It's so hard for loved ones to watch others lose to something that takes the place of a demon, but think of how hard it actually is on them.

They wake up everyday with the feeling that they can't make it. That demon tells them that there is no use, that they have no purpose. They cannot stomach the idea of being seen in public, for they're afraid that the crowd can see it - whatever they are battling. Help them get out of bed. Remind them of what they have to look forward to. Though they may not be thrilled about it, but just being there for them, showing them that you care, is more than enough. Go with them to the grocery store, tell them that they don't need that substance, that drink, those insecurities. It takes a support system - family and friends - to help just one.

Do not immediately think that rehabilitation or an intervention of some sort is the answer, for it's not you in their shoes, it's them. You do not see what they say. But you must simply be there for them, no matter the cost.

But what if they still don't see that they're loved? That whatever has taken over them does not need to be there? Though they may fall to a rehabilitation or intervention, you still have got to be there for them. Don't leave it to the doctors and the psychiatrists to help them. They still need you. You know them better than anyone else. You know when their highs and lows are, when they're hungry, tired, or just want someone to talk to. You cannot throw it all on someone who is there to merely detox them.

And if you are one who chooses not to be there for them, who does not push them to stop, who isn't there for them at 4 a.m. when they want one more, then just go. They'll know who was there for them - and if you can't even call to check up on them everyday, just go. If you go to others and say that what they're doing is just a "bad habit" and that "it's easy to quit" or "it's not hard to just go back to normal," you are a waste of their space and their supporters'. What they have is a mental illness, not some made up sadness that concluded with an abuse to their own self.

To the ones who are there, thank you for helping them. Thank you for seeing their worth, their values, their beauty. Because no matter where you are, where you're from, if you have a degree, if you left home and never looked back, you are worth something to someone. Please don't forget that.

To my family and friends, I am always here. You are enough. Stick with the ones who tell you that always.

Suicide Hotline: 800-784-2433

Crisis Call Center: 800-273-8255