A Friend's Illness

A friend from high school committed suicide yesterday.

Years ago, I would have attributed this to weakness and would have been so sad at how depressed he must have been at that time. My sadness still remains but for a different reason. He has suffered for so long.

I remember when he started showing signs of bipolar in college. He would wait in front of my apartment for hours some days for me to return from class just to talk for 30 seconds.I also remember not understanding all of it but knew he was sick.

Now after spending months observing severe mental illness – I know how much he must have suffered these last 10 years.

Just as anyone with a physical illness suffers, so does one with a mental illness. But for some reason people have so much more sympathy for people with a physical illness. When my grandmother died a couple of years ago, I cried for months before and days after. I knew how much her illness made her suffered and how the torture ended for her. My friend was too young and didn’t get to experience the riches of growing old and the things my grandmother experienced but he was ill and suffering.

I can’t imagine ending my life but I can’t imagine the torture people like my friend experience because of their mental illness.

I am so sorry Drew.