Hayley Williams offers hope on World Suicide Prevention Day
Paramore‘s Hayley Williams shared a hopeful message on mental health for World Suicide Prevention Day, the singer posting a series of tweets that detail her own struggle with depression and a desire to overcome the disorder.
Read more: Hayley credits music, friendship with her survival
“yesterday was #WorldSuicidePreventionDay,” Williams tweeted. “really I just wanna say that when my mind was super dark and hopeless, there was a part of me that felt safe being cynical & shut down. im trying to get healthier now…”
The tweets Wednesday came on the heels of this week’s annual World Suicide Prevention Day, an awareness day observed every September in order to provide worldwide commitment and action in preventing suicides.
And while the special day spurred the singer to post the positive mental health message for her many Twitter followers, she earlier recalled a PARAHOY! cruise breaking point that caught her reflecting on some somber situations.
She told The Tennessean that she only “physically and emotionally survived” her recent hardships “because of music and because of my friendships. It kind of remained a very heavy truth for me the next few years.”
Read the tweets below:
yesterday was #WorldSuicidePreventionDay. really i just wanna say that when my mind was super dark and hopeless, there was a part of me that felt safe being cynical & shut down. im trying to get healthier now… and it’s a lifestyle shift. sometimes it feels uncomfortable…
— hayley from Paramore (@yelyahwilliams) September 12, 2018
and i don’t always do it well… but i hope that if you struggle with darkness that you will try and remember to let yourself feel joy when it comes. im trying too. sometimes i feel like i probably look less “cool” or i worry that i’m somehow faking it.
— hayley from Paramore (@yelyahwilliams) September 12, 2018
but! i try hard to call out and recognize joy when i feel it, or even when i see it on my friends. thankful for any chance to feel a genuine smile… not only on my face but deeper than that. if you feel darkness, i hope you’ll wait for joy. it will come again and it is worth it.
— hayley from Paramore (@yelyahwilliams) September 12, 2018
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental illness, there is help to be found. Please consider these online resources and talk to your regular doctor about your symptoms:
- MentalHealth.gov – Get Immediate Help
- ImAlive – Online Crisis Network
- International Association For Suicide Prevention – Resources
- The Anxiety And Depression Association Of America
- The National Alliance On Mental Illness
- American Psychiatric Association – Finding Help
- National Institute Of Mental Health
- American Psychological Association – Psychologist locator
