How 13 Reasons Why made me thankful

Hey everybody!

First of all if you are planning to watch 13 Reasons Why and have not yet seen it this post will contain spoilers so come back to this after watching. Also, there will be mentions of alcoholism, social anxiety, depression, and suicide in here so please be aware of that if you choose to continue.

So in 2 days I had watched all the episodes and the documentary of the TV show 13 Reasons Why. This show is about a girl called Hannah who leaves behind 13 cassette tapes each one singling out a different person and why they are part of the reason she decided to commit suicide. The show sugar-coats nothing, it is hard to watch, there are times I had to pause it and walk away, or I fast forwarded, cried…yeah it is a tough, but I feel important watch.

Now, when I was a teenager I was very much a mixture of Hannah and Clay, I was incredibly depressed, I suffered with social anxiety and I was suicidal. I used alcohol as an escape and I am sad to say that I was at times suicidal. I was nervous to watch this show as I worried that it would trigger old feelings and thoughts and it did but I coped with it in a very unexpected way…I became thankful!

There is a scene where Hannah and Clay both imagine what their futures could be like if she had not killed herself. This is a really sad scene, yes we want to see this glimpse, but also knowing they could never have that now was so upsetting. That scene got me thinking a lot about the times I was suicidal and wondered if I could have ever imagined where I am now?

Back then life seemed so bleak, the last time I considered ending my life I was in my early 20s, my fiance at the time had left me, I was living with my parents again and I was sick. I had not been living with my illnesses long and I was still waiting for diagnosis and to be honest everything I tried I seemed to fail at. Also as an added bonus, my father became incredibly frustrated and angry to see me so depressed and would shout and say things that I am sure now as I look back he would immediately regret.

But not long after this I started dating, I joined two dating sites and had a few dates on one and only one date on the other…that one date was my soulmate Lee and we have been married seven years! He looks after me, he is kind and funny and totally gets that I have illnesses but he never makes me feel like a burden. I have a wonderful dog, Gizmo, we live in a really lovely house and we are incredibly happy.

Over the past few years I have worked hard on my social anxiety, I have had counselling,  I can go out for a short walk with my dog, I can even talk to a shop assistant without wanting to have a total breakdown. Every day I struggle with my anxiety and depression but I have the tools now to cope with them and to work through them. I might not be able to work, but my self-worth comes from my family, my friendships and how good of a person I am.

13 Reasons Why made me feel so incredibly thankful that I did not choose the path that Hannah did, I kept fighting and things got better. As a teenager I was not able to cope with this harsh and stressful world, but now I have the support and the tools that make it easier.

Namaste xxx

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