Scroll down to the Now Matters Now segment of this broadcast. As always, @ursulawhiteside has fascinating and important insights into the #suicidalmind. What’s a “stop, drop, and roll” equivalent for an emotional fire like the impulse to die by suicide? Listen to find out. https://t.co/mWsHjwC29q
— Rader Ward Foundation (@RaderWardFound) July 20, 2019
be here tomorrow
I have the honor of telling my story this weekend at a suicide prevention event organized in my hometown by a friend I grew up with, Lori Armstrong.
"Be Here Tomorrow" will feature Lori's brother, Victor Armstrong, as keynote speaker.
Victor is vice president of behavioral health with Atrium Health, based in Charlotte. He has dedicated his career to building and strengthening community resources to serve individuals living with mental illness. Victor speaks nationally and internationally on suicide awareness, particularly as it relates to underserved communities.
The event takes place from 2-5 p.m. Saturday, July 20, at Plymouth Church of Christ, Plymouth, N.C. There will also be a panel discussion/Q&A. "Be Here Tomorrow" is free and open to the public.
no rain, no flowers
happy and healthy
you are important
Follow @littlearthlings on Instagram for more inspiration like this!
Mario Monday: plant parenthood
Posted @withrepost • @casualbowser“It’s fine. You’ll grow into it.”
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#myspoonistoobig #Bowser#Koopa #KingKoopa#pirhanaplant #supermario#mario #mariobros#supermariobros #nintendo#worldofnintendo #shfiguarts#figuarts #toyartistry_and_beyond#actionfigurephotography#toyphotography #toyartistry#toyart #jakkspacific#jakksnintendotoys#actionfigures #toys#igersnintendo #bandai#videogames #nintendogram#nintendoworldpow
become an upstander against bullying
I'm continuing to share resources recommended in Life After Suicide by Dr. Jennifer Ashton. This one I knew about, but had no idea the depth and breadth of their work against bullying: the Tyler Clementi Foundation.
Please follow them on social media and take a look at their website to see how you can be an Upstander, not a bystander. You can even take the Upstander Pledge. I'm going to quote the first part of it here for you. Powerful!
"I will stand up to bullying whether I’m at school, at home, at work, in my house of worship; whether I am speaking in the digital cyber world or out in the real world with friends, family, colleagues or teammates.
"I will work to make others feel safe and included by treating them with kindness, respect and compassion.
"I will not use insulting or demeaning language, slurs, gestures, facial expressions, or jokes about anyone’s sexuality, size, gender, race, any kind of disability, religion, class, politics, or other differences, in person or while using technology.
"If I realize I have hurt someone I will apologize.
"I will remain vigilant and not be a passive audience or 'bystander' to abusive actions or words."
moving forward, not moving on
get grief support from our house
know the five signs
things suicide loss survivors should know
it will get better
The podcast is Life After Suicide, the June 4 episode called Faith and Spirituality after Suicide
mario monday: art from the domino king
new mental health resource: change direction
I just finished reading Dr. Jennifer Ashton's book, Life After Suicide: Finding Courage, Comfort, & Community After Unthinkable Loss. I'll post a book review soon, but before that I want to begin to share some of the mental health and suicide prevention resources the book introduced me to.
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First is The Campaign to Change Direction. From their website: "The goal of the Campaign to Change Direction is to change the culture of mental health so that all of those in need receive the care and support they deserve. The Campaign encourages everyone to pay attention to their emotional well-being — and it reminds us that our emotional well-being is just as important as our physical well-being."
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Change Direction grew out of another excellent mental health organization, Give an Hour. "Founded by Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen, a psychologist in the Washington, D.C., area, Give an Hour seeks to develop networks of skill-based volunteer professionals capable of responding to both acute and chronic conditions prevalent within society."
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I’ll add these two organizations to the resource page.
birthday fundraiser exceeds all expectations
My Facebook birthday fundraiser has ended and here are the details. (If you missed contributing, it's still possible any time via the donate button on our Facebook page and through our website at raderward.com/donate.)
Original goal: $3,000. Y'all generously exceeded that goal in two days.
Revised goal: $6,000 that my husband and I would match.
Total donated via Facebook: $4,930
Donated via the raderward website: $25
Total so far: $4,955!
One technical thing I learned was that if you set up a match via the Facebook donation platform, it only calculates the match on donations received after you set it up. Who knew? So since I made the match official on Thursday night, just the most recent $130 in donations were matched through the FB platform. We will write a check for the remaining $4,825. PLUS, though this fundraiser has ended, we will still match ongoing donations made through Facebook or here on the website up to the total of $6,000. The next $1,045 in donations will still earn matching funds!
Thank you all for being so generous in celebrating my 50th birthday. After recently awarding our first two Montessori scholarships at $3,000 each, I was hopeful and cautiously optimistic we could raise enough to fund the next one. You blew me away! Thanks again, so so much.