Our dad Barry Corbett passed away on Tuesday 30th April. He died from depression. Society has conditioned boys from a very early age to not express emotion, because to express emotion is to be 'weak'. This obviously needs to change. In the UK men are three times more likely to commit suicide than women. Research has shown that more women attempt suicide than men, but men tend to choose more violent suicide methods, making them more likely to follow it through. In our dads case, it seems he definitely wanted to die. He jumped from of a 9 storey block of flats, in a desperate attempt to end his emotional turmoil. Depression is a complex condition and its causes will never be fully understood. Our dad had a long history of mental health problems. We have early memories of him sleeping for days straight. It's only now that we are adults that we can recognise this as being a symptom of his illness. He was 54 years old and wasn't even registered with a GP. It seems men are more reluctant to see a doctor or ask for help. In 2015, our dad lost his mum to cancer, and only a few weeks later lost his brother to a heart attack. Imagine trying to cope with bereavement and loss when you already have depression. He didn't see a point in living, so he stopped going to work. "Suicide doesn't end the pain it passes it onto someone else": I feel guilt and sadness for the housing officers, simply doing their job and witnessing a suicide. I feel guilt and sadness for the passers-by who tried to resuscitate him. I feel guilt and sadness for the neighbours who heard the commotion. But most of all, I feel guilt and sadness for our dad and anyone else who lives with that kind of emotion pain. Ask for help.

RIP dad, those demons can't hurt you anymore
Faye & Dean