Wellness: 2018 National Suicide Prevention Week September 9th-15th & The I’m Listening Podcast

September 10th is World Suicide Prevention Day which is observed annually during National Suicide Prevention Week. Today is the first day of National Suicide Prevention Week and I started the week by sitting in the car trying my hardest to hold back tears as I listened to the two hour long 2018 I’m Listening Podcast hosted by BJ Shea of KISW in Seattle alongside Dr. Ursula Whiteside of Now Matters Now. The discussion is meant to raise awareness to the suicide epidemic and hopefully lift some of the stigma associated with mental illness.

During the discussion listeners were able to call in and share their stories and several celebrities and healthcare providers voiced their support of raising awareness to the mental health crisis. Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale talked about launch of the #RaiseYourHorns Mental Health Campaign she started following the death of Huntress’s lead singer Jill Janus. Olympian Michael Phelps and singer Alessia Cara were panelists and they both shared their personal struggles with anxiety and depression. Michael Phelps also shared that he uses Talkspace in addition to seeing his therapist and Alessia Cara also talked about the 2017 song by rapper Logic, “1-800-273-8255” (Suicide Prevention Hotline) which she was featured on along with Khalid. 

The entire podcast was relatable, tips on how to cope with anxiety/depression and how to ask for help during your dark times were shared throughout the segment, as well as tips on how to be a good listener to someone struggling with anxiety and depression. Check out the podcast here.