Amy Bleuel passed away on March 23 due to suicide. She was the founder of Project Semicolon, a global and nonprofit organization to help those who are struggling with mental illness, suicide, addiction or self-injury. Bleuel created this organization to honor her father who passed away from suicide when she was 18 years old.
“The semicolon was chosen because, in literature, a semicolon is used when an author chooses to not end a sentence,” Bleuel told PEOPLE in 2015.
“You are the author and the sentence is your life. You are choosing to continue.”
The semicolon became a symbol of hope for those who struggled with self-harm and suicide.
Bleuel encouraged people to draw the semicolon on their wrists as a message of hope – a sign to show that their story isn’t over, and to fight the stigma of mental health. She dealt with mental illness for more than 20 years and experienced many stigmas associated with it. After overcoming some of her struggles, she shared her story to help others who struggle with a mental illness.
Over the past years, Project Semicolon has gained an amount of support from people with a mental illness and not. It has brought people together to help those who are suffering and understand mental illness.
It’s the leading cause of death among young people. Suicide isn’t only caused by a mental illness; a stressful environment or a trauma can lead to suicide. Not all people who die by suicide are diagnosed with a mental illness, and not all people with a mental illness attempt to end their lives.
When someone dies from suicide, a stigma hangs around. “Why didn’t they say anything? We could’ve helped.” Telling someone you have suicidal thoughts isn’t easy. The thought of asking for help from someone who’s suicidal is terrifying. It’s not easy and it has never been.
If you are struggling with a mental illness or have suicidal thoughts, do try and ask for help. I know it’s terrifying, I have been in that position. But you don’t have to tell someone face-to-face. It can be an email, a letter or even a call. Communication is one step to getting better.
You can call the National Suicide Prevention line at 1-800-273-8255, The Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 or find help at Project Semicolon itself. Remember that there is always hope.
You are not alone and your story isn’t over.
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