Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Hanging From A Rope


I don't want to write this because I'm so ashamed and disappointed in myself. It's taken me 2 weeks to come up with the courage to type it out. I guess I'll start at the beginning.

John and I have been really stressed lately. The biggest stressor is dealing with the big move. We're both worried because we're moving 2,000 miles away and neither of us will have a job. Plus, we'll be living in a tiny camper until we finish repairing the guest house. John's upset about leaving his friends and family so he's been making excuses to stay here longer. But I feel like I'm going crazy in this house so I've been trying to leave sooner. It all came to head 2 weeks ago when he came home from work. First we argued about him working overtime and not getting paid for it. Then we moved on to arguing about when we're going to move. When he told me we were staying an extra month, I kind of lost it. No. I totally lost it. All I could think about was having to stay in this damn basement and be around his annoying family for another month. I couldn't handle the thought of that. I started screaming and slamming things. I ended up breaking 3 plates against the wall. Plus I broke the door.

I haven't blew up like that in years. It wasn't as intense as it used to be. I didn't get dizzy. I didn't black out. And I didn't feel the need to cut myself. But it was still pretty bad. It was so bad that John asked me for a divorce the next night. When he asked, there wasn't a trace of feeling in his voice. There's wasn't a trace of emotion on his face. He was serious. He wanted a divorce. At first I thought he was just saying it out of anger but when when I realized he really meant it, I threw myself down and literally begged him to stay. I can't imagine my life without him. I don't want a life without him.

I knew I was going to hurt myself. I even asked him to take me to the hospital to prevent me from doing anything. But he wouldn't. Instead, he made me promise not to cut myself. Then he left me alone and went upstairs.

Well, I didn't cut myself.

But 15 minutes later I was hanging from the ceiling by my robe belt. It was horrible. It hurt so much. I was hanging there and my legs started spasming and my vision started going dark and all of a sudden I realized that tomorrow was my daughters birthday. I didn't think twice. If I had, I probably wouldn't be here. I pulled out the knife that I had promised not to use on myself and I cut the belt. Even as I fell, I knew that I wasn't going to try it again. I wouldn't turn my daughters birthday into the anniversary of my suicide. And I knew if I waited until after her birthday, by that point I would be strong enough to handle the pain.

Unfortunately, I couldn't hide what I had done. My neck was bruised and my voice was hoarse for 3 days. So I told John and I told my Dad.

Writing all this down, I feel so selfish. The last time I saw my Dad we talked about my self harm and suicide thoughts. I told him not to worry because i hadn't done either in years. He told me if I were to kill myself, he wouldn't be strong enough to live through it. And he was serious. It wasn't just a guilt trip. I know how sick he is.

Plus leaving my kids....And my Grandma.

The only good thing that came out of it is that I realized I actually do have friends. Before I hung myself, I said goodbye to my online BPD support group and I posted on my FB wall that I was sorry and I just couldn't handle it anymore. I didn't post that for attention or sympathy. I didn't post it to try to get people to talk me down. I just didn't want to leave without saying goodbye. So I posted and immediately turned off my computer. Some time after I cut myself down, I went back to erase my post and was surprised to see that many of my friends (and even my biological Mom) had responded. I honestly didn't realize so many people cared about me.

Today things are better. John and I talked and he decided to give us another chance. We compromised on when to move, a week later than I wanted and 3 weeks earlier than he wanted. We'll be leaving on Sunday.

I really hope I never feel those feelings and think those thought again. It was so scary and I came so close.