When we were little, we could not wait to grow up. We wanted to know how it felt to take on new responsibilities, and ultimately, be considered a "grown up." Little did we know that growing up would also put on a load of baggage on our shoulders, whether it was school, getting into new types of relationships, fitting in, learning what was the norm and what wasn't, finding the first job, going to college and essentially just dealing with the what comes in the package of life.

Personally, I've always wanted to grow up quickly. Every chance I got knowing how it felt to be older, I would grasp onto the idea of being able to be considered an adult. I didn't want to be considered a child anymore. I hated being told "You don't know how ______ feels like, but don't worry you will when you grow up."

Little did I know that growing up would mean I would have to make some of the hardest decisions of my life. These decisions consisted of many things on the scale of figuring out what friendships to keep and let go of, figuring out what this idea of love was, seeing that there will be ignorant people around you and realizing that I could not just go with the flow with life anymore because I needed to find a career. At a point, I said to myself, "Growing up sucks."

But what can one really do? We just have to take it as it goes. Take one obstacle at a time and keep pushing onto the next one. I thought the same, until I encountered someone's first suicide experience.

Being the age that I was at the time, I could not grasp onto the idea of why someone would want to take their own life. Even being 19 years old now, I still question myself why such a feeling like this exists in this world. What is it that makes such a feeling come about? What is it about this world that makes people go to such an extreme? What is it about that it was capable of making me lose someone so close to me?

The answer can be so many things that we cannot put altogether. Even so, there are so many things that society can do to prevent suicide from being okay—ultimately, from being a decision that people have to resort to.

Before trying to slow the rate of suicide, there is something that needs to be clear. It needs to be understood that suicide is not a selfish act. Some people argue that suicide is a selfish act because it ends the problems and troubles for the person committing it, but simultaneously, opens up problems emotionally for the people left behind. One may agree with this, but also forget that this person may have been unhappy, perhaps depressed, for feeling disconnected from the people around them and even society as a whole. Ultimately, it makes them feel unworthy in the world, and in this moment, ending the life is perceived as the only solution. It is a decision made from how he or she feels.

Now, where does our responsibility fall into this? Where does society fall into this?

1. Don't denounce depression or any type of mental illnesses.

Let's start with one scenario first. Why is it always that when we find out that someone that we know has died, we start browsing for every good thing to say about that person? Why is that people were just trash-talking about this person seconds before their death? Now scenario two. Why is it that people have nothing to say to someone who has died from a mental illness, but when someone commits suicide because of depression, there is so much to say? Now let's combine these two scenarios. There are so many people who give their condolences to someone when they found out that they took their own lives. Some are in shock that it happened, while some continue to stay ignorant about it. But for those who are in shock and give those kind words to the person - why couldn't you do this earlier? Why couldn't you give compassion to the person while they were suffering? Why can't society respect those who have gone through or are going through mental illnesses that they even have to deal with this in the first place? Why are these people wrong for having to deal with a mental illness? Why are they being judged?

2. Start being open-minded with the people around you and their problems.

Not many people are willing to talk about their problems, and not many people are willing to show that there is something wrong. We should all respect those who speak up about their problems because they have the strength to say something is wrong. It's easier to lie to yourself and the people around you than admitting to what could be wrong. And for those who keep to themselves, it's time you stop judging. Something may be wrong, and you may not know. So if you do not have to, stop making comments about something that you think you know because you heard it from elsewhere. It is time to be open-minded that there may be many things going on that we all do not know about. Think of walking in their shoes. How would you feel if you were going through a hard time and all you have is people giving you a hard time?

3. Stop creating ideas of what should be and what should not be.

Society needs to stop creating the images of what is considered good enough and not good enough. Nobody is perfect, as much as we all try. We all want to embrace the idea of being perfect that we start ignoring the harm that it can do. Why is it not okay to not be perfect? Why is it not okay to not be good at everything that you do? It's hard to stop society from creating such standards, but it is not hard for you to stop yourself from defining others with these standards.

4. You don't have to like everyone, but you should still respect everyone.

You don't have to like everyone. You don't have to like what someone believes or says, but liking and respect are two different things. If you have to go out of your way to show someone that you do not like them, start evaluating what matters most to you. Is it really that necessary to visualize your dislike? Or can you be a bigger person and learn to respect the person for who they are?

5. Stop saying they need help. Stop putting the help on someone else.

How would you feel if you were going through a hard time and someone said that you need help? Would that actually make you seek help, or would you now just want to keep all your emotions bottled in? Learn to be sensitive with your words and show other ways in which you can help. Not everyone can help someone going through depression and on the verge of suicide, so don't dismiss them to "someone else" that they can talk to unless you know that person can actually help.

6. Lastly, let's stop being so ignorant about suicide.

Suicide is a problem with many components to it. It is what makes it such a complex problem. There are so many things to be learned about it. So let's stop being so self-centered about suicide. We need to stop fearing it. We need to stop believing that suicide is wrong for all people, and instead, we should see how we can give the best support to those at risk for suicide. We need to stop the belief that suicide is wrong because it ultimately says that those who are suffering and at the risk of suicide owe it to those close to them in living in what they feel is unbearable. But instead, we should be saying that society needs to become better and work together in making people's life bearable so suicide is not even a decision to be thought about.