The death of my brothers won’t be in vain

AS PRESIDENT OF THE MENTAL HEALTH FOUNDATION, DR JACQUI DYER MBE’S PROFESSIONAL FOCUS IS ON IMPROVING MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR ALL. BUT, HAVING LOST TWO BROTHERS, HER MISSION IS ALSO PERSONAL

Tears flooded my cheeks as I stood, frozen to the spot, and looked down the long, white corridor of featureless doors. The smell of sweat and bleach filled my nostrils. I was visiting this particular psychiatric hospital for work but I was transported back to 18-year-old me, visiting my brother Barry somewhere that smelled, looked and felt exactly the same. Despite having spent almost 40 intervening years working in mental health, the trauma of that first visit was still right there. Growing up in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, I was the second eldest of five siblings; my elder brother Juna, me, Barry, my sister Andrea and my youngest brother, Carlton. You’d have found me climbing trees and crawling up the quarry with my brothers. We looked like typical, happy kids playing outdoors,…

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Red UK (Digital) - 1 Issue, October 2023

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