Should I employ a binding spell to help my suicidal daughter?

QUESTION - I am not really new to witchcraft, I used to study about 10 years ago but I am finding some similarities between quantum physics and the law of attraction. I am thinking very seriously about doing a binding spell on my 17yr daughter who recently tried to kill herself. I am afraid for her. I have been working with the material world for a year, and it doesn't seem to be working. I am thinking about doing a binding spell and then try to do some crystal healing.

ANSWER - When you say you have been working with the material world for a year - are you referring to the fact that you have taken tangible and practical steps to help her? I am going to presume that the steps you have taken so far include seeking medical and psychiatric help, talking to her and offering her both emotional and practical support. I'm assuming you have listened as well as talked and that you have done your best to understand her and the reasons why she believes her life has gone so wrong that she believes suicide to be a viable option. If you haven't done these things then you need to and you shouldn't even think about turning to a magical solution until you have. I get the impression from your question that you genuinely believe you have done all you can but to anybody else reading this answer and looking for help the answer must be to take those practical steps first.

I am glad you are taking your daughter's suicide attempt seriously. I hear far too many people spouting that those who try to commit suicide are just doing it as a cry for help. I consider this to be insulting to the people who must be in a very difficult place in their lives and also wholly inaccurate. I'd say trying to kill yourself is a pretty good indication that you want to kill yourself. When somebody does attempt suicide this should be taken seriously - the worst thing you can do to a person surviving a suicide attempt is to belittle it, doing so will only give them even less reason for wanting to live.

So, assuming that all the practical steps have already been taken and with the proviso that magic should be used not to replace conventional medical help but to complement it - do I think that binding will help in this situation? Yes, I do, I think binding could be used to bring about some very positive results here. Although binding is more commonly associated with defensive magic it can be used to equal effect in protection magic and protection is essentially what is needed here.

The key is to be clear about what you are binding. This is partly why I am suggesting that you open the channels of communication between the two of you first so you know what the problem is. I can see a binding spell here working in one of two ways. If your daughter is feeling suicidal because of influences in the outside world then the spell would take the form of binding her into a protective cocoon to shield and shelter her from the things that are driving her to suicide. This could be achieved quite easily with a poppet - and I'd suggest using a bandage for the binding to symbolise the healing connection. You could further place the bound poppet into a sealed glass jar to create a barrier between your daughter and the influences from which you are protecting her. Protective herbs can be added to the jar and you can re-energise the spell by keeping it in a salt circle for additional protection.

Your daughter's suicidal thoughts however may stem more from her own psyche than they do from external influence - this is just as plausible - suicidal thoughts can stem from internal depressive illnesses as easily as they can from external causes. I would caution from seeing these causes as being less debilitating. Our minds can often be our own greatest adversary. If you believe the cause to be related more to herself than her circumstances then you need to bind her from harming herself. I would work a spell where there is a strong emphasis on preventing her ability to act to harm herself. This could be making a wire poppet and tying her hands behind her back, making a clay poppet and removing the hands to store them safely separately from her body or even sewing little protective mittens to slip over the hands of the poppet. The style of spell you use doesn't really matter, what matters in this kind of working is the strength of the association between the person and the poppet. 

You mention crystal healing - yes it does have some merits though I see the benefits of crystals here as being more of an icing on the cake for when the problems are solved. Crystals won't stop your daughter being suicidal but when she is back to a stable emotional equilibrium they may help her to retain a more peaceful state of mind. Think crystals more as a maintenance of wellbeing rather than a path to wellbeing in itself.

I honestly believe the key to effective spell work here is having that upfront frank discussion with your daughter and taking her concerns seriously. If you can identify why she feels this way then you can direct your energies more readily to the root of the problem. You may also find that the skills of the listener can sometimes be even more powerful than the skills of the witch...

Image http://www.deviantart.com/art/shadow-300854015

---