BASIC Studios

 

What does “suicide prevention” look like to you?

 

It looks like making sure everyone has a safety net, and if that safety net fails, there’s a second safety net, and a third and fourth and fifth. 

Atticus Jackson 

 

Prevention means awareness. That means that we, as a society, need to be welcoming and safe for those who need help. Everyone, at some point in their life, need a safe place to fall when they are struggling. If each one of us can provide that for another human being, knowingly or not, then lives can be saved.

Kaie

 

I think that suicide prevention means finding small reasons to keep going, no matter how small or silly they are. It could be as simple as having a show you like, going on walks now and again, or just getting to see your friend again. Struggling is always a part of life, so defining the little things that make you happy and chasing them can be lifesaving.

Tanner

 

Go forth and shine. Trials are moments that we, as a community, can resist together. It is to be in touch with others and to know their struggles as if they were yours.

Marion

 

Community. Holding others up and looking out for them when they can’t do it themselves. It’s knowing when to nudge someone to get up and move and when to be there just to listen. We are pack animals… Never leave others behind and try to be mindful that you never know what your neighbour is going through. Reach out to your family, friends, neighbours, and colleagues; Let’s remind each other that we are not alone. We are a community.

Sana 

 

Listening- really listening to what the other has to say. Sometimes having a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on makes all the difference.

Jeri

 

Community support, even if your community is small. My attempt was thwarted by a college friend who noticed that I was isolating and refused to leave me alone until it came time for the summer holiday.

Tess

 

Suicide Prevention

By Kaie

Every forty-three seconds, a person’s life comes to an end (1). The next question from most people is usually about how the person died. Were they killed in a war? In an accident? Did they die of cancer?

The answer is sometimes none of these. What happened was that the person made a decision to end their own life because their pain had grown too great for them to live with any longer. Some will argue that the person was selfish or weak.

What that individual was, was in pain.

That was a pain that some people will never understand, and one that many understand all too well.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 720,000 people die by suicide each year (2). That is the equivalent of a large city completely disappearing. If that happened, the world would be in an upheaval to rectify what had happened to those poor souls. Yet, suicide remains a hush-hush topic that modern-day media has filtered. Somehow the word has become taboo, while the cause of it is pushed aside as too uncomfortable to discuss.

Society needs to discuss suicide more openly. If these conversations are not had, then how can we solve a worldwide problem that does not have a face? By this, I mean that suicide doesn’t resemble one specific person, gender, age, ethnicity, or social status. Suicide takes the lives of individuals from all backgrounds, and the one trait they all have in common is that they each struggled with their mental health prior to committing suicide.

As stated on the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation’s website, “Suicide prevention is most effective when communities work together through awareness, intervention, and support systems.”

The work they refer to begins with awareness. Developing an awareness that suicide is real and has in some way impacted us all is essential. The most common way society encounters suicide is through the loss of a public figure who has left an impact on the world.     

Here are some public figures who tragically died by suicide who are near and dear to the Myths and Mischief Staff:

 

Robin Williams

• One of the most beloved actors of our time, Mr. Williams died by suicide in 2014. It turns out that the comedian was in the advanced stages of Lewy body dementia, which resulted in symptoms of paranoia, forgetfulness, confusion, hallucinations, anxiety and other concerning changes. The diagnosis was discovered  after his autopsy (3).

Kurt Cobain

• As the lead singer of the band Nirvana, Cobain brought grunge music into the mainstream. He was adored by millions and the family he had created with his wife and child. After years of drug use and an overdose shortly before his suicide, Cobain took his life in 1994 with a significant amount of drugs in his system. He left behind a fanbase that  still mourns him (4).  

Naomi Judd

• One half of the country duo, the Judds, Naomi was a powerhouse of talent, as well as a loving mother and wife. Naomi was open about her struggles with mental illness over the years, and was an outspoken advocate for mental health awareness. In 2022, Ms. Judd lost her battle with depression by ending her life. She leaves behind a legacy that goes beyond the music she helped give the world (5).  

Anthony Bourdain

• Chef, author, and television host Anthony Bourdain built a fascinating career that spanned decades. He traveled to incredible places with rich cultures, and encountered fascinating people along the way. Though he was beloved by friends, the industry he helped enrich, and millions across the globe, he quietly struggled with drug use and depression over the years. In 2018, Mr. Bourdain ended his life while in the midst of filming his travel show (6).

Virginia Woolf

• Author and pioneer in modernist literature, Virginia Woolf produced numerous written texts over the course of her lifetime that have remained relevant to this day. Plagued by trauma from childhood and depression across the span of her life, she persevered with her husband at her side until 1941. On the fateful day the world lost her, she weighed down her pockets and walked into the river near her house (7).  

Some other souls who the world lost to suicide include Avicii, Chester Bennington, Sylvia Plath, Ernest Hemingway, Vincent Van Gogh, Kate Spade, Hunter Thompson, Lee Thompson Young, Mary Kay Bergman, and Maxon Margiela. All of these people  brought something powerful and special to the world, and subsequently left an emptiness behind when they departed.

Despite fame, money, and the luxuries both of the aforementioned resources   can buy, none of it was enough to save these cherished individuals. The truth is that mental health struggles do not discriminate. They don’t leave a person alone, even if they have money. They don’t bypass someone because of fame. No one is exempt from mental health struggles; they can impact anyone at any time.

As September is Suicide Awareness Month, it is important to educate ourselves so that we might be vigilant every day of the year. Do not hesitate to learn more about the signs that precede suicide and what you can do to help someone who is in crisis. Most who are don’t shout it out for the world to hear, but there will always be signs. Let’s work on taking care of others while remembering that we must also take care of ourselves.

For more information, please reference the BASIC Team across our socials, blogs, or videos. We are an online community dedicated to supporting those most vulnerable to suicide.

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1. “About 740,000 Global Deaths from Suicide Occur Annually—That’s One Death Every 43 Seconds | Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.” Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 19 Feb. 2025, https://www.healthdata.org/news-events/newsroom/news-releases/about-740000-global-deaths-suicide-occur-annually-thats-one. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026. 
2. World Health Organization. “Suicide.” World Health Organization, 25 Mar. 2025, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/suicide. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026. 
3. https://lbda.org/robin-williams-and-lewy-body-dementia-2 
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_of_Kurt_Cobain 
5. https://www.addictioncenter.com/news/2022/05/naomi-judd-suicide/
6. https://allthatsinteresting.com/anthony-bourdain-death
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Woolf

 

Suicide Awareness Month

 

September is Suicide Awareness Month, but nobody really talks about what that means. How do you prevent something that nobody wants to talk about, let alone admit is a global problem? Easy. You talk about it anyway.

More than 720,000 people take their lives every year, and about 48,800 of those lives are lost in the United States alone (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 2025). Notice that I said “take their lives” and not “committed suicide.” Word choice matters here. The act of taking one’s own life should never be considered on the same moral level as taking someone else’s life. Suicide is never a selfish or weak option; most times, it’s the last resort after multiple failed bids for help. We’ve been taught by prevailing religious culture that suicide is morally wrong. But emotions don’t always follow a logical path that can be dictated by doctrine. True mental health care means stepping away from ignorant and archaic beliefs and accepting that each mind is unique.

Real suicide prevention means giving yourself the grace to make mistakes; it’s self-made evidence that you’re trying. It means seeing beyond differences and loving each other unconditionally. Prevention means discussing uncomfortable topics regardless of stigma. What it’s not is judging someone based on their skin tone, religious beliefs, or personal ideals. Why should any of those things matter when thousands more values can bring us together?

Next time you hear someone complaining about the simple things in life, consider yourself and your own struggles. You don’t know that person; you have no idea what they’ve been through or what they’re struggling with daily. Don’t be the final straw that convinces them to take their life. Spread love, not bigotry.