Thursday, September 27, 2018

Deborah and I at the Stanley Park Seawall. We rented bicycles, and got lost, as we went around the seawall in opposite direction. Eventually, we did find our way back. It didn't seem to matter to Deborah, that we kept on cycling, even though I was beyond exhaustion. What precious memories now... No automatic alt text available.

Revelator by Josh Garrels

Trying to relax through music. I will never find a friend like the one who just passed away. Never. Never. An angel who has touched my family forever, only for the Lord to take her at age 60. I have never felt so loved and so accepted by any friend before. She was exceptional. How can we carry on with life without my daughter, and without this friend??? The pain is so deep, so deep.

"Freedom" Josh Garrels

Professional or beginner doesnt matter Every sinner is a prisoner in a body that is subject to time Now my entwined mind tries to form a straight line not like twised scoliosis of the spinal chord Construct Cross eyed carpenters are cuttin' crooked lines Can't construct man-made shrines when the winds and the water move sands of time Many minds on a deadline, yet live life like a live wire I'm not tired! Of blood and fire Spirit's moving higher than the green grass ever lifted me Spirit's moving higher... Than anything else ever lifted you Mm, see We got spirituality It's living in us like one in three Injustice is concerning me in the non-linear eternity I'm speaking paradoxically but you can nod your head now when you understand me-e-e-ee... This is for my free men whose backs wont bend in the lions den now with their eyes on the ending This is for my free women! They fight with thier love The bearers of our children Free men whose backs wont bend in the lions den now with their eyes on the ending This is for my free women They fight with thier love The bearers of our children We shine like lights exposing what lies underneath decomposing Unearth those chains that are rusted my sweet Lord, is that what i trusted in? That sin? That tomfoolery? Ugh! What it is is mental jewelery that I adorned myself with The enemy's gifts, the man-made myths, the ignorant bliss of marijuana spliffs and alchoholic fifths I got so sick and tired of it Delivered and redeemed by christ i mean It's time to start livin' and get a reason for the rhyme I dont wanna be dead-wrong on the deadline Standing on the dark side and all out of time... Like a blind pantomime's fantasize climb up his own ladder to the sunshine Nothin's mine that hasn't been given No one's alive here that hasn't been risen For 19 years i was trapped in a prison Feeding my escape by means of derision but every man-made attempt just failed when trapped in a jail of my own guilt, shame, and iniquity I was looking for freedom How'd I find freedom? Oh! Oh, freedom... from all of this He said believe He said believe Who are you telling me to belei-e-eve... yea 'Said I'm the Christ Oh! ...he said I'm the Christ So I believed. Freedom! Mhmm... yea

"Zion & Babylon" Josh Garrels 2010

Angela's LIFE Story

Revelator Josh Garrels

A beautiful song

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The story of my suicide attempt: Viktor Staudt at TEDxSaxionUniversity

Suicide Facts

home / mental health center / mental health a-z list / suicide center / suicide article

Suicide

Medical Author: Roxanne Dryden-Edwards, MD
Medical Editor: Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD

Suicide facts

Suicide is the act of purposely ending one's own life. How societies view suicide varies by culture, religion, ethnic norms, and the circumstances under which it occurs.
More than 800,000 people worldwide commit suicide each year -- more than 39,000 each year in the United States.
Self-mutilation is the act of deliberately hurting oneself without meaning to cause one's own death.
Physician-assisted suicide refers to a doctor ending the life of a person who is incurably ill in a way that is either painless or minimally painful for the purpose of ending the suffering of the individual.
The effects of suicide on the loved ones of the deceased can be devastating, resulting in suicide survivors experiencing a variety of conflicting, painful emotions.
Life circumstances that may immediately precede a suicide include recent discharge from a psychiatric hospital, a sudden change in how the person appears to feel, or a real or imagined loss.
Firearms are the most common means by which people take their lives. Other common methods include overdose of medication, asphyxiation, and hanging.
There are gender, age, ethnic, and geographical risk factors for suicide, as well as those based on family history, life stresses, and medical and mental-health status.
In children and teens, bullying and being bullied seem to be associated with committing suicide, and being bullied is apparently a risk for committing murder-suicide.
Warning signs that an individual is imminently planning to kill him- or herself may include the making of a will, getting his/her affairs in order, suddenly visiting or writing letters to loved ones, buying instruments of suicide, experiencing a sudden change in mood, or writing a suicide note.
Many people who complete suicide do not tell any health professional of their intent in the months before they do so. If they communicate a plan to anyone, it is more likely to be a friend or family member.
The assessment of suicide risk often involves an evaluation of the presence, severity, and duration of suicidal thoughts as part of a mental-health evaluation.
Treatment of suicidal thinking or a suicide attempt involves adapting immediate treatment to the sufferer's individual needs. Those with a strong social support system, who have a history of being hopeful, and have a desire to resolve conflicts may need only a brief crisis-oriented intervention. Those with more severe symptoms or less social support may need hospitalization and long-term outpatient mental-health services.
Treatment of any underlying emotional problem using a combination of psychotherapy, safety planning, medication, lifestyle improvement, and increasing social support remains the mainstay of suicide prevention.
People who are contemplating suicide are encouraged to talk to a doctor or other health professional, spiritual advisor, or immediately go to the closest emergency room or mental-health crisis center for help. Those who have experienced suicidal thinking (ideation) are commonly directed to keep a list of people to call in the event that those thoughts return. In addition to mental-health treatment, other strategies include having someone else hold all medications to prevent overdose, removing any weapons from the home, scheduling frequent stress-relieving activities, getting together with others, writing down feelings, and avoiding the use of alcohol or other drugs.
Techniques for coping with the suicide of a loved one include nutritious eating, getting extra rest, writing about their emotions, talking to others about the experience, thinking of ways to handle painful memories, understanding their state of mind will vary, resisting pressure to grieve by anyone else's time table, and survivors doing what is right for them.
To help children and adolescents cope with the suicide of a loved one, it is important to ensure they receive consistent caretaking, frequent interaction with supportive peers and adults, and an understanding of their feelings as they relate to their age.

Teen Suicide Warning Signs

While boys are more likely than girls to commit suicide, teens of both genders and all ages are at risk for suicide. It is especially tragic that the three leading causes of death in teens and young adults -- accident, homicide, and suicide -- all are preventable. Parents of teens should be aware of some of the warning signs of depression and suicide.

Learn the warning signs of teen suicide »

What is suicide?

Suicide is the act of purposely ending one's own life. How societies view suicide varies widely according to culture and religion. For example, many Western cultures, as well as mainstream Judaism, Islam, and Christianity tend to view killing oneself as quite negative. One myth about suicide that may be the result of this view is considering suicide (suicidal ideation) to always be the result of a mental illness. Some societies also treat a suicide attempt as if it were a crime. However, suicides are sometimes seen as understandable or even honorable in certain circumstances, as in protest to persecution (for example, a hunger strike), as part of battle or resistance (for example, suicide pilots of World War II, suicide bombers), or as a way of preserving the honor of a dishonored person (for example, killing oneself to preserve the honor or safety of family members).
More than 800,000 people worldwide committed suicide in 2012, with many more suicide attempts annually. That translates into someone dying by suicide every 40 seconds somewhere in the world. More than 39,000 people reportedly kill themselves each year in the United States, making it the 10th leading cause of death. The true number of suicides is likely higher because some deaths that were thought to be an accident, like a single-car accident, overdose, or shooting, are not recognized as being a suicide. The higher frequency of completed suicides in males versus females is consistent across the life span, but the ratio of men to women who complete suicide decreases from 3:1 in wealthier countries to closer to 1.5:1 in less wealthy countries. In the United States, boys 10-14 years of age commit suicide twice as often as their female peers. Teenage boys 15-19 years of age complete suicide five times as often as girls their age, and men 20-24 years of age commit suicide 10 times as often as women their age. Gay, lesbian, transgender, and other sexual minority youth are more at risk for thinking about and attempting suicide than heterosexual teens.
There are trends regarding the means of committing suicide as well. For example, the frequency of hanging, carbon monoxide poisoning, or other forms of self-suffocation increased from 1992 to 2006, while committing suicide by a gun has decreased during that period of time and has remained unchanged from 2012-2013.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people 15-29 years of age. Teen suicide statistics for youths 15-19 years of age indicate that from 1950-1990, the frequency of suicides increased by 300% and from 1990-2003, that rate decreased by 35%. However, from 1999 through 2006, the rate of suicide increased by about 1% per year and by about 2% per year from 2006 through 2014, both in the 10-24 years and the 25-64 years old age groups.
While the rate of murder-suicide remains low, the devastation it creates makes it a concerning public-health issue.
The rates of suicide can vary with the time of year, as wells as with the time of day. For example, the number of suicides by train tends to peak soon after sunset and about 10 hours earlier each day. Although professionals like police officers and dentists are thought to be more vulnerable to suicide than others, important flaws have been found in the research upon which those claims are based.
As opposed to suicidal behavior, self-mutilation is defined as deliberately hurting oneself without meaning to cause one's own death. Examples of self-mutilating behaviors include cutting any part of the body, usually of the wrists. Self-tattooing is also considered self-mutilation. Other self-injurious behaviors include self-burning, head banging, pinching, and scratching.
Physician-assisted suicide is defined as ending the life of a person who is terminally ill in a way that is either painless or minimally painful for the purpose of ending suffering of the individual. It is also called euthanasia and mercy killing. In 1997, the United States Supreme Court ruled against endorsing physician-assisted suicide as a constitutional right but allowed for individual states to enact laws that permit it to be done. As of 2016, California, Oregon, Washington, and Vermont were the only states with laws in effect that authorized physician-assisted suicide, but a number of other states are in the process of considering it. Physician-assisted suicide seems to be less offensive to people compared to assisted suicide that is done by a nonphysician, although the acceptability of both means to end life tends to increase as people age and with the severity of medical illness and the number of times the person who desires their own death repeatedly asks for such assistance.

What are the effects of suicide?

The effects of suicidal behavior or completed suicide on friends and family members are often devastating. Individuals who lose a loved one to suicide (suicide survivors) are more at risk for becoming preoccupied with the reason for the suicide while wanting to deny or hide the cause of death, wondering if they could have prevented it, feeling blamed for the problems that preceded the suicide, feeling rejected by their loved one, and stigmatized by others. Survivors may experience a great range of conflicting emotions about the deceased, feeling everything from intense emotional pain and sadness about the loss, helpless to prevent it, longing for the person they lost, questioning of their own religious beliefs, and anger at the deceased for taking their own life to relief if the suicide took place after years of physical or mental illness in their loved one. This is quite understandable given that the person they are grieving is at the same time the victim and the perpetrator of the fatal act.
Individuals left behind by the suicide of a loved one tend to experience complicated grief in reaction to that loss. Symptoms of grief that may be experienced by suicide survivors include intense emotions, like depression and guilt, as well as longings for the deceased, severely intrusive thoughts about the lost loved one, extreme feelings of isolation and emptiness, avoiding doing things that bring back memories of the departed, new or worsened appetite or sleep problems, and having no interest in activities that the sufferer used to enjoy.

What are some possible causes of suicide?

Although the reasons why people commit suicide are multifaceted and complex, life circumstances that may immediately precede someone committing suicide include recent discharge from a psychiatric hospital or a sudden change in how the person appears to feel (for example, much worse or much better). Examples of possible triggers (precipitants) for suicide are real or imagined losses, like the breakup of a romantic relationship, moving, death (especially if by suicide) of a loved one, or loss of freedom or other privileges.
Firearms are by far the most common methods by which people take their life, accounting for half of suicide deaths per year. Older people are more at risk for killing themselves using a gun compared to younger people. Another suicide method used by some individuals is by threatening police officers, sometimes even with an unloaded gun or a fake weapon. That phenomenon is commonly referred to as "suicide by cop." Although firearms are the most common way people complete suicide, trying to overdose on pills is the most common way that people attempt to kill themselves.

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What are the risk factors and protective factors for suicide?

Ethnically, the highest suicide rates in the United States occur in non-Hispanic whites and in Native Americans. The lowest rates are in non-Hispanic blacks, Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics. Former Eastern Bloc countries currently have the highest suicide rates worldwide, while South America has the lowest. Geographical patterns of suicides are such that individuals who live in a rural area versus urban area and the western United States versus the eastern United States are at higher risk for killing themselves. The majority of suicide completions take place during the spring.
In most countries, women continue to attempt suicide more often, but men tend to complete suicide more often. Although the frequency of suicides for young adults has been increasing in recent years, elderly Caucasian males continue to have the highest rate of suicide completion. Other risk factors for taking one's life include poor access to mental-health care, single marital status, unemployment, low income, mental illness, a history of being physically or sexually abused, a personal history of suicidal thoughts, threats or behaviors, or a family history of attempting suicide. A lack of access to mental-health care has also been identified as increasing the likelihood of suicide. The means of attempting suicide can have particular risk factors as well. For example, individuals who attempt suicide by jumping from a height like a bridge may be more likely to be single, unemployed, and psychotic, while those who use firearms may more often have a history of legal issues, alcoholism, and certain personality disorders.
Data regarding mental illnesses as risk factors indicate that depression, manic depression, schizophrenia, substance abuse, eating disorders, and severe anxiety increase the probability of suicide attempts and completions. Nine out of 10 people who commit suicide have a diagnosable mental-health problem and up to three out of four individuals who take their own life had a physical illness when they committed suicide. Behaviors that tend to be linked with suicide attempts and completions include impulsivity, violence against others, and self-mutilation, like slitting one's wrists or other body parts, or burning oneself.
Risk factors for adults who commit murder-suicide include male gender, older caregiver, access to firearms, separation or divorce, depression, and drug abuse or addiction. In children and adolescents, bullying and being bullied seem to be associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviors. Specifically regarding male teens who ultimately commit murder-suicide by school shootings, being bullied may play a significant role in putting them at risk for this outcome. Another risk factor that renders children and teens more at risk for suicide compared to adults is having someone they know commit suicide, which is called contagion or cluster formation.
Generally, the absence of mental illness and substance abuse, as well as the presence of a strong social support system, decrease the likelihood that a person will kill him- or herself. Having children who are younger than 18 years of age also tends to be a protective factor against mothers committing suicide.

What are the signs and symptoms for suicidal behavior?

Warning signs that an individual is imminently planning to kill themselves may include the person making a will, otherwise getting his or her affairs in order, suddenly visiting friends or family members (one last time), buying instruments of suicide like a gun, hose, rope, pills, or other forms of medications, a sudden and significant decline or improvement in mood, or writing a suicide note. Contrary to popular belief, many people who complete suicide do not tell their therapist or any other mental-health professional they plan to kill themselves in the months before they do so. If they communicate their plan to anyone, it is more likely to be someone with whom they are personally close, like a friend or family member.
Individuals who take their lives tend to suffer from severe anxiety or depression, symptoms of which may include moderate alcohol abuse, insomnia, severe agitation, loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy (anhedonia), hopelessness, and persistent thoughts about the possibility of something bad happening. Since suicidal behaviors are often quite impulsive, removing guns, medications, knives, and other instruments people often use to kill themselves from the immediate environment can allow the individual time to think more clearly and perhaps choose a more rational way of coping with their pain. It can also allow the person's caregivers or loved ones time to intervene.

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How are suicidal thoughts and behaviors assessed?

The risk assessment for suicidal thoughts and behaviors performed by mental-health professionals often involves an evaluation of the presence, frequency, severity, and duration of suicidal feelings in the individuals they treat as part of a comprehensive evaluation of the person's mental health. Therefore, in addition to asking questions about family mental-health history and about the symptoms of a variety of emotional problems (for example, anxiety, depression, mood swings, bizarre thoughts, substance abuse, eating disorders, and any history of being traumatized), practitioners frequently ask the people they evaluate about any past or present suicidal thoughts (ideations), dreams, intent, and plans. If the individual has ever attempted suicide, information about the circumstances surrounding the attempt, as well as the level of dangerousness of the method and the outcome of the attempt, may be explored. Any other history of violent behavior might be evaluated. The person's current circumstances, like recent stressors (for example, end of a relationship, family problems), sources of support, and accessibility of weapons are often probed. What treatment the person may be receiving and how he or she has responded to treatment recently and in the past, are other issues mental-health professionals tend to explore during an evaluation.
Sometimes professionals assess suicide risk by using an assessment scale. One such scale is called the SAD PERSONS Scale, which identifies risk factors for suicide as follows:

Sex (male)
Age younger than 19 or older than 45 years of age
Depression (severe enough to be considered clinically significant)
Previous suicide attempt or received mental-health services of any kind
Excessive alcohol or other drug use
Rational thinking lost
Separated, divorced, or widowed (or other ending of significant relationship)
Organized suicide plan or serious attempt
No or little social support
Sickness or chronic medical illness

What is the treatment for suicidal thoughts and behaviors? What types of specialists treat people who are suicidal?

Those who treat people who attempt suicide tend to adapt immediate treatment to the person's individual needs. Those who have a responsive and intact family, good friendships, generally good social supports, and who have a history of being hopeful and have a desire to resolve conflicts may need only a brief crisis-oriented intervention. However, those who have made previous suicide attempts, have shown a high degree of intent to kill themselves, seem to be suffering from either severe depression or other mental illness, are abusing alcohol or other drugs, have trouble controlling their impulses, or have families who are unable or unwilling to commit to counseling are at higher risk and may need psychiatric hospitalization to prevent a repeat attempt in the days following the most recent attempt by providing close monitoring (for example, suicide watch) and long-term outpatient mental-health services to achieve recovery from their suicidal thoughts or actions.
Talk therapy (psychotherapy) that focuses on helping the person understand how their thoughts and behaviors affect each other (cognitive behavioral therapy) has been found to be an effective treatment for many people who struggle with thoughts of harming themselves. School intervention programs in which teens are given support and educated about the risk factors, symptoms, and ways to manage suicidal thoughts in themselves and how to engage adults when they or a peer expresses suicidal thinking have been found to decrease the number of times adolescents report attempting suicide.
Although concerns have been raised about the possibility that antidepressant medications increase the frequency of suicide attempts, mental-health professionals try to put those concerns in the context of the need to treat the severe emotional problems that are usually associated with attempting suicide and the fact that the number of suicides that are completed by mentally ill individuals seems to decrease with treatment. The effectiveness of medication treatment for depression in teens is supported by research, particularly when medication is combined with psychotherapy. In fact, concern has been expressed that the reduction of antidepressant prescribing since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration required that warning labels be placed on these medications may be related to the 18.2% increase in U.S. youth suicides from 2003-2004 after a decade of steady decrease. While the use of specific antidepressants has been associated with lower suicide rates in adolescents over the long term, uncommon short-term side effects of serotonergic antidepressants (for example, fluoxetine [Prozac], sertraline [Zoloft], paroxetine [Paxil], escitalopram [Lexapro], or vortioxetine [Trintellix]) may include an increase in suicide. Therefore, most practitioners consider antidepressant medication an important part of treating depression while closely monitoring their patients' progress to prevent suicide.
Mood-stabilizing medications like lithium (Lithobid) -- as well as medications that address bizarre thinking and/or severe anxiety, like clozapine (Clozaril), risperidone (Risperdal), and aripiprazole (Abilify) -- have also been found to decrease the likelihood of individuals killing themselves.

How can people cope with suicidal thoughts?

In the effort to cope with suicidal thoughts, silence is the enemy. Suggestions for helping people survive suicidal thinking include engaging the help of a doctor or other health professional, a spiritual advisor, or by immediately calling a suicide hotline or going to the closest emergency room or mental-health crisis center. In order to prevent acting on thoughts of suicide, it is often suggested that individuals who have experienced suicidal thinking keep a written or mental list of people to call in the event that suicidal thoughts come back. Other strategies include having someone hold all medications to prevent overdose, removing knives, guns, and other weapons from the home, scheduling stress-relieving activities every day, getting together with others to prevent isolation, writing down feelings, including positive ones, and avoiding the use of alcohol or other drugs.

How can people cope with the suicide of a loved one?

Grief that is associated with the death of a loved one from suicide presents intense and unique challenges. In addition to the already significant pain endured by anyone who loses a loved one, suicide survivors may feel guilty about having not been able to prevent their loved one from killing themselves and the myriad conflicting emotions already discussed. Friends and family may be more likely to experience regret about whatever problems they had in their relationship with the deceased, and they may even feel guilty about living while their loved one is not. Therefore, individuals who lose a loved one from suicide are more at risk for becoming preoccupied with the reason for the suicide while perhaps wanting to deny or hide the cause of death, wondering if they could have prevented it, feeling blamed for the problems that preceded the suicide, feeling rejected by their loved one and stigmatized by others.
Some self-help techniques for coping with the stress associated with the suicide of a loved one include avoiding isolation by staying involved with others, sharing the experience by joining a support group or keeping a journal, thinking of ways to handle it when other life experiences trigger painful memories about the loss, understanding that getting better involves feeling better some days and worse on other days, resisting pressure to get over the loss, and the suicide survivor's doing what is right for them in their efforts to recover. Many people, particularly parents of children who commit suicide, take some comfort in being able to use this terrible experience as a way to establish a memorial to their loved one. That can take the form of everything from writing a poem, planting a tree, or painting a mural in honor of the departed to establishing a scholarship fund in their loved one's name to teaching others about how to survive a child's suicide. Generally, coping tips for grieving a death through suicide are nearly as different and numerous as there are bereaved individuals. The bereaved person's caring for him- or herself through continuing nutritious and regular eating habits and getting extra, although not excessive, rest can help strengthen their ability to endure this very difficult event.
Quite valuable tips for journaling as an effective way of managing bereavement rather than just stirring up painful feelings are provided by the Center for Journal Therapy. While encouraging those who choose to write a journal to apply no strict rules to the process as part of suicide recovery, some of the ideas encouraged include limiting the time journaling to 15 minutes per day or less to decrease the likelihood of worsening grief, writing how one imagines his or her life will be a year from the date of the suicide, and clearly identifying feelings to allow for easier tracking of the individual's grief process.
To help children and adolescents cope emotionally with the suicide of a friend or family member, it is important to ensure they receive consistent caretaking and frequent interaction with supportive adults. All children and teens can benefit from being reassured they did not cause their loved one to kill themselves, going a long way toward lessening the developmentally appropriate tendency children and adolescents have for blaming themselves and any angry feelings they may have harbored against their lost loved one for the suicide. For school-aged and older children, appropriate participation in school, social, and extracurricular activities is necessary to a successful resolution of grief. For adolescents, maintaining positive relationships with peers becomes important in helping teens figure out how to deal with a loved one's suicide. Depending on the adolescent, they even may find interactions with peers and family more helpful than formal sources of support like their school counselor.

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Is it possible to prevent a suicide attempt?

For the population at large, suicide-prevention strategies include increasing access to health care, promoting mental health, avoidance of drug use, and restricting access to means to complete suicide. Responsible media reporting to raise mental-health and suicide awareness, as well as how to report suicides and other violence that occurs are other suicide-prevention strategies that are often used in general populations.
Suicide-prevention measures for individuals who have a mental-health history following a psychiatric hospitalization usually involve mental-health professionals trying to implement a comprehensive outpatient treatment plan prior to the individual being discharged. This is all the more important since many people fail to comply with outpatient therapy after leaving the hospital. It is often recommended that all firearms and other weapons be removed from the home, because the individual may still find access to guns and other dangerous objects stored in their home, even if locked. It is further often recommended that sharp objects and potentially lethal medications be locked up as a result of the attempt.
Vigorous treatment of the underlying psychiatric disorder is important in decreasing short-term and long-term risk. Contracting with the person against suicide has not been shown to be especially effective in preventing suicidal behavior, but the technique may still be helpful in assessing risk, since hesitation or refusal to agree to refrain from harming oneself or to fail to agree to tell a specified person may indicate an intent to harm oneself. Contracting might also help the individual identify sources of support he or she can call upon in the event that suicidal thoughts recur.

What is the prognosis for someone who has made a suicide attempt or threat?

While most people who attempt suicide do not ultimately die by suicide, those who have tried to kill themselves are at much higher risk of completing suicide compared to those who have never attempted to do so. People who attempt suicide have been found to be at risk for developing symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with the suicide attempt being the traumatic event. This has been found to be more likely the more serious the suicide attempt and the more steps the person took in an effort to avoid detection before their demise. Given the potentially fatal prognosis of attempting suicide, the need for treatment is all the more important.

Where can people get help for suicidal thoughts?

American Association of Suicidology
http://www.suicidology.org
202-237-2280
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
http://www.afsp.org

God will Tenderly Comfort you.

From someone who recently experienced a deep loss;
"I'm finding out... you don't go from one stage of grief to another. You move back ad forth almost constantly up and down in and out of order." Haven of Rest Ministries

A dear friend brought me pink carnations to comfort us in the loss of this shocking loss of our friend,. and also in the loss of my sweetheart Deborah.

Two Poems to help you

Regarding the Loss of a Precious Friend

..."Play, smile, think of me.
Let my name be the household word
that it always was.
Let it be spoken without effort, without
the ghost of a shadow in it.
Life means all that it ever was. There is absolutely unbroken continuity.
(Forever with the Lord!)
Henry Scott-Holland

"I have always felt at times like this
there is so little anyone can say,
for there are no words that have been
invented to fit the loss of a loved one"

Helen Steiner Rice

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

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A Tribute to my Friend

I have lost a friend over the weekend. She was only 60. We are all in shock, since the last time we saw her was on my daughter Deborah's anniversary of her passing; August 18th. Here is my Tribute to this Amazing Woman.

Isaiah 57;1

The righteous perishes, and no man lays it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.Jubilee Bible

As we reflect solemnly on Barbara, I know that many know her as a friend, and many like myself believe that she was your best friend. She took her nursing attributes into the friend zone, as she took care of each of us with a holistic approach. She wanted us to be well, mentally, spiritually, and physically. She would come up with games, and write the most lovely cards, with butterflies all over the envelope. You were made to feel worthy no matter what class you came from and you can be in your nighty, or out with her in an elaborate restaurant and fit right in. She could dine with a pauper or a king, and be delighted with her audience. She was tenacious, and knew of the best places to shop, not just in Canada, but particularly in the States. She loved to travel, but her travels were also with a purpose; to visit friends and relatives who were aging. She loved fine jewelry, and she deserved every one that her loving husband gave her. Some she had a hand in designing I think, rubies and diamonds. She loved beautiful things, and loved sharing it with others. I particularly got to know Barbara after the loss of our daughter four years ago, but our friendship goes back to Surrey Christian school, as our children attended there well over a decade ago.

Barbara and her family would show up with countless meals on those very unbearable days. She has more crockpots than anyone I know. She would bring over books of Penguins in Germany or an article in the paper about a nurse in her graduating class who sent masses of equipment to Africa. She was preparing and looking forward to seeing all her nursing friends at an upcoming reunion in a few weeks. She was practical and magnificent. She took me to Macey's in the states to pick out a dress for my second daughter's wedding and she spoiled me . She knew how to communicate with the most needy, and the most educated. Barbara spared nothing from making an occasion as simple as it may be; superb! She was a magnificent organizer. Everything was in her calendar, but did not possess a cell phone; Bayshore can reach her on her home phone if they indeed needed her. Paul would later share that she would often take the hardest of cases, and they had great confidence in her ability to handle these situations. I can say with certainty that her clients were like family to her. She would enroll a child into preschool at her cost, and buy strollers and other necessities from her own purse.Above all her family was her greatest achievement and cause for motivation. She spoke fondly of them always.Enrolling Carleigh in sewing, and craft classes, and camping at Timberline Ranch, private school and chauffeuring them to the many school functions. She was proud of her son Jacob who recently moved out, and confident that he would transform his place to his own design. She was happy of their well deserved reputable jobs.

I will tremendously miss her sweet confident voice, and assurances, and wisdom that she gladly shared. 2 Tim 4;7 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8From now on the crown of righteousness is laid up for me, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but to all who crave His appearing.…

Barbara lived the Christian walk; she knew with certainty this Bible verse;

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Colossians 3:23-24 | NIV

Barbara has received her inheritance. May we carry the baton she passed forward.

With All my Love

Maria

Monday, September 24, 2018

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Viktor Orbán vs. Sargentini Report

Hungarian Prime Minister.. So proud of my heritage

80 yr old Cartoon

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Surrey's Light Rail Future

We have a municipal election. I am voting AGAINST these slow 21.4 km per hour considering wait times and stops for SURREY.. I'm voting SAFE SURREY>>

Playing A Violin With Three Strings

Playing A Violin With Three Strings
Jack Riemer

On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on stage to give a concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City.

If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio as a child, and so he has braces on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches. To see him walk across the stage one step at a time, painfully and slowly, is an awesome sight.

He walks painfully, yet majestically, until he reaches his chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.

By now, the audience is used to this ritual. They sit quietly while he makes his way across the stage to his chair. They
remain reverently silent while he undoes the clasps on his legs. They wait until he is ready to play.

But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars, one of the strings on his violin broke. You
could hear it snap - it went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that sound meant. There was no mistaking what he had to do.

We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage - to either find another violin or else find another string for this one. But he didn't. Instead, he waited a moment, closed his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again.

The orchestra began, and he played from where he had left off. And he played with such passion and such power and such purity as they had never heard before.

Of course, anyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic work with just three strings. I know that, and you know that, but that night Itzhak Perlman refused to
know that.

You could see him modulating, changing, re-composing the piece in his head. At one point, it sounded like he was de-tuning the strings to get new sounds from them that they had never made before.

When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. And then people rose and cheered. There was an extraordinary outburst of applause from every corner of the auditorium. We were all on our feet, screaming and cheering, doing everything we could to show how much we appreciated what he had done.

He smiled, wiped the sweat from this brow, raised his bow to quiet us, and then he said - not boastfully, but in a quiet, pensive, reverent tone - "You know, sometimes it is the artist's task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left."

What a powerful line that is. It has stayed in my mind ever since I heard it. And who knows? Perhaps that is the definition of life - not just for artists but for all of us.

Here is a man who has prepared all his life to make music on a violin of four strings, who, all of a sudden, in the middle of a concert, finds himself with only three strings; so he makes music with three strings, and the music he made that night with just three strings was more beautiful, more sacred, more memorable, than any that he had ever made before, when he had four strings.

So, perhaps our task in this shaky, fast-changing, bewildering world in which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left.

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

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The rest of my week in a nutshell

It is such a beautiful day outside. The fire smokes are no longer in our air. Today may be one of the final sunny days for some time. Fall is coming, and I can't wait to do a few final days of gathering in our garden. I usually bring in all my clay pots, pressure wash mats, and cover gardening tables etc that have to be out in the elements. Despite my lovely 10x10x10 feet shed, there will be lawn chairs covered, amongst other things before the snow arrives.
Yesterday, I grudgingly paid a speeding ticket before re insuring my car. This sweet man comes to my house, and has all the papers for me to sign. Last year I met him for the first time, and he is missing his foot which makes him considerably shorter when he has to walk on the one side. This year, I met him at the door. He even gave me a courtesy call of his delay in traffic. I admire people like him, who despite the challenge of life (I believe he was in a fire and acquired his injury there) they have a huge smile on their face, and carry on supporting their families.
Today, I will have to prepare for my ESL volunteer class for tomorrow. I will be teaching an intermediate group. My friend is undergoing minor surgery so I have been asked to help out. I gladly do. Some of my friends I have not heard from for a while. I think one is still dealing with the last of her blueberry season chores. She has goats, and blueberries, and trucks that her husband drives.
Friday, friends are coming over who also lost their youngest child in his teens. I hope to make a very nice dinner, but as of this moment I can't think of what I will cook. This is my week in a nutshell. I hope yours is very pleasant. Hugs to all of you.

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

The opioidcrisis killed at least 1,036 Canadians between January and March 2018

Canada has seen more than 8,000 apparent opioid deaths since 2016

The opioid crisis killed at least 1,036 Canadians between January and March 2018

Catharine Tunney · CBC News · Posted: Sep 18, 2018 2:53 PM ET | Last Updated: 2 hours ago

An anti-fentanyl ad is seen on a sidewalk in downtown Vancouver, Tuesday, April, 11, 2017. (Jonathan Hayward/Canadian Press)

At least 1,036 Canadians died in the first three months of this year of what appeared to be opioid overdoses, raising the opioid epidemic's national death toll to more than 8,000 people since January 2016, according to newly released government figures.
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada's latest trend report, 94 per cent of the deaths between January and March of this year were accidental and most of those deaths involved the powerful pain medication fentanyl.
"The latest data suggest that the crisis is not abating," said Chief Public Health Officer of Canada Dr. Theresa Tam and Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, in a joint statement.
They co-chair the government's special advisory committee on the opioid overdose epidemic.

Canadians' average life expectancy could be cut by opioid scourge

Alberta considers whether to follow B.C.'s lawsuit against pharma companies over opioid crisis

The report shows Western Canada — particularly British Columbia and Alberta — remains the region of the country hardest hit by the epidemic, but no province has gone unscathed.
Men continue to be among the demographics hardest hit by opioid deaths. More than three quarters of the apparent victims of fatal opioid overdoses in 2018 were men.
The federal health minister said there was no silver-bullet solution to solving the opioid crisis sweeping across the country.
"The numbers that have been released today are nothing but tragic, actually. We see that the numbers are continuing," said Ginette Petitpas-Taylor. "As the health minister, it's certainly the number 1 priority that I am dealing with."

Politics News

Health Minister on opioid deaths

00:00 01:39

Ginette Petitpas-Taylor spoke to the CBC's Paul MacInnis after QP on Tuesday 1:39

In 2016, slightly more than 3,000 Canadians died of apparent opioid overdoses. That number grew to close to 4,000 deaths last year.
The numbers are expected to change as more data are made available.

The health agency also released the results of a study it did with coroners, medical examiners and toxicologists from across the country.

While the interviewees noted they saw deaths occur in multiple socioeconomic categories, the most frequently observed characteristics of opioid overdose victims included a history of mental health concerns, substance use disorder, decreased drug tolerance, being alone at the time of the overdose and a lack of social support.

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Province’s fight against opioid crisis showing progress: N.S. chief medical officer

By Michael MacDonald The Canadian Press

WATCH: In anticipation of rising overdose deaths, Nova Scotia health officials created an opioid use and overdose plan in October 2016. As Alexa MacLean reports, several investments into treatment and prevention have been made since then.

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Nova Scotia’s fight against Canada’s growing opioid crisis is showing notable progress, the province’s chief medical officer says.
Dr. Robert Strang told a news conference Friday that the number of opioid overdose deaths in Nova Scotia has remained stable in the past year, which is considered a success in a country where the number of accidental opioid-related deaths continues to rise.

“The fact that we’re not increasing is an indication of the positive impact of the work we’re doing and the investments made,” Strang said in an interview. “Our initial investment in harm reduction is making a difference.”
READ MORE: Nearly 4,000 Canadians died of opioid overdoses in 2017, a new record
Between January and August of this year, there were 38 probable or confirmed opioid overdose deaths in the province, a figure that is in line with the average since 2011, Strang said. There were 63 opioid-related deaths in 2017.
Across Canada, there were 3,671 accidental apparent opioid-related deaths in 2017, according to the latest federal figures. That represents a 40 per cent increase when compared with the previous year.
The problem is particularly acute in British Columbia, where the per capita rate is three times the national average. There were 1,399 opioid-related deaths reported in B.C. in 2017, up from 974 in 2016.
The British Columbia government declared a public health emergency in 2016.
“Our problem in Nova Scotia is not to that extent,” said Strang.
Nova Scotia’s issue is mainly with misuse of prescription drugs rather than street drugs.

“But we are starting to see greater indications of illicit opioids in our street drug supply, but not to the same extent as other parts of the country,” he said.

Strang said the Nova Scotia government has committed stable, annual funding to combat the problem, which has resulted in the opening of three new treatment centres, a substantial increase in the number of people receiving treatment, and reduced waiting lists and wait times.
In fact, there is no longer a waiting list for treatment in the Halifax area, he said, adding that the wait times in rural areas have been reduced to days instead of weeks.
The province has also distributed 5,000 take-home naloxone kits to at-risk Nova Scotians and their families. Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can stop or reverse an opioid overdose.
To date, the province has received reports that 90 of the kits have been used to save people from opioid overdoses.
“Those were the only ones that were reported,” Strang said. “I think it’s safe to say there were probably more that weren’t reported.”
Earlier this week, the British Columbia government filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies in an attempt to recoup the costs associated with opioid addiction.
WATCH: A mobile outreach bus that was once used to combat an extreme shortage in access to opioid addiction, is being sold.

The lawsuit names 40 defendants, including OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma. None of the allegations made in the lawsuit has been proven in court.
Last month, New Brunswick said it was considering launching or joining a similar lawsuit, and in March a Saskatchewan judge rejected a $20-million national settlement against Purdue Pharma (Canada), saying it was inadequate.
Meanwhile, Nova Scotia is considering its options.
“That’s something that we’ll be looking at, in collaboration with other provincial and territorial governments,” Strang said.
In the U.S., drugmakers are facing hundreds of lawsuits from governments claiming the companies played a role in sparking opioid overdose crisis that killed 42,000 Americans in 2016.