A Suicidal Roommate

I had a really rough first couple of months at University. Getting adjusted was difficult enough but my roommate was even more difficult to deal with. She had a lot of problems, a lot of issues, and was suicidal. She wanted my help, but I had enough of my own problems to deal. Also, I didn’t feel equipped to deal with the kind of things she seemed to need help with. I suggested she speak with an advisor or counsellor but she refused.

One day I came home and had to take a razor blade away from her. I didn’t really want to deal with this kind of stuff my first year of university, I did have to do something. I thought that perhaps I would talk to my advisor and tell him that I knew the girl was having trouble. But there was only so much I could say before he would get worried enough to take some concrete action. And then I would be betraying her confidence. It was a tough line to draw, but I couldn’t deal with it on my own, and I couldn’t run the risk of letting her harm herself or even kill herself. She was a really nice girl but she just had a lot of issues which were hard to deal with when you were living in close proximity.

After I took the razor blade away, I decided to betray her confidence and tell my advisor everything. I didn’t feel I had a choice. He got involved, she ended up seeing a counsellor, finished her semester but never returned.

I will never forget that experience, and I’ve thought about it a lot since. But I still don’t see how I could have done things any differently.