This #SuicidePreventionMonth we can't ignore the power that capitalism has in decimating people's desire to continue living.

As long as mental and physical health resources are paywalled and as long as worth is determined by profit generated, suicides numbers will grow.

Then there's the pain Olympics aspect, that someone suffering cries out for help, but it is set aside because of the "what makes you think your suffering is worse than mine?" mindgame bullshit.
Our experiences of pain are unique to us and no one gets to invalidate that.

The cognitive dissonance of ppl who post "you can reach out to me anytime!" and then make no effort to do so themselves, or who fail to recognize what that reaching out looks like, cause an even larger rift to grow because our pain then has to look a certain way to be valid.

Universal healthcare is suicide prevention. Police and prison abolition are suicide prevention. The abolition of ICE is suicide prevention. UBI is suicide prevention. Abolishing student debt is suicide prevention. A Green New Deal is suicide prevention.

Radical changes in our society's perception of humanity is necessary.

I say all this as someone who has struggled with suicide ideation repeatedly. A lot of it coming down to the idea that I'm a monster and my own community hates me and the pain that comes with that.

That's not true, but it's my *perception* and internalized belief. I was fortunate to find a counselor while I was abroad who helped me overcome a lot of this relationship to money and self worth. But that pain was very, very real and tangible and I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

And the healing components are not only psychological, but physical and mental. A human body that has never known or been taught how to recognize physical safety can never put words to that sensation. It was the voice and EBAS training I was introduced to that helped me heal.

And it's an ongoing journey. This kind of feeling can creep up and strangle your heart when you least expect it. Having a support system is currently a privilege, but it should be a human right. Therapists, counselors, doctors, groups, these should be available to everyone.

But community stretches onwards and outwards. It is an echo in that the care we put in returns to us, it is a net in that the more strands of care we create, the fewer who are lost in the darkness.

Suicide can be prevented, not by taking the knife or pills or gun out of someone's hand, but by scaffolding a community where everyone has access to the *type* of care that *they* need. Housing, food, education, medication, clean water, transportation, access to nature.

"oh but Erika, it sounds like you've gone and made it political!"

Yeah, suicide is a political topic because every barrier to a safe livelihood directly comes from political decisions that are being made on a person's behalf, outside of their own autonomy.

tl;dr

Suicide can be prevented through socialism, but y'all want to make it about the failures of the individual rather than the failures of society.

I'd like to clarify that this thread is based on my personal beliefs and it is generalized, but still an important point. Everyone's despair is different, but we should work to make everyone's quality of life worth living.