Trigger warning: this video includes mention of death by suicide, including suicide of minor children.
The passing away of anyone close to us always seems too soon, but when someone is taken from us due to mental illness, it can be near impossible to deal with the heartache we experience. We search out ways to cope, and to know that we are not alone in what we experience.
September is National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month. NAMI Southern Arizona wants to share these tributes we received to loved ones lost to mental illness, in hopes that we start a conversation, enable people to come forward when they are struggling, and bring awareness to this problem. With the drastic rise of mental illness deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, the time is now to start the conversation.