“You have to fight to survive, even if you lose your brother and husband to suicide”

-He lost a brother.

——Yes, there are nine of us and he is the eighth in the family.

– This means a lot to you.

– He has had problems since the age of 14, probably after being bullied, he developed a mental illness that he has not been able to overcome despite being treated by the best experts.

——How did they deal with it?

— My mother moved on, faced her pain, and tried to overcome it with activities she enjoyed, such as painting. He is a role model for everyone.

– She was twelve years old and her husband committed suicide.

– My husband was advised to undergo treatment to beat the Hepatitis C virus. He is not sick, he is just a carrier, but over time he may develop liver cancer or cirrhosis. They convinced him; but the package insert said the drug could cause depression and suicide attempts. I still remember those words, in the box.

-drug.

–I am against overmedication. They are great when they are necessary and they can help you overcome a crisis. But when not…

——Then what should we do?

– Find another option such as a support group which I think is more effective. In our country, there is overmedication and there are no other parallel treatments. Sad, depressed… they need words to purify their souls.

– What was your life like when what happened to your husband?

– I am 48 years old and we are very happy that this happened to us. I have two children who were 24 and 22 at the time.

– We can’t imagine how he would feel when this happened to him again.

– “Please don’t do this again!” I said when I found out about my husband. I can’t believe this has happened to me again.

——What was your reaction?

– After his suicide attempt, we stayed in the hospital for two months and the hospital did not give him the treatment he deserved. After his death, I sued the hospital and won.

-what happened?

– He initially attempted suicide but did not survive the fall. I don’t know where I could have done more to help him.

– It will fall apart.

——You can’t do it with two children, you have to stick to what you can do.

– How about the next few weeks?

– It was hard, I had contractures and tears came to my eyes while they were treating them.

– What can you say to someone going through something similar?

– Just as good things happen to us, we must also accept that tragic things can happen to us. I’ve had a wonderful 26 years…

——Why did you choose to commit suicide?

– Some people have mental problems, but there are also many people who don’t and it’s an issue that surrounds them in their lives. I don’t think they wanted to die, but to relieve the pain they were experiencing and not cause those of us who were with them to suffer more.

–How did you overcome this loss?

– After a year I decided to travel and find places to meditate, write… I took a course in Osselin in Alpujarra, where I found it possible to accept death and understand life. Even if the person you love the most dies, you have to keep living. That was when the tsunami happened, and I will never forget a woman who was looking for her husband and children in the rubble. I understand that suffering is part of life.

– He wrote a book.

– Yes, “Amazon in Sparks”. A bag facing a duel.

– What is this about?

-Based on my own experience after my husband passed away. It is a song of rebellion, a denunciation of the system we live in, particularly the corporatism of the healthcare system and the clientelism of multinational pharmaceutical companies, even at the cost of people’s own lives.

-About hope?

– This is the whole story. People must bravely talk about the pain and suffering they have encountered along the way in order to regain their dignity and hope. Life is full of beauty, love and life. We cannot remain in death.