August 11, 2015 marked the one-year anniversary of Robin Williams’ suicide. Williams’ death shocked people globally. How could it not? He appeared in over 70 movies, hundreds of television shows, and even voiced the beloved Genie for the "Aladdin" computer game. His death even shocked Koko the Gorilla, whom he met — and made smile for the first time in months following the death of her partner — in 2001. Even Koko cried after hearing that her dear friend had taken his life.

Whether you grew up with Mrs. Doubtfire, Genie, or Theodore Roosevelt in "Night At The Museum," you grew up with good movies thanks to Williams. His smile was infectious in all of his movies, even when it was hand drawn onto a big, blue, blob-of-sorts that came out of a golden lamp. Robin Williams was nothing short of a legend; he touched the lives of many and brought joy to millions people for nearly four decades — and then shocked them all the same by taking his own life.

I want you to pause and think of a fictitious person you think would be suicidal.

Do they look like this?

Or do they wear a lot of black, have few friends and wear their hair over their face?

If I had to guess, I would say you probably scoffed at the idea of someone as gorgeous as the girl above being depressed, let alone suicidal. You would be wrong. The girl above is Madison Holleran, and she committed suicide on January 17, 2014.

Madison is another face to add to your idea of suicide. Madison had so much going for her — she was recruited for not one but two sports at the collegiate level — but few people knew of the storms inside her head. When Madison saw a therapist, the only diagnosis she received was anxiety; no acceptance of depression until after Madison took her own life.

Just as depression does not discriminate, suicide does not discriminate. While, maybe, some people who fit those stereotypes you envisioned when you heard the word "suicidal" may actually be suicidal, some of them may just be expressing themselves in that manner.

And I bet that the stereotype you envisioned definitely did not look like this.

How many people suspected six-time Golden Globe winner Robin Williams, with the infectious smile and glint in his eyes, to be suicidal? Not even his wife.

But the truth is, 40,000 people commit suicide each year — that's one suicide every 13 minutes — in the United States alone. And the overwhelming majority of these suicides come as a complete and utter shock to the families left behind. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death in 15-34 year olds, and the tenth leading cause of death overall. It is a silent epidemic that is plaguing a large portion of our population at increasing rates, but it will never be any easier to see.

You can't physically see suicidal thoughts; it's not like a broken bone where you can take an x-ray and put a cast on it. The metaphorical band-aid that's necessary for alleviating the symptoms of suicide is much more complex than plaster and cotton — it requires effort by both the sufferer and the people there to help.

Suicide does not need to be such an onerous topic of conversation, it needs to be taught in schools, just the way that we learn about STDs and cancer. Young adults need to be aware of the prevalence, signs and symptoms of depression before it has the chance to plague them with thoughts of suicide as well. An estimated one in 11 children have some form of depression before the age of 14, so what good are we doing teenagers waiting until they're 18 (or having suicidal thoughts, whichever comes first) to educate them on getting help?

You see, the more silence we give suicide, the more powerful it grows. The more silent we, as a society, stay about mental illness, the more that people suffering will stay silent. Help everybody help themselves. Don't stay silent about mental illness, and don't stay silent about suicide.

There is nothing wrong with people who are depressed; it is not a choice that someone willingly makes. And suicide is not a "cause of death;" it is a deadly side effect to so many different aspects of life. The only thing that is feeding this disease, is silence about it. Just as doctors give out contraception to protect against pregnancy, society needs to give out acceptance of mental illness to protect against suicide.

Madison Holleran and Robin Williams are just two people in the tens of thousands to commit suicide in the last 18 months, and their stories need to continue to be shared. In a way, they have both become advocates in suicide prevention. Both of their suicides shocked the nation, and both of their suicides can be taken as a lesson:

Out of sight does not mean out of mind, and out of conversation does not mean out of society.

Need help? 24-Hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1 (800) 273-8255