This article contains discussions of suicide. If you or someone you know is having a suicide crisis, please call Talk Suicide Canada (1-833-456-4566). There is also the Hope for Wellness Helpline for Indigenous people across Canada (1-855-242-3310).
Twenty-seven years ago, I stood on top of the music building at Indiana University, considering a jump. As a teenager in the ’90s, I had played a lot of music—some jazz saxophone and the drums. But my main instrument was the clarinet: I competed as a woodwind soloist in Canada’s National Music Festival and was told by famous clarinetist James Campbell that I could be one of the best players in the world. One evening along the way, after a jam session on the drums in my basement, I heard a ringing in my ears. I learned the word tinnitus.
