So Much to Live For: Book Review

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So Much to Live For: How to Provide Help and Hope to Someone Considering Suicide
[Purchase it on Amazon | Check it out on Goodreads]

My rating:

Genre:

Psychology // Mental Health

What it’s about:

Suicide is the nation’s tenth leading cause of death, and in 2018 nearly 50,000 people in the US died by suicide, with thousands more attempting to take their own lives. Countless others experience suicidal ideation due to depression, anxiety, addiction, and more, living for years in silent misery. The sad truth is that someone you know may be suffering.

With great compassion and clear, actionable strategies, So Much to Live For shows you what to do, what to say, and how to intervene if you suspect a friend or loved one is considering suicide. You’ll learn the signs and symptoms, understand the causes, and build the courage to step up and speak out.

God heals wounds and repairs brokenness, and he often does it using people like you. You can be instrumental in saving the life of a suicidal person you know. This book shows you how.

My thoughts:

Depression and suicide are extremely serious topics. It’s becoming an epidemic, especially in the U.S. For some perspective, take a look at this statistic:

[su_quote]Suicide is the #2 cause of death for people between the ages of 10-34 in the United States.[/su_quote]

That’s just disturbing. I feel like this is a huge problem that needs to be addressed by many different areas of the country. But in the meantime, books like this are an excellent resource. If someone you care about could be struggling with suicidal thoughts, this book can really be a light in the darkness. The same can be said if you’re the one struggling with those thoughts too. <3

The author of So Much to Live For, Gregory L. Jantz, Ph.D. is definitely a trusted source. He’s a mental health expert and also the founder of The Center • A Place of HOPE. This center treats depression, anxiety, addiction, and other disorders.

This little book has so much information in it, so I want to sort of share a layout of that. Here’s what each part discusses:

Part 1: your role in your loved one’s struggle, statistics about suicide, reasons why people struggle with this, and common misconceptions about it.
Part 2: signs and symptoms of suicidal thoughts, understanding the descent into it, what to do if you believe someone close to you is suicidal, steps towards stability, and steps towards a hopeful future.
Other helpful stuff: an appendix of more information, and helpful resources like suicide hotlines and mental health help.

I also want to point out that at some points in this book, it has a Christian perspective. This didn’t bother me but I just want to say that there were a few parts like that. I don’t think that should really matter though, especially because this book can still be a hugely important resource during a mental health crisis and it’s a big source of hope.

I also want to say as someone who has struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts for a long time now, this book is also important because it offers help beyond the immediate situation. Suicidal thoughts do go away, but it’s important to know how to deal with them when they come back – because they will probably come back. I feel like it does get easier each time but it can be a lifelong struggle, just like addiction. This book shows you how to handle it during those situations.

It talks about how your sleep, your nutrition, your social interactions, your intellectual growth – how so many different things play a part in your mental health. This is some seriously useful information.

I gave this book 5/5 stars and I truly hope that you give it a chance if this problem speaks to something you can relate to. 💜