September is national Suicide Prevention Awareness month. This also happens to be the month my son passed away two years ago, on Sept. 28, 2016.
Sadly, he did take his own life.
I'm thankful for the friends that haven't asked me about this in great detail. I'm not really prepared for follow-up questions, but I can tell you it does still feel like yesterday that my bright, smart, healthy, BMX biking 20-year-old kid was ripped from my heart.
I type this message to you today (and make it public) for families with children like my son who spend hours upon hours trying to master that "Ultimate YouTube millions of views" bike trick.
My son always wore a helmet. His helmet saved his brain many a time, but I think the last couple of bike tricks were too much. So much so that he even dislocated his shoulder - twice. I believe he had a concussion or possibly several that went undiagnosed. He never let on how bad he smashed his head, but his attitude changed. He became more distant, stopped biking, and didn't want to hang out with his friends anymore. He began to suffer from anxiety, was prescribed medication for that, which I think in the end is what led him to take his own life. This all happened within a period of nine months.
It infuriates me still as he never was one to take a pill for anything. I'm still very upset over our society's idea to have quick magic pills that even say right on them: 'Warning - may cause feelings of suicide.'
I'm not sure what the solutions are, but I can say if you notice different behaviours in your child, don't dismiss it as just 'being a teenager.' Say something, do something, don't give up and get a second opinion about them taking ANY prescription medications for anxiety, depression or any of those epidemics that are taking over this generation's life.
The worldwide BMX community video of Ryan Waldner is located here (www.northernembassy.com/2016/10/17/ryan-waldner-rip/).
Ryan's friends and family tearfully still try to say... "Ride in Peace."
Liz Ferris
Prince George
