Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US. It is estimated that, on average, 129 Americans take their own lives each day. And it's not just the US that has this prevalent problem. Around 800,000 people commit suicide each year, with low- and middle-income countries accounting for over 70% of deaths. While suicide attempts have reached staggering rates, we know for a fact that the problem is highly preventable.
With many people seeing this as a problem that should be handled by the government or mental health professionals only, we sometimes forget about the actions that can be taken on an individual level. Recently, a woman from Florida showed an example of how not being indifferent could save lives.
While suicide attempts have reached staggering rates, we know for a fact that this social problem is highly preventable. With many people seeing this as a problem that should be handled by the government or health professionals only, we sometimes forget about the actions that can be taken on an individual level. Recently, a woman from Florida showed an example of how not being indifferent could save lives.
Cristina Settanni, who works in healthcare, was driving to work one morning when she passed by a man sitting on the ledge of an overpass. After realizing that the man might be planning to jump off a bridge, the kindhearted woman was compelled to pull over and offer help, especially since out of the hundreds of cars that were passing by, no one else stopped to help.
The woman revealed that she stopped because she could relate to the way the man was feeling. Settanni explained that she has been in a situation when ending her own life seemed like the only option. However, she pulled through and knew exactly what needs to be said to a person with such mental problems.
"Who cares if one more light goes out?... I do" are the words she said to the man, and they were chosen un-coincidentally. Settanni said that it's song lyrics from "One More Light" by Linkin Park. "I don't know if it clicked with him, but he just cried," Settanni says.
Soon, police officers arrived and got him away from the edge. The man was taken to a healthcare facility.
Image credits: linkinpark
The song "One More Light" was released just two months before vocalist Chester Bennington died by suicide in July 2017. After the video of Cristina Settanni helping the man went viral, Linkin Park posted a tweet thanking her.
Watch the video below
In case you or someone you know needs support, check out these resources:
Here's how people reacted
