I completely agree with spenno on this. As someone who deals with depression, and has had suicidal thoughts, I can attest that understanding the harm that such an act would cause not only to my children, but my parents, my brother and his family, and my close friends All of those people have at times been my only reason to live. I couldn’t bear the thought of deeply scarring my children, breaking their hearts forever. And I didn’t want to let my parents and my friends down. I knew they loved me, and they were undeserving of the pain I would’ve caused them. I’ve since found countless things to live for and reasons to be happy, but in my lowest times, the knowledge of the hurt I would’ve caused them is absolutely what kept me alive.

seems like the opposite though.

How so? He agrees that suicide is selfish and that people should just “stay strong” for other people - then describes how he believes that only because of his own individual experience, as if that applies to everyone else. That’s not empathetic at all.

His entire post was about how his family and friends would be affected. That's empathy.

The only reason I don’t blow my brains out is because of how much it would devastate my wife. That is it. I could never do that to her. That doesn’t mean I think other people who commit suicide are being selfish.

Anyway, here is a random graph I found. What what was going on in 1970 and 1990?

Please call 800-273-8255, LV

Anthony Bourdain is nobody to me. My wife is a fan, so I know him. I couldn’t get past the smugness. But the reactions here by keyboard slammers I appreciate - LV, Joey, Ruddo, etc. - bring me back to just over a year ago. I didn’t know Cornell, but I cried. I stayed home from work, watched Cornell videos all day, and hit refresh on threads here. I tried to make sense of it. I was sad and angry. I felt ripped off. Mostly, because I loved him, I convinced myself that it was drugs and that he wasn’t in his right mind.

And here’s the thing: he probably wasn’t. In the past year I’ve had more days where I’ve thought about suicide than not. I think about it early in the morning when I’m walking the dog and late at night when I’m drinking alone. I don’t know why. I have a good job, great friends, a loving wife, healthy kids, and numerous things to look forward to. I also have depression, anxiety, misophonia, and almost certainly bipolar disorder, but I’ll never go in for any of it because I’m terrified that I’ll be prescribed a pill, take it with alcohol, and do what I wouldn’t otherwise do. Cornell wrote songs about suicide for 30 years, and then a pill or 6 took away the inhibition. Sober me would never type this on RM. I’ll be embarrassed in the morning.

So tonight I finished off another Costco bottle of cheap whiskey. I haven’t been sober for more than 48 hours since Thanksgiving. Tomorrow, I’ll try again. I have an 11 year old, too. And an 8 year old. But I’m not 61. Just 41. Miles to go before I sleep. Rip, Anthony, and everyone else who gave in today.

Anthony Bourdain is nobody to me. My wife is a fan, so I know him. I couldn’t get past the smugness. But the reactions here by keyboard slammers I appreciate - LV, Joey, Ruddo, etc. - bring me back to just over a year ago. I didn’t know Cornell, but I cried. I stayed home from work, watched Cornell videos all day, and hit refresh on threads here. I tried to make sense of it. I was sad and angry. I felt ripped off. Mostly, because I loved him, I convinced myself that it was drugs and that he wasn’t in his right mind.

And here’s the thing: he probably wasn’t. In the past year I’ve had more days where I’ve thought about suicide than not. I think about it early in the morning when I’m walking the dog and late at night when I’m drinking alone. I don’t know why. I have a good job, great friends, a loving wife, healthy kids, and numerous things to look forward to. I also have depression, anxiety, misophonia, and almost certainly bipolar disorder, but I’ll never go in for any of it because I’m terrified that I’ll be prescribed a pill, take it with alcohol, and do what I wouldn’t otherwise do. Cornell wrote songs about suicide for 30 years, and then a pill or 6 took away the inhibition. Sober me would never type this on RM. I’ll be embarrassed in the morning.

So tonight I finished off another Costco bottle of cheap whiskey. I haven’t been sober for more than 48 hours since Thanksgiving. Tomorrow, I’ll try again. I have an 11 year old, too. And an 8 year old. But I’m not 61. Just 41. Miles to go before I sleep. Rip, Anthony, and everyone else who gave in today.

This is the best post I’ve ever read on RM.

Anthony Bourdain is nobody to me. My wife is a fan, so I know him. I couldn’t get past the smugness. But the reactions here by keyboard slammers I appreciate - LV, Joey, Ruddo, etc. - bring me back to just over a year ago. I didn’t know Cornell, but I cried. I stayed home from work, watched Cornell videos all day, and hit refresh on threads here. I tried to make sense of it. I was sad and angry. I felt ripped off. Mostly, because I loved him, I convinced myself that it was drugs and that he wasn’t in his right mind.

And here’s the thing: he probably wasn’t. In the past year I’ve had more days where I’ve thought about suicide than not. I think about it early in the morning when I’m walking the dog and late at night when I’m drinking alone. I don’t know why. I have a good job, great friends, a loving wife, healthy kids, and numerous things to look forward to. I also have depression, anxiety, misophonia, and almost certainly bipolar disorder, but I’ll never go in for any of it because I’m terrified that I’ll be prescribed a pill, take it with alcohol, and do what I wouldn’t otherwise do. Cornell wrote songs about suicide for 30 years, and then a pill or 6 took away the inhibition. Sober me would never type this on RM. I’ll be embarrassed in the morning.

So tonight I finished off another Costco bottle of cheap whiskey. I haven’t been sober for more than 48 hours since Thanksgiving. Tomorrow, I’ll try again. I have an 11 year old, too. And an 8 year old. But I’m not 61. Just 41. Miles to go before I sleep. Rip, Anthony, and everyone else who gave in today.