I was gonna have a closing post regarding depression, my journey and my battles in and out of it, and be totally done with the topic. But yesterday’s incident and finding out Byron died after years of fighting with his depression cast a dark shadow on me.
I’ve been following Byron, Reckful, for years now. He was a prominent personality in World of Warcraft and Twitch community and has been dealing with depression for a vast majority of his life, which makes our Venn diagram overlap in most areas. Knowing the source and the depth of his depression, I’ve always known one day the pain would get unbearable and push him over the edge, and it is ok.
Suicide is not a sign of weakness, but rather bravery. Knowing that one action can end everything that might come in the future, and still taking it, takes courage and it shouldn’t be criticized by those who can’t understand the depth of the pain. Furthermore, there is no reason for sadness and pity. They made their choice, they lived in pain for years and years, and they decided that life just doesn’t worth it. It’s theirs and theirs alone and it’s selfish to ask them to live with the pain just because we want to see them, interact with them, talk with them for an extra decade or so.
Be nice to one another, we never know what could be the last interaction we have with someone, and we certainly don’t know the battles they are fighting with in their heads.