November 18 is International Survivors of Suicide Loss Day or Survivor Day for short.

Though organizations such as the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention host events and online forums, I have never attended one. For me, this day serves as a much-needed reminder that I’m not alone.

Losing a parent at a young age is incredibly difficult; losing them to suicide makes everything even more painful and confusing. The concept of suicide is hard to grasp, regardless of age.

Nobody will ever fully understand why someone chose to take their own life, except that individual. I hate that I’ll never know why my dad chose suicide.

My lack of understanding my father’s actions kept me from talking about his death, partly because I never knew what to say or how to explain it. I didn’t know anyone who had lost a parent, or anyone else to suicide, so I felt like no one would understand me.

That all changed in the spring of 2016 when I attended my first Comfort Zone Camp overnight in New Jersey. This camp is specifically for kids who have lost a sibling or parent to suicide.

At first, I was hesitant to go, because I expected it to be like the support group I was dragged to when I was younger where everyone sat around awkwardly telling their sob stories. What I faced was entirely different and exceedingly better than what I expected.

Everyone there is a normal kid or teenager trying to make sense of life after suicide loss and find others to connect with, just like me. Unlike being at school, everyone at CZC understands how you feel and what you’re going through.

In the two years that I've been at CZC, I’ve gone to Comfort Zone, I’ve met amazing people and formed unique bonds with my friends there.

My point is that, unfortunately, suicide is common, so more people than you would expect have been affected by it in one way or another. Even though it feels like it, survivors of suicide are not alone on this complicated journey.

All you need to do is reach out and find the right way for you to connect with other people in circumstances similar to yours. For me, I have my CZC community and advocating for proper mental health awareness.

For my fellow survivors: you are a resilient, courageous, and bad-ass individual. Most importantly, you are never alone in this highly stigmatized world.