4. Post Secret

 This is our first audience submission, and one we hold dear. Content warning for discussion of suicide.

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.

I’m Nora McInerny, and it’s going to be okay.

Our okay thing today comes from an anonymous listener submission. This is one of the very first ones we ever received. And a brief content warning that it does discuss suicide, so listen with care.

Terrible Caller: Okay, so I am responding to your prompt of things that make me feel like it’s going to be okay. I have a story. When I was in college, I was going through it, about a lot of stuff. And one morning I opened PostSecret, which, if you don’t know, is a blog where people send in postcards with their secret on it. And I found a secret that I had sent eight years prior. It was a suicide note that I’d written, ripped up, put in an envelope and written on the back, “Inside this envelope are the ripped up remains of a suicide note I didn’t use. I feel like the happiest person on earth now.” And that secret was used on their website as an example of an inspirational suicide secret. And after that, I realized that my secret had been featured in the curator of this blog’s TED Talk. 

[Audio from TED Talk]

Terrible Caller: And the TED talk was played in the Smithsonian. So my inspirational suicide secret was featured in the Smithsonian. And, sometimes when I’m feeling down, I just Google PostSecret suicide envelope to see all the news outlets that have shared my secret. And basically all the ways that my secret has reached people I don’t even know, and think, if my 14 year old self was able to reach people in such a profound way … I think I’m going to be okay. And I can help people now. Anyway, that was maybe a little bit complicated, but that is how I know that things are going to be okay. Bye!

I’m Nora McInerny, and It’s Going To Be Okay. The it changes every day, and for every person, but that’s the beauty of it. You can share your thing with us at 612.568.4441 or at [email protected] We’ll also link that in our show notes.

It’s Going to Be Okay is a production of feelings & co. We’re an independent company, and we rely on listeners like you to share our work. THank you. This episode was produced by Megan Palmer and Claire McInerny, with help from Marcel Malekebu and Eugene Kidd. It was recorded in my home, McInerny Studios.

Our theme music is by secret audio.