Papa Roach Present Incredible, But Mixed, Messages About Suicide

I am seriously struggling with this topic, but something needs to be said.

During part of the show during their current tour, the band Papa Roach presents an incredible, very heartfelt message about suicide prevention. It is effective, heard, and very well received. As someone who was left behind due to suicide, I can tell you that the message meant the world to me and I nearly broke.

During another part of the show, Jacoby Shaddix also revealed his own struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts and said he wasn't going to take a pill " 'Cause f@#% that" and instead turned to gratitude and a higher power (which of course got cheers in the conservative bible belt) I am so incredibly glad that his course of action worked for him, but to discount the other is dead wrong. 100% wrong.

Even the P.S.A. that was shown during the show (you can see it below), talked about how you're not in a proper state of mind when you're suicidal, and asking someone to adopt a philosophy when they are in crisis mode is a little ridiculous. There is a reason why we take people who've been in car accidents to hospitals and not churches.

If you are burgeoned by depression or suicidal thoughts you should not say "F@#% that" to any solution presented to you. It's an "all hands on deck" type of situation and you should keep all options open. The solutions can be anywhere on a scale from medicine to counseling, or even the solution Jacoby chose. There is NO wrong answer to getting well.

I will tell you from my own struggles that I required medicine for many years. This allowed me time to heal mentally and begin a life full of gratitude and thankfulness (I also found reading about Stoicism helped a lot). If religion works for you that's fantastic, but it's a lot to take on when you're already having mental problems.

I can tell you in my dealing with Jacoby that he is very genuine and he may not even realize that he was putting out mixed messages. I hope no one ever says "F@#% that" and takes on a battle bigger than they can handle. If you or a loved one is experiencing suicidal thoughts, get help immediately and grab any lifeline you can, then sort the rest out later.

Just dial "988" to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (in English and Spanish).