Once you see the blood gushing out of your fellow classmates you will never be the same. You will never be the same having to witness all the deaths that are happening around you. On March 17th, 19-year-old Sydney Aiello took her life as the guilt seemed to overtake her. She had already been diagnosed with PTSD and attempted to deal with the grief and guilt of surviving.  She tried yoga to help her cope with this. Sadly this practice did not help her cope with her survivor’s guilt and she ultimately took her life.

Many people who witness traumatic events such as the one Sydney witnessed and traumatic events like those witnessed by veterans develop survivor’s guilt. If you do not know what survivor’s guilt is, it is a mental condition that happens when someone believes that they did not deserve to stay alive after a traumatic event. Many veterans also develop this after they come back from combat or war due to witnessing all the people dying, but school shooting survivors are very much the same as they too had to witness a mass death. Many survivors end up taking their life later on as the guilt building up is too much to handle. Survivors guilt may seem not that stressful to deal with, but oh it is. You have to handle every day with the same thoughts of “why was I the one that survived,” or “why was I the lucky one.” Some advice for people who have to deal with this  is seek help. Know that you have a meaning, and you are meant to stay. If you or anyone you know is dealing with gruesome thoughts like these due to survivor’s guilt, or anything, feel free to call the national suicide hotline. The number for this is 1-800-273-8255, they are open 24/7.  Never hesitate to ask for help.