Latest news with #suicideprevention
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Teenager searched on Tiktok for 'ways to make yourself pass out' before he was found dead aged 16, inquest hears
A teenager searched for 'ways to make yourself pass out' on Tiktok before he was found dead at his family home, an inquest has heard. Described by his mum as 'my angel', 16-year-old Maxwell Mills - known as Max - passed away in Christchurch, Dorset in February. In a statement to Bournemouth Coroners' Court, Isobel Hawkins said her 'respectful, caring, son' had 'never shown any indication of wanting to take his own life'. She said he was predicted to do well in his GCSEs and was already working part-time at a garage where he was planning to become an apprentice mechanic after leaving school. In the days leading up to his death Max had already arranged shifts for the following week at the garage. The schoolboy had been referred to CAMHS - Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services - after he acted 'out of character' by walking out of school weeks before he died. But a form he had completed on January 31 had led the service to categorise him as 'low risk' as he said he had no thoughts of self-harm or suicide. But on the morning of February 2 Max was found by his mother in the kitchen of their home at Briar Close. Paramedics were called but they could not save him. A post-mortem found he had died of hanging. His father Ben Mills later found Max had searched on a computer for TikTok videos on 'how to make yourself pass out'. TikTok is currently being sued by the parents of four British teenagers believed to have died after taking part in a 'blackout challenge' circulating on the platform - though there is no evidence Max had taken part in this. Max's mother said she did not have concerns her son was 'feeling depressed' before his death and she had 'always encouraged him' to talk to her about anything. She also said there were no signs he was being bullied at school where he had 'a wonderful group of friends'. The coroners' court heard she had earlier had concerns about how much time he was spending talking on the phone to his girlfriend. She said he would be up all hours talking to her, 'constantly video calling each other'. As a result he would be 'very tired' the next morning. But the two had broken up before Max died, and his parents said he appeared to be coping well with the split. On January 31 Max had refused to go to school saying he felt 'unwell and exhausted' and went to his father's house to do homework, staying overnight. Ms Hawkins said she picked him up the next day and they went home to watch TV together. She said as she passed his bedroom door later, she called out to him, and he had answered 'goodnight'. The next morning she found him in the kitchen. A search of Max's phone after his death found a WhatsApp conversation between him and his ex-girlfriend which had lasted nearly 90 minutes in the early hours of February 2. In it his girlfriend seemed 'concerned' that Max might harm himself, but he had assured her he would not do that. Coroner Brendan Allen said it was 'not clear' what Max's 'intentions' had been on the day he died, saying he had a 'strong and supportive group of friends at school and clearly a loving relationship with his family'. Although he had been referred to CAMHS he had 'expressed no thoughts of self-harm, or suicide'. Mr Allen said the TikTok searches showed 'there is a possibility that Max had not intended to lose his life, his intention was to pass out'. The coroner ruled his death as 'use of a ligature in circumstances where his intention is not explained by the evidence'.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Graham Thorpe asked his wife to help him end his life after his mental health 'spiralled' following Covid lockdowns and being sacked from his England coaching job, inquest hears
England cricket legend Graham Thorpe's mental health was 'spiralling down' after a combination of Covid lockdowns and being sacked from the English Cricket Board (ECB), his heartbroken widow said today. Amanda Thorpe described how the Surrey lefthander begged her to help him to die as he struggled to cope with anxiety and depression. He attempted to take his own life in a hotel in 2022, after losing his coaching job with the ECB after a video involving the England Ashes players on tour in Australia – which Thorpe filmed – was leaked. The former Surrey lefthander, who dazzled with the bat during a glittering career for club and country, was killed when he was struck by a train near his home on August 4 last year. He was 55 years old. Mrs Thorpe told her husband's inquest in Woking: 'He asked me to help him end his life. 'He said he wants to go to Switzerland. I was in turmoil. 'Then we get a letter for an appointment (with the medical team) in a month's time. 'How ill do you have to be?' Thorpe's wife, his father Geoff, and brothers Alan and Ian were all present for the hearing. Addressing them, assistant coroner Jonathan Stevens said: 'I appreciate this is an incredibly difficult time for you as a family.' The coroner, referring to Mrs Thorpe's witness statement, described how 'up until the time of Covid there were no psychological issues'. He said: 'You explain Graham found lockdown and Covid very difficult, very stressful for him.' Mrs Thorpe said: 'Up until 2020, no there wasnt anything in particular. 'Maybe in 2018 he had a bout of depression but he got through that, it didn't affect his job.' Thorpe's father Geoff, 83, agreed, adding: 'Everything was fine until Covid.' He told the inquest: 'What you've got to realise is sometimes us chaps are a little bit macho – we can cope. 'In fact, we can't.' Referring to the Covid restrictions, he said: 'He's not a fella who likes to be couped up.' Mr Thorpe senior described how his son's 'life came crashing down' when he lost his job with the ECB. The coroner described how Thorpe 'had his ups and downs with stress and anxiety' in 2021, but then there was the prospect of the Ashes tour in 2021/2 where the Covid restrictions in Australia were much stricter than in the UK. Referring to Mrs Thorpe's statement, he said: 'You say the environment of Covid was not good for him, would make his psychological condition worse. 'You mention on that Tour there was an incident involving a video that was taken that drew a lot of adverse publicity. 'You make the observation that he shouldn't have been allowed to go to Australia, and it was inevitable there was going to be a deterioration in his mental health.' Mrs Thorpe said: 'Thinking about it, because he went on that Tour, he was dismissed. 'If he hadn't been on that Tour, then he wouldn't be dismissed and that was ultimately what he couldn't deal with.' The coroner said Thorpe tried to take his own life with a cocktail of medication and alcohol in the middle of 2022. He said: 'Things continued to go downhill, he was really struggling, had anxiety and insomnia and it was all really dark.' Thorpe spent three weeks unconscious in hospital after the suicide attempt. He suffered a stroke, and was in intensive care for five weeks. He went to a private hospital, paid for by the ECB, but his mental health did not improve. He was offered a coaching role with the Afghanistan national team but could not go because of his mental health issues. Mrs Thorpe told the inquest: 'He tried to do it but he was spiralling down. 'He signed a contract and I had to tell them he was too unwell to do that job.' Thorpe tried various types of therapy including electro-compulsive therapy, but that 'didn't seem to work', the inquest heard. He made repeated threats to kill himself, including throwing himself in front of a train, his father said. Mrs Thorpe said: 'He told me he was scared, and I told him I was scared too because I didn't know how to help him.' By June 2024, Thorpe 'had no interest in food, he wanted to hide away, totally isolated, in real crisis and despair', the inquest heard. The coroner described how Thorpe left the family home on the morning of August 4 2024 and was not seen alive again. Referring to Mrs Thorpe's witness statement, he said: 'You had been upstairs on the phone and Graham had gone out. 'You thought he had gone to walk the dog but then you saw the dog. 'You tried to locate him using your phone but weren't able to do that. 'Then you got a call from Geoff telling you: he's gone.' Mrs Thorpe said: 'He never really recovered from (his first suicide) attempt. 'He came back from the tour of Australia in a terrible state - lots of things, the video, the environment, the set-up. 'To be sacked after that I think it was foreseeable that it would be really really hard on him. 'The weeks leading up to his death, he told me he doesn't want to be here any more. 'He asked me to help him end his life. 'He said he wants to go to Switzerland. I was in turmoil. 'Then we get a letter for an appointment (with the medical team) in a month's time. 'How ill do you have to be? I just wish he could have been kept safe. If you're not here, there's no hope.' The father-of-four was considered a talisman for England, and was a veteran of 100 Test matches between 1993 and 2005. But he also spent years battling anxiety and depression, and believed his wife Amanda and children Henry, Amelia, Kitty and Emma were better off without him. Thorpe was born in Farnham, Surrey, and showed early promise as a footballer - even being offered trials at Brentford - but was already involved in the under-11s set-up at his home county cricket club. He did not look back. Thorpe would go on to become one of the most revered batsmen of his generation, a rare bright spark in an England team which often failed to deliver. His swashbuckling style and distinctive headband made him popular with fans new and old. And he set records along the way - becoming the first England batter for 20 years to score 100 runs on his Test debut, doing so against a Shane Warne-inspired Australia at Trent Bridge in Nottinghamshire in 1993. He would become only the eight man to reach 100 Test caps for England, scoring 6,744 runs at an average of 44.66. But he was also plagued by demons. In 2002, the year he scored the third fastest double-century in Test history, Thorpe took a 12-month break from cricket as he left a tour of India amid turmoil in his first marriage due to his cheating that led to a bitter divorce and a battle with suicidal depression and alcoholism. Thorpe admitted later after he flew back from touring India to try to save his first marriage: 'There came a time when I would have given back all my Test runs and Test caps just to be happy again.' Mrs Thorpe said in an interview after his death that despite having a wife and children whom he loved and who loved him, 'he did not get better'. His wife said: 'He was so unwell in recent times and he really did believe that we would be better off without him and we are devastated that he acted on that and took his own life.' Thorpe will be honoured during the final Test match against India at The Oval next month to raise awareness of mental health. Day two of the fifth Test will be called 'A Day for Thorpey' in support of charity Mind. It falls on August 1, which would have been Thorpe's 56th birthday. Thorpe's inquest is due to last until Friday.
News.com.au
8 hours ago
- Health
- News.com.au
Girl, 7, contemplates suicide, reaches our for help
A seven-year-old girl made a phone call late one night telling a stranger she was thinking about killing herself. That call saved her life. The little schoolgirl, who is still in regular contact with her professional counsellor at Kids Helpline, is just one of 4000 Australian children aged five to nine who reach out for help every year. 'That's a lot of really young people who have the courage to ask for help,' Kids Helpline CEO Tracy Adams told 'We take our role to provide them with free, professional support any hour of the day extremely seriously,' she said. 'I really celebrate that they have that courage and absolute ability to recognise in themselves that they need to talk to someone and help them through what's worrying them. 'The fact they understand themselves well enough to do that is very special. They should never feel not worthy and not valued. We have built a whole service for children and young people, not anyone else, so that's how much we value them.' Last year the service carried out 135,000 counselling responses to people from the age of five to 25. Three per cent of all those contacts were made from children between five and nine years old. Bullying is one of the key issues affecting the young children who reach out. The epidemic is claiming lives of children turning to suicide as an escape. This month a 10-year-old girl died in her bedroom on the NSW South Coast. 'We are not going to solve the bullying issue if we don't engage with young people,' Ms Adams said. 'It's really about building respect, celebrating diversity and helping students and young people to embrace their differences, celebrate them rather than feeling like differences make children a target.' Ms Adams said the support service, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, not only helps young people but 'walks beside families who have suffered great tragedy'. One such family is Kellie and Mat O'Brien from Sydney who lost their 12-year-old daughter Charlotte to suicide last year. The O'Briens are holding a Charlotte's Wish charity event in August this year to raise much needed funds for the service so no child ever has their call unanswered. 'In the wake of our unimaginable loss, we are honouring her legacy by channelling our heartbreak into action,' Mat O'Brien said. 'We aim to strengthen Kids Helpline's capacity to engage, inform, and support children, young people, parents, carers, and educators. It's crucial for everyone to have access to the right support, at the right time, in the right way, and at no cost – 24/7,' he said. 'Our goal is to create a stronger safety net for children and young people, enabling them to access the right support when they need it most. We truly want no child or young person to feel alone, unheard, or helpless in the face of bullying. 'By working together to honour Charlotte, we believe we can create lasting change in the lives of children, young people, and their families.' Mr O'Brien said that while bullying is a complex issue, doing nothing isn't an option.' The charity is also having a Giving Day on Thursday, hoping to raise $500,000 to allow for another 9000 counselling contacts a year.
South China Morning Post
14 hours ago
- Health
- South China Morning Post
AniTech offers AI kit to tackle depression and suicides in Hong Kong
AniTech, the developer of an artificial intelligence (AI) platform to detect early signs of depression, plans to launch its technology next year to tackle mental illness and suicide among the city's population, co-founder and CEO Candy Lau Po-chun said. The company operates an electroencephalogram (EEG) brain electrical signal-based screening platform, which can be used to help prevent cases among youth and elderly people – two vulnerable groups in the city known for their high levels of pressure and stress in life, it said. 'While Hong Kong legislators have made efforts to support those with mental illnesses and address related suicides, these are insufficient to find hidden patients such as those with mild symptoms,' Lau said in an interview. 'We aim to build on this progress by providing a tool for early screening and prevention.' Hong Kong recorded 1,138 suicides last year, the highest number since 2003, the Samaritan Befrienders said, based on data from the Coroner's Court. Cases rose 4 per cent from 2023. Suicides among students almost tripled to 32 cases over a 10-year period to 2023, according to government data. A Chinese University of Hong Kong survey in 2023 showed a quarter of polled students had mental disorders, while 6.9 per cent had suicidal tendencies. 02:05 Long Covid-19 patients struggle with suicide risk more than 2 years into the pandemic Long Covid-19 patients struggle with suicide risk more than 2 years into the pandemic Co-founder and non-executive director Eddie Ma Chi-him, a professor in neuroscience at City University of Hong Kong, built the AniTech platform using decades of research on EEG signals.
BBC News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Baton of Hope: Britain's Got Talent group to dance after Kent leg
An over-40s dance troupe from Kent that featured on Britain's Got Talent will perform at an event supporting the Baton of Hope suicide prevention Movers will be among performers at Dreamland in Margate on 22 September, marking the relay's passage through the performance will follow the Olympic torch-style baton travelling through Medway, Maidstone, Canterbury and Thanet as part of a nationwide dance group appeared on the ITV talent show in 2024, and organiser Debs Forsyth said the group was "really looking forward to being a part of the Baton of Hope". Ms Forsyth said she felt strongly about the campaign's message after a member of her extended family took their own life in 2023."He was fun, lovely, everybody loved him," she said, and his death came as a "big shock". If you have been affected by the issues raised in this article, help is available from BBC Action Line. The dance instructor added that Midlife Movers, which she started in 2022, had helped its members' mental health by establishing social groups and keeping participants busy."A lot of people say that for that hour they're concentrating on something else other than their problems," Ms Forsyth group has members aged between 40 and 86 about 300 "movers" at its sessions across Kent. More than 130 people will be involved in carrying the baton as it crosses the well as raising awareness of suicide prevention support, the Baton of Hope campaign aims to encourage people to talk openly about their mental health and Medway Baton of Hope Tour coordinator, Alice Scutchey, thanked the people working for helping baton bearers and communities "remember loved ones, celebrate hope and stand up to suicide stigma". The Baton of Hope will tour 20 locations around the UK in 2025, passing through East Sussex on 23 first toured the country in 2023.
