109: Life After Suicide With Jeboah Miranda

Jeboah Miranda is a key-note speaker on mental toughness, and branding and digital marketing. She also has a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping women who have been affected by suicide, by providing them with scholarships and grants to get a university education. Jeboah has had an extremely heartbreaking road to get to where she is today. When she was 16, one of her brothers committed suicide, and just one year later, her second brother also committed suicide. She shares that she suffered in silence and felt very alone for a long time, but she has always had a strong desire to give back and persist through hard times. Jeboah put herself through university and always had a 5-year plan in place which she feels continues to give her hope for what's to come in the future. She won many scholarships while in university and this helped her to feel worthy through her struggle. When she was 22, she knew she wanted to open a nonprofit to help women get ahead and break through their glass ceiling. She believes that her purpose in life is to help people feel safe talking about their mental health struggles. Jeboah was born with a fighter personality and she loves proving people wrong. She shares that she has always strived for and thrived off of achievement. She chooses to get back up after being knocked down because she knows she was meant for more. A few ways that Jeboah is able to overcome hard times is through constantly reading positive affirmations aloud throughout the day and right before bed. She constantly stays in tune with how she is feeling and if she’s feeling negative, she will counteract that with something positive. She also believes in being very mindful and getting regular exercise and supplying your body with proper nutrition; because they all play into one another. She says, “There is no future - no career success … if you don’t care for your mind and your body.”It took her about five years to move through the pain of losing her two brothers but she is now in a place of celebration of their life and has pure love for them both. The Jeboah Miranda Foundation is how she continues to honour her brothers. She also shared that The Jeboah Miranda Foundation is hosting an event in April called, “DUR, What do you mean?” (DUR: Diverse, Inclusive, Real). The event focuses on diversity, inclusivity, female leadership, and mental health. The goal of this event to help build a safe community for everyone and to help women get to the top of the economic ladder. The entirety of ticket sale cost goes back into the Foundation which then funds the scholarships and grants for girls in first and second-year university.If someone you love is struggling: Sit with them in it, ask them how they feel and if they want to talk about it. Do not push them, and if they aren’t ready to talk about it, sit with them in silence. Many times when people are suffering, they don’t want to be alone, but they also don’t want to talk. Give them space to heal alone, but continue to show up for them. If you are someone who is suffering, be open to talking to friends and family because there is no shame. You need to feel in order to heal the pain. It’s not a weakness to show your vulnerability and it’s okay to not be okay all of the time. Two services that Jeboah recommends to people if they are struggling are The Distress Centre of Toronto to get help when you’re in distress, and camh is an excellent resource for getting more education about mental health. The phone numbers for both of these resources are linked below. "You can be sad, but also feel joy." - Jeboah Miranda Get in touch with Jeboah MirandaInstagram: @JeboahmirandaLinkedin: Jeboah MirandaWebsite: https://jeboahmiranda.caTo contact The Distress Centre of Toronto call: 408-HELP (4357) with 24/7/365 support.To contact camh call: 1-800-463-2338