Suicide prevention aim of messages on North River bridge

Charlie Ewing knows what it's like to feel helpless.

The 17-year-old was diagnosed with depression at age 15, and struggles with suicidal thoughts.

"Nobody would think to look at me that I deal with all these things, and the voices in my head are really negative," Ewing said.

But she also knows the importance of talking about how she's feeling — and how helpful it can be to hear encouraging messages. Over the years, she's learned to talk openly about her mental illness, and says her family has been a big support.

Now, Ewing wants to help others.

Recently, she decided to share messages of hope on the North River bridge between Charlottetown and Cornwall. She tied a series of notes to the bridge railing, meant to provide hope to anyone who might be contemplating suicide. 

"I've just always been really cautious about other people and their feelings, and wanting to prevent anyone else from feeling the way I do a lot of the time," Ewing said.

Messages of encouragement

That spot along the North River bridge has been on Ewing's mind for years. Whenever she goes across the bridge, she notices flowers that are there, in memory of someone who died. 

"I've always wanted to kind of fill in that gap, and connect the dots of who this person was, and how I can make a difference and prevent it from happening again," Ewing said. 

She decided to put up notes, with messages like "Breathe," "You are enough," "You cannot be replaced," and "Asking for help is okay," along with the phone number for the Island Helpline.

"I'm just hoping that if someone was to come here again, that they'd stop for just a minute and just read one of them at least, and maybe rethink. Because I really don't want anyone else to feel that way." 

Support from others

She chose messages based on what she would want to say to someone in distress, as well as messages that have helped her over the years.

"'It's okay to not be okay' was something that I really clung onto. Because sometimes you can just feel like you have to be a particular way, and that's really hard whenever you feel like you can't. So 'it's okay to not be okay' was just sort of a nice thing for me to fall back on."

While the goal of the project was to support others, Ewing found that she received support as well. 

She posted photos on Facebook, which were shared more than 200 times. There were many supportive comments, including from people who let her know that they were thinking of her, and cared about her well-being. 

"The way my head is, it kind of makes me think that nobody would care, and to read that a random person cares is really nice."

Anyone needing emotional support, crisis intervention or help with problem solving in P.E.I. can contact The Island Helpline at 1-800-218-2885, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For more information about mental-health services on P.E.I., find resources from Health PEI here, or from the Canadian Mental Health Association P.E.I. Division here.

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