Episode 5 Preview: Rewriting The Conversation Around Suicide

The upcoming episode of Mental Health Rewritten doesn’t offer a neat resolution. It offers a hard truth. Hard, necessary, life-saving truth. We’re diving into one of the most urgent, misunderstood, and silenced mental health topics: suicide.

But this conversation isn’t clinical jargon and distant statistics. It’s personal. Lived. Layered. And it’s told through the voices of people who have stood at the edge—and chosen to keep living.

Featuring Voices of Courage, Clarity, and Survival

Ashley-Lauren Elrod – Actress, advocate, and survivor
She returns to share the darker moments of her journey—from childhood trauma to a suicide attempt. Her story traces the path from isolation to awakening, and the moment a single phone call saved her life.

Sean Douglas – U.S. Air Force veteran, suicide prevention trainer
Sean opens up about the toll of combat, silence, and unhealed wounds. His moment of reckoning—gun in hand, bottle of Jack in the other—is a raw glimpse into military mental health, stigma, and the long road back to purpose.

Vernon “Longhorn” Davis – Comedian, keynote speaker, veteran
With humor and heart, Vernon reflects on a lifetime of trauma—from foster care to a near-fatal accident to planning his own death. But a knock on the door from another struggling veteran changed everything. His story is proof that sometimes, presence is the prevention.

Tina Aggarwal – Clinical therapist, trauma expert
Tina grounds this episode with essential clinical insight. She reframes suicidal ideation as the brain’s escape plan—a survival mechanism, not a moral failing. Her perspective helps us understand what to listen for, how to intervene, and why compassion must replace shame.

Why This Episode Matters

Suicide doesn’t always look like crisis.
Sometimes it looks like Nia—smart, accomplished, adored. Showing up for everyone else.
Until one day, she can’t.

This episode explores:

• The difference between "functioning" and healing

• The quiet warning signs of Major Depressive Disorder

• Why we must retire the phrase “commit suicide” and say “died by suicide” instead

• How language, culture, and access shape how we understand—and misunderstand—suicide

• What it means to truly show up when someone is unraveling quietly

Debuts 07/23/2025