Mindful pauses.

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The semi-colon. An internationally recognized symbol for suicide awareness and prevention.
[The movement began with a woman named Amy and her own mental health struggles. For more about their incredible story and project, please visit Project semicolon]

A few days ago, I was in a work meeting and heard the phrase "let's take a thoughtful pause" used when a staff member felt people were rushing into a decision.

Instantly I thought of what would represent those words, "thoughtful pause", which led me to the semi-colon. In grammar, it just indicates a pause more pronounced than from comma usage alone. In mental health, it typically indicates something in reference to suicide, dependent on the person's own experience.

So rather than a thoughtful pause, because our brains are already way too overloaded with everyday life, I want to encourage a mindful pause.

Take a minute to stop thinking. Take a deep breath. Just inhale and exhale for 60 seconds, keeping nothing on your mind but those breaths. Get control of your mind again after that, if possible. If you need another 60 seconds or 10 minutes or an hour, do whatever you have to for your own mental health.

After you've done some deep breathing, find a positive. Focus on one positive. Let whatever it may be, keep you moving forward.

What if someone was second guessing their desire to commit suicide and you could help them have a mindful pause, that might prevent them from ending their life? What if in that mindful pause you changed their thinking in a positive way, and that helped them go change the world positively?

A mindful pause won't cost you anything, but can give you everything. Just remember, it's just a pause, so you must keep going forward. Find hope, move forward.


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