The three semicolons tattooed behind Julia Whittley’s left ear are more than just punctuation marks — they symbolize her decision not to end her own life.

Her tattoo was inspired by the Semicolon Project. The movement, which is prominent on social media platforms such as Instagram and Tumblr, was created to support those struggling with depression, self-harm and suicide.

A semicolon can be used to separate two ideas and to continue a sentence where it could’ve stopped. This is what the Semicolon Project represents: choosing to continue living when one could’ve chosen to stop.

“I wanted to put a period there, but instead I put a semicolon,” said Whittley, a sophomore sociology major.

Whittley got the tattoo in December 2013 after suffering from severe depression for about three years.

“It was bumpy,” Whittley said. “It’ll always be bumpy.”

Whittley started becoming depressed during her sophomore year of high school. As her depression escalated, she began cutting herself. The endorphins that resulted from cutting helped her feel some type of happiness, she said.

She said she tried to hide her depression and self-harm from her family because of the negative stigma surrounding mental illness. Whittley told them that she was going to a friend’s house instead of therapy.

“Even though you’re mentally sick, you’re not weak,” Whittley said. “People think that if you attempt suicide that you’re a weak person.”

Although she has made progress in fighting her depression, it hasn’t been easy. After going an entire year without cutting, she had a relapse during her freshman year of college.

“One day I just lost control. I looked down and I needed stitches,” Whittley said. “I’m not disappointed in myself; it was just a relapse that was bound to happen at some point.”

Whittley said being away from California and at college has helped her heal. She said that it’s been refreshing to be so far from home.

“There are so many memories — every bridge, every cliff, every road,” Whittley said. “It’s so nice to be in a whole new setting with no memories and no triggers attached to it.”

Published on October 14, 2014 at 12:01 am

Contact Gigi: gantonel@syr.edu