loving spirit all the time and worked so hard with everything she did. I was seventeen at the time and that’s the time I needed my mom most, thinking about college, and just growing up in general. She was my rock, supporter, and best friend. No one ever saw this loss coming.

All this tragedy made me wonder why? Right before I graduate college, grow up get married, and the list goes on. Why didn’t they say goodbye?  I didn’t want to hold a grudge I wanted to move on and help people who are hurting like my mom and grandma and stand up to mental health. People think mental health is a way to look for” attention” but let me tell you both my grandma and mom didn’t ever once seek “attention” they hid it from us. You never know if your family member, a loved one, or a friend are hurting inside because they can act like nothing is wrong, but they really are breaking apart inside. This disease is real, and we all need to come together to help one another. I want this story to inspire people to want to help others. Let’s stop the stigma.

The day my life instantly changed