A Tragic End


Carborendum
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Yesterday was a day of mourning for our family.  One of our children's friends just took his own life.

He was 16 years old.  He has always been one of those goofy kids that didn't really fit in.  He also had a bunch of health problems, including Crohn's disease. What we didn't know was that he had struggled with suicidal thoughts before.  His mother thought he was over them.  Apparently not.

My children were particularly close with him and his sister when we lived in the same ward.  Since the ward split, we haven't seen as much of them.  They'd only get together on special occasions.

Some time ago he soon began feeling like he was trans.  He began transitioning.  He actually found acceptance because students at the school were pretty woke -- even in a conservative district in Texas.

After a while he realized it was all a lie he'd been telling himself.  He wasn't finding acceptance as a cisgendered boy.  So it must be because he's trans.  After all he couldn't do the manly physical things many boys did.  So it must be because he wasn't a boy.  After identifying as a girl, he found acceptance.  But it was acceptance for something he wasn't.  And with the hormone therapy messing with his mind as it was, he was a freaking mess.

I don't want this to be about transgenders.  But it definitely played a role.  Society is replete with examples of people not fitting in, finding something unhealthy as a means of fitting in.  Apart from criminal gangs, I don't know of a choice that is so filled with heartache as this story that is so often repeated.

The family has not released the details (like the manner in which it was carried out).  We're expecting information on the funeral soon 

Today my wife's coworker is spending time with the mother today.  So my wife, who is normally off today, wil be filling in for her at work.  

This coworker expressed how important it was for her personally because her sons were experiencing COVID induced depression.  They're currently having suicidal thoughts quite frequently.  She's at a loss as to what to do about it. 

Even in Texas, where we're mask free and shutdown free, we still have businesses that are partially shut down, some businesses that are going under.  We have people still wearing masks by their own choice.  And that is still a visual reminder to her sons that this disease is still looming.  They were particularly struck because their father had a severe stroke (from COVID) that put him in the hospital for a while.  So every mask they see is a reminder of the time they almost lost their father.

We're going to be gearing up for a funeral soon.  And I hope the family weathers this well.

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Ouch.  Horrible tragedy.  Teen suicide has struck my ward at least twice (over 20 years or so).  

One thing to keep in mind - when a teen does this, the risk goes up for a 2nd (or 3rd) occurrence in that peer group.  I know of one family who lost two brothers to suicide within 6 months of each other.  Difficult and sensitive time to be a parent of your kiddo.  May God grant that you can be close to them at this time.  God bless your kid and this person's group of friends.

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On 4/20/2022 at 11:05 AM, NeuroTypical said:

Ouch.  Horrible tragedy.  Teen suicide has struck my ward at least twice (over 20 years or so).  

One thing to keep in mind - when a teen does this, the risk goes up for a 2nd (or 3rd) occurrence in that peer group.  I know of one family who lost two brothers to suicide within 6 months of each other.  Difficult and sensitive time to be a parent of your kiddo.  May God grant that you can be close to them at this time.  God bless your kid and this person's group of friends.

Actually, my kids are ok.  But there was another kid that was a mutual friend (I'll call her Kelly) who was having a particularly difficult time with it.  Kelly was very close to him.  My daughter and a group of friends were going to get together and do something with Kelly to cheer her up.  But for some reason all the other girls in the group decided to bail on this good Samaritan thing.  

Because my daughter is the only one in this group without a cell phone, she was at a loss as to why this was happening.  She kept trying to arrange something through email and other contact methods.  But to no avail.

We happened to know someone who knows the family and we reached out.  No response.

It is really difficult to do something nice for someone in a situation like this.

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