Marsha Ambrosius’ Video “Far Away” sends the wrong message

whatdoesitmatter says:

You’re right about the bullying. Everyone at some point or another have been bullied. Either in school or on the job. Everyone is not jumping off a bridge. The ones with depression or other underlying mental illnesses see suicide as a way out and it’s not just gay bullied teens. Well, that’s my two cents. Mental illness is real.
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blackwidow says:

Teach your children it’s not okay to tease, bully, and pick on other people.
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Here’s a reality check: bullying is not ever going away. So how about teaching your child the necessary coping skills to deal with bullying? How about teaching your child to love himself and build high self-esteem so a bully’s words can’t affect him?

YSoSerious says:

But wouldn’t homophobic bullying lead to depression and therefore suicide for some gay teens?
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No. You’re putting the egg before the chicken. The underlying depression (or other mental illness) is there first. Bullying doesn’t lead to depression. The depression is already there. If it is left undiagnosed and untreated then that child will be despondent as a reaction to ANY stressful factor — not just bullying.

lilredkk says:

I like # 28 Sandra! Self esteem…if you do not love and know yourself..anyone can crack you!
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That is so true! When you don’t love yourself you leave yourself unguarded for any bully to come in and attack you. Loving yourself is like putting a wall between you and a bully. If they can’t get to you they can’t hurt you. That’s how I see it.

Tatted Diva says:

Just because that’s “how you see it” Sandra doesn’t mean its gospel. I also disagree with the comment you made about bullying being a “normal part of growing up!” It may be a part of life but that “ish” is far from normal! Also, don’t go around saying that people are committing suicide due to their undiagnosed mental issues (depression being one of them). Unless we have not receive a full description of your Psychologist or Psychiatrist background, I doubt you are capable of rendering such a diagnoses!
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I do have a Registered Nurse license that I studied 4 years to obtain. As a part of my nursing studies, I had to do an entire rotation working in mental health and following my graduation, I was a charge nurse (head nurse) in a mental health unit at a local mental health hospital (the same hospital where Gucci is a patient). So, yes, I am qualified to make the statements that I am making. You don’t need a medical doctor’s license to know that people who commit suicide are either extremely depressed or they lack the social skills to cope with life in general.

iyonah says:

Bingo .. Bingo .. Bingo Sandra The funding for programs and treatment for mental health issues is lackluster in all states. Depression, Anxiety, BiPolar Disorder etc. all are conditions ignored Nobody seems to care until a person dies, ignoring all of the warning signs. Mental health is just as important as anything else. Its starts with awareness. Great post!
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Thanks.

LadeeA says:

I honestly not one time thought about committing suicide, although I sometimes dreaded going 2 school, I figured it would pass and it did. All of the haters wanted to be my friends in the end. As Sandra and many of you said, bullying is not going away, so we have to teach our children who will fall victim 2 it to brush it off and know that it will be temporary.
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That’s the key! A lot of those kids don’t even think on that level. They don’t have the insight to see that it gets better if they just live long enough.

intensemocha says:

GAYS/LESBIANS WHO ARE NOT TRULY COMFORTABLE WITH THEIR SEXUALITY KEEP UP TOO MUCH DRAMA AND WEAR THEIR SEXUAL OREINTATION ON THEIR SLEAVE AND HAVE A TENDENCY TO HAVE TO ANNOUNCE THEIR GAY EVERY TWO SECONDS
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dimezz says:

Let me try to understand this….So the MILLIONS of kids that have normal home lives but get bullied in school and were too young to know that the bullying wont last forever or who were too afraid to tell an adult…those children that comitted sucide were mentally ill or depressed proir to the bullying…Im not talking about teens or grown adults…kids….REALLY.
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Yes, really. I don’t know why it’s so hard for you to understand that healthy, mentally stable children and adults do not take their own lives.

lovemiraclej says:

I think depression can be caused by stressors and outside factors no matter how self confident a person may be. I don’t think there is an issue in someone asking to reduce said stressors.
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Depression is not caused by stress. Depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. Reducing stressors would be nice but that wouldn’t be reality. What I suggest is that the government increase funding to set up mental health programs in schools to identify those kids who may be depressed and who may be more vulnerable to bullying. As long as there are schools and children, there will be bullying and teasing. It’s a part of life whether we like it or not.