Suicide Survivor, Emma Benoit Spreading Hope

Emma Benoit became extremely passionate about suicide prevention after surviving a suicide attempt in 2017, the summer before her senior year in high school. At the time, she was a popular varsity cheerleader with a supportive family and lots of friends, but on the inside, she was filled with depression and anxiety, and had never told a soul about it. Her attempt resulted in a spinal cord injury that left her paralyzed but helped her find faith and purpose; and propelled her on a mission to use her painful experience and miraculous recovery to help others.
A few months after her attempt, Emma started the website liferejuvenated.org and a blog to share her story and recovery journey, in an effort to help other teens who are struggling. In early 2018, Emma began working on a documentary film called My Ascension, which is scheduled for release in 2021, that chronicles her recovery journey and advocacy work, while addressing the youth suicide epidemic.
Emma serves as an Ambassador for LivingWorks, the world’s leader in suicide prevention training and in December of 2020, Emma was a featured guest on Jada Pinkett Smith’s hit show “Red Table Talk”; and she has also been featured on numerous other news programs and podcasts.
Emma is an uplifting speaker who has shared her powerful story and message with thousands of people at in person and virtual conferences and events including: LivingWorks and California Department of Education Youth Summit, National Federation of Families for Children's Mental Health Conference, LSU School of Social Work Conference, Arkansas Youth Mental Health Conference, Hope Rising Suicide Prevention Summit and the Hope Squad National Conference.
Emma is a 2018 graduate of Dutchtown High School, whose strength and motivation are rooted in her strong faith and supportive family.