This is the first blog I’ve participated in without my husband, Dr. Robert Ankony, by my side. Researching and talking about my experience has been very helpful since March 19, 2016, the day Bob ended his life.
I welcome comments, shared experiences and hope you find some value here.
The following is part of a talk I gave for National Suicide Awareness Month, September 2019.
Blessings,
Cathy L. Ankony
Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US.
47,173 Americans die by suicide every year
1,400,000 suicide attempts, yearly
129 lives per day
Four times as many Americans died by suicide than alcohol related motor vehicle accidents.
Of the yearly 39,773 gun related deaths - 60 % were suicide.
240 Police Officers and Firefighters die by suicide every year, more than die in the line of duty.
20 Veterans die by suicide daily
March 19, 2016, A beautiful Saturday morning in Huntington Harbour, California, a 67 year old, husband of 38 years, father of three and grandfather of four, decorated Vietnam era Army Ranger, retired detective/sergeant and undercover narcotics officer, succumbed to the pain and darkness that accompanies Post Traumatic Stress, and depression. He had fought the pain for too long, and he couldn’t fight any more.
Ten months later his 23 year old nephew, a college student, Air Force Reservist, and veteran, succumbed to the same darkness and pain.
My husband, Dr. Robert Ankony and my nephew Senior Airman, Sean Sawyers, became statistics of the yearly gun related deaths and two of the 20 military personnel and veterans who die by suicide every day.
Nothing can take me back to the world I knew before my husband and my nephew’s suicide. But everything since then has led me to research ways to help, to understand depression and to reach out wherever I can.
Suicide isn’t an easy subject to talk about. Yet research shows that often when friends and loved ones take the uncomfortable step of talking openly about depression, and actually ask if someone they love is thinking of harming themselves, lives can be saved.
John Kevin Hines gained nationwide fame for surviving an attempt at taking his own life by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge. He, along with 18 other survivors, all attest, that the instant their hands left the bridge, they felt immediate regret.
As a survivor of the effects of suicide, the thought of that regret gives me hope that there is something I can do now, something that we can all do to help save lives.
A perfectly timed phone call, a frank conversation, or a smile from you might make all the difference in the world to someone struggling to live through the crippling pain of depression,
