In Episode 77, I talk with youth advocate, suicide survivor and mental fitness facilitator, Matthew Caruana. Do you want to know the thinking that started in a 12 year old brain and lead him, at age 16, to jump 35m in an attempt to take his own life? Do you want to know how a 16-year-old with serious self-worth issues, now a paraplegic, could declare that, 'I turned the worst day of my life into the one thing I am most grateful for'? This is an incredible conversation with a remarkable young man who found that the key to his healing was in his willingness to feel the emotions he needed to feel. Trust me, this is a podcast all teens, parents, educators, and every other person needs to hear. *Warning - this podcast deals with a sensitive & potentially triggering topic.
Up until the age of 12, Matthew Caruana had lived a very typical life for a child in the city of Sydney. He had a great family, lots of friends and a comforting neighborhood, BUT everything was about to change drastically!
He constantly questioned his self worth, self image and whether he even brought any value to the world? He often wondered if people would even care if he was alive or not? This caused major depression within himself and after years of dwelling on these questions, he felt even more worthless and struggled to see a reason to go on. He could’ve sworn he was the only one at the time feeling these emotions and having these thoughts, so he bottled them up and kept them all within.
These thoughts sent him down a path of destruction with drug abuse, depression, anxiety and ultimately on the 9th of January 2016, at only 16 years of age, he decided enough was enough and it was time to end his suffering. He made the final decision that it was time to end his life. Suicide seemed like his only option. He thought it would be his final moment, but woke up in hospital, two weeks later, with a Spinal Cord Injury and a level of sadness and depression, now enhanced by the fact that he couldn’t even do suicide right.
He had to quickly adapt to new changes in his life. After a chance encounter with an inspiring stranger, he discovered the value in connection and relationships, and began to open up to others. With that, all meaningful relationships grew closer in his life and things started to progressively get better for him! Most importantly, he began to feel acceptance.
He started to believe he could help people and so began sharing his story. As he did, all thoughts and feelings of Depression, Anxiety and Suicide magically disappeared. The questions about self worth and self image were soon replaced with a sense of purpose and a reason to live. He had found his calling and realised he could help others to find theirs. His message is powerful. His message is that when we feel, we will heal, and when share, we see how much people care. Don't miss this conversation.
Find out more about Matt here.
Thanks to Pietro and the team at Fitii for sponsoring this podcast. Go to the website
My website is www.andrewjobling.com.au
*Warning - this podcast deals with a sensitive & potentially triggering topic.