The Bridge

I saw a documentary yesterday called The Bridge which was centred around the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the amount of Suicides that take places there every year.. They filmed the bridge over a year long period and caught 23 suicides on film, then interviewed the families of the deceased.. It sounds horrific but it is so well done and with such class that, although disturbing at times, it is very emotional and enlightening.

I know this type of thing might not be for everyone and it might be a very raw subject to a lot of people as suicide is something that touches a lot of us.. But I think for a lot of people suicide, or even the thought of wanting to end your own life, is a taboo subject and the majority of people can't understand the mindset of a person with suicidal thoughts.

I have battled with bipolar disorder for the majority of my adult life and suicidal thoughts pretty much consumed my mind from the age of 15 onwards.. They aren't so much something that I battle with as they are something I have learned to live with.. But I think this documentary is very eye opening and can really help a person understand the thoughts that consume people that live with depression or mental illness and experience thoughts of this nature.

I was generally wondering if anyone else had seen this documentary as it was shown on sky recently and I think, if you can numb yourself to some of the subject matter slightly, it is amazing piece of film.

i didnt see it rich, but its the sort of thing i like to watch.... an insight to this sort of thing is interesting to watch

They have the whole thing in about 11 parts on youtube if you ever get a spare 90 minutes Shelley.. it is very eye opening and I have to say... very emotional.. especially the final scene..

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=MXz0X7CbCFw

I cant watch anything with suicide or hangings, its still too raw for me even after all these years.

Yeah I can imagine that it would be very raw to anyone who has been through it.. I think it might have been beneficial if they had made an edited version so that some of the families could share their grief and it could give some more insight into the minds of people that go through this.. After all, it is the families that are left suffering and left to feel the guilt that inevitably comes with someone taking their own life.

richie wrote:

Yeah I can imagine that it would be very raw to anyone who has been through it.. I think it might have been beneficial if they had made an edited version so that some of the families could share their grief and it could give some more insight into the minds of people that go through this.. After all, it is the families that are left suffering and left to feel the guilt that inevitably comes with someone taking their own life.

I totally agree Rich :love:

Judes wrote:

I cant watch anything with suicide or hangings, its still too raw for me even after all these years.

I am the same Jude, just can't watch it, though I should, my nephew also has Bi-polar Rich and has threatened on numerous occasions to take his life, has also attempted it so many times I have lost count.

Aww it's understandable though Sandra... When you live with seeing someone that you love going through that, I think it becomes all too clear how real it is and how much it can consume a persons mind.. The frightening thing is that it is so hard to reach people when they feel like this so helping them can seem almost impossible..