Failed Job Hunt Ends in Overdose at 21

Herodotus

Very sad story. The title really speaks for itself. Although in the UK, it highlights the universal tradegy of starting your adult life on the dole queue. Youth, rejection and a feeling of hopelessness are a lethal combination. Let Ireland be warned as youth unemployment is much higher here. Indeed, I, like many others, will be joining them again soon I'd imagine.

As taken from the Times:

A young woman who had left school with ten GCSEs and three A levels apparently killed herself because she felt “humiliated” when she could not get a job.

Vicky Harrison, 21, spent two years looking for work but with no success. The day after receiving yet another letter saying that she had failed in her application and interview for a job, this time at a nursery, she took an overdose of pills, her family said.

She left a note to them which read: “I don’t want to be me any more. Please don’t be sad. It is not your fault. I want everybody in my life to be happy.”

The case comes the day after unemployment rose to a 16-year high of 2.5 million.

Miss Harrison’s mother, Louise, said: “She kept asking me why things weren’t working out for her. I think she had so many knock-backs that it affected her confidence and it is no wonder that she was not getting jobs when she was so lacking in confidence.”

Her father, Tony, said: “In the end it obviously got her down to such a point that she felt she had no future. It shouldn’t have been like that. She had a lot to give and was very determined.”

Describing their daughter as “wonderful and bubbly”, they said she was struggling to get by on Jobseeker’s allowance and felt she was losing touch with her friends because she could not afford to go out with them. Mrs Harrison added: “But also she was humiliated that she couldn’t find work. It was an embarrassing situation for her.”

Miss Harrison, from Darwen, Lancashire, had ten GCSEs at grade A-C and three A levels at grade B-D, but could not find work after dropping out of university in her first year.

She was due to sign-on at the Jobcentre the next morning. More than 270 people have posted tributes to her on Facebook, the social networking website. Now the family, along with her boyfriend Nathan Haworth, hope to set up a charity or foundation in her name to provide support for the thousands of young people who struggle with being unemployed.

New figures show that there are more than 4,000 young people claiming Jobseeker’s allowance in East Lancashire, up about 48 per cent since the country went into recession.

The family said that Miss Harrison left three suicide notes, one each for her mother, father and boyfriend. They said she had no history of depression but had become upset at her lack of success in the jobs market. She had applied for about a dozen jobs a week, which included shop work, waitressing and being a school dinner lady. Her father said he found her in the sitting room of her disabled mother’s home on March 31. She was surrounded by pill packs and tablet bottles.

Mr Harrison said: “She was such a gorgeous girl and had a stunning smile. She was clever too. There was no reason why she shouldn’t have been able to find a job.”

Miss Harrison met her boyfriend more than three years ago on a night out in Blackburn where Mr Haworth, 22, lives. He said he had lost his “soulmate” and added: “We want to start a group where we can raise awareness for people who are struggling like Vicky was. It needs to be a place where people can talk and understand that it is not the end of the world.”

Vicky’s funeral took place last week at Darwen Masonic Hall.
A full inquest is set for next month.

Kiera

Stories like these dont shock me anymore. I know two guys that took their lives this year because they lost their jobs and couldnt provide for their families.

Biggins

A very sad case indeed.
Sympathies to her family.

El Weirdo

Kiera wrote: »

Stories like these dont shock me anymore. I know two guys that took their lives this year because they lost their jobs and couldnt provide for their families.

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

amacachi

Kiera wrote: »

Stories like these dont shock me anymore. I know two guys that took their lives this year because they lost their jobs and couldnt provide for their families.

Ah yeah but they're guys, it's way more tragic and worth publishing in a national newspaper when it's a woman it happens to.


Sad case, though a classic example of middle-class journalism.

amacachi

El Weirdo wrote: »

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

Suicide tends not to follow from the kind of logic that someone who has never been in that situation would understand.

dsmythy

El Weirdo wrote: »

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

I guess when you fall into that dark hole you lose your capacity for rational thinking.

easyeason3

If half the people I've heard of that have taken their lives because of the recession then we are in big trouble.

What does the government do about it? Offer advice? Support?

Nah...they just pr!ck around the Dail trying to score points off each other & deluding themselves that they are the best ones to bring this country around or that we actually give a flying fcuk about any of them.

Novella

That's really awful.

I know getting a job is a big deal, but no one should ever feel that they're not good enough or whatever because they can't get one. It's just so sad that things got to that stage for her where she felt that she was at a point with no return. Things like this really affect me. It's such a pity there isn't more than can de done because losing a life over a job, it seems so trivial.

RIP.

El Weirdo

amacachi wrote: »

Suicide tends not to follow from the kind of logic that someone in that situation would understand.

dsmythy wrote: »

I guess when you fall into that dark hole you lose your capacity for rational thinking.

Obviously.

Must be awful to be in that state of mind.

amacachi

El Weirdo wrote: »

Obviously.

Must be awful to be in that state of mind.

Indeed.

Abi

That is just so sad

wicklowwonder

El Weirdo wrote: »

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

Agree it is very sad and again wish to not feel or sound insensitive but why don't people see the other side of problems? we all have have hard times in our life be it redundancy or relationships breaking up etc. really feel a human has alot more to offer our race alive than dead....

Kasabian

That poor girls family .

RIP.

dvpower

easyeason3 wrote: »

If half the people I've heard of that have taken their lives because of the recession then we are in big trouble.

What does the government do about it? Offer advice? Support?

Nah...they just pr!ck around the Dail trying to score points off each other & deluding themselves that they are the best ones to bring this country around or that we actually give a flying fcuk about any of them.

For some information about what the government does about it, you can check here
http://www.nosp.ie/
There are lots of links to the resources that are available.


(Or were you just looking for an excuse for a rant?)

Latchy

This tragic story has being on local news and every uk newspaper today

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1267953/Job-seeker-Vicky-Harrison-commits-suicide-rejected-200-jobs.html

Kiera

El Weirdo wrote: »

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

I guess all they think about it the pain they're in and just want to end it. Kinda like tunnel vision.

Biggins

wicklowwonder wrote: »

Agree it is very sad and again wish to not feel or sound insensitive but why don't people see the other side of problems? we all have have hard times in our life be it redundancy or relationships breaking up etc. really feel a human has alot more to offer our race alive than dead....

Deep, deep depression is a very hard thing to understand to those outside it and a vary hard thing to climb out of when your in that hole of depression.
I know, I speak from experience, having been there a number of years ago after losing a wife, home and other things at the time I considered important (I don't no longer - my kids happiness and health is my main worry now).

True deep depression is seriously like a well hole that your at the bottom of and you can't see a ladder to help you climb out of.
I would say you have to be there to understand what drove the poor girl to take the outcome that she did - but I wouldn't wish anyone to experience deep depression.
Its an experience you will never forget if you manage to pull through and recover.

Kasabian

Latchy wrote: »

This tragic story has being on local news and every uk newspaper today

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1267953/Job-seeker-Vicky-Harrison-commits-suicide-rejected-200-jobs.html

It's even sadder when you see that picture with that big lovely smile.

Jesus these stories are so sad.
Consider that the competition for jobs is so intense (barristers and accountants are queuing in their droves for one or 2 jobs in Mcdonalds ffs).

tragic waste of life. RIP to the bereaved.

wicklowwonder

Biggins wrote: »

Deep, deep depression is a very hard thing to understand to those outside it and a vary hard thing to climb out of when your in that hole of depression.
I know, I speak from experience, having been there a number of years ago after losing a wife, home and other things at the time I considered important (I don't no longer - my kids happiness and health is my main worry now).

True deep depression is seriously like a well hole that your at the bottom of and you can't see a ladder to help you climb out of.
I would say you have to be there to understand what drove the poor girl to take the outcome that she did - but I wouldn't wish anyone to experience deep depression.
Its an experience you will never forget if you manage to pull through and recover.

I realise now thinking about my post it was very insensitive and I truley have never been in those circumstances and I wish to apologise my feelings on this topic are not relevant...

sorry RIP

fcussen

El Weirdo wrote: »

Sad.

I don't want to seem insensitive but I always wonder how anyone could kill themselves for that reason. How are their families better off with them dead?

I'm sure hearing loads of self-righteous "why don't you lazy spongers stop draining the state and robbing me of my taxes you useless gits" rhetoric probably doesn't help.

easyeason3

dvpower wrote: »

For some information about what the government does about it, you can check here
http://www.nosp.ie/
There are lots of links to the resources that are available.


(Or were you just looking for an excuse for a rant?)

Part rant but a lot of anger too.

They give with one hand & take with the other.

johnnyjb

dvpower wrote: »

For some information about what the government does about it, you can check here
http://www.nosp.ie/
There are lots of links to the resources that are available.


(Or were you just looking for an excuse for a rant?)

I personally never heard of that group or website and id like to think im moderately up to date with the internet. How do you set up a website and expect people that never heard of it to find it and not commit suicide when their at the edge. They prob think that excuse of a thing is covering their ass in this sad thing people go through.

Kasabian

Biggins wrote: »

Deep, deep depression is a very hard thing to understand to those outside it and a vary hard thing to climb out of when your in that hole of depression.
I know, I speak from experience, having been there a number of years ago after losing a wife, home and other things at the time I considered important (I don't no longer - my kids happiness and health is my main worry now).

True deep depression is seriously like a well hole that your at the bottom of and you can't see a ladder to help you climb out of.
I would say you have to be there to understand what drove the poor girl to take the outcome that she did - but I wouldn't wish anyone to experience deep depression.
Its an experience you will never forget if you manage to pull through and recover.

I too have experienced that black hole , it is a dreadful place to be , for anyone that thinks they are in it , I implore you to talk to someone.

My best mate took his own life 20 years ago and I still wonder if things could have been different if he had opened up and talked to someone.

Gurgle

Every sympathy for the poor girl & her family, but

could not find work after dropping out of university in her first year

kinda sounds like the start of the depression spiral preceeded the unemployment problem.

Its a bit of a stretch making it a story about the recession.

Latchy

lonad wrote: »

It's even sadder when you see that picture with that big lovely smile.

Yes , that's just the thing that hits home , talented attractive young girl , boyfriend , loving family , with all her life ahead of her who should be looking foreward to a great future but had enough of rejection and felt such a failure she takes her own life .

seanybiker

El Weirdo wrote: »

Obviously.

Must be awful to be in that state of mind.

Well its not fun anyways. Dont be thinking straight half the time.

Kasabian

Latchy wrote: »

Yes , that's just the thing that hits home , talented attractive young girl , boyfriend , loving family , with all her life ahead of her who should be looking foreward to a great future but had enough of rejection and felt such a failure she takes her own life .

Sadly Latchy , I am sure there are many more out there who are feeling just as low because of the way things have turned out during the downturn.

fcussen

fcussen wrote: »

I'm sure hearing loads of self-righteous "why don't you lazy spongers stop draining the state and robbing me of my taxes you useless gits" rhetoric probably doesn't help.

there's not many of them "why don't you lazy spongers stop draining the state and robbing me of my taxes you useless gits" round these times in fairness. its harder to meet someone in a job.

amacachi

Gurgle wrote: »

Every sympathy for the poor girl & her family, but kinda sounds like the start of the depression spiral preceeded the unemployment problem.

Its a bit of a stretch making it a story about the recession.

As I said, it's a very middle-class piece of journalism. Even her school exam results were mediocre at best.
Being decent looking, coming from a decent family and, probably most of all, being female is what makes this noteworthy in journalism terms.

dvpower

johnnyjb wrote: »

I personally never heard of that group or website and id like to think im moderately up to date with the internet. How do you set up a website and expect people that never heard of it to find it and not commit suicide when their at the edge. They prob think that excuse of a thing is covering their ass in this sad thing people go through.

Hope this makes it easier.
http://tinyurl.com/38qxonc

El Horseboxo

I've had 2 close friends commit suicide and in the last 2 years 3 friends from secondary school killed themselves. And i just don't understand why any of them did it. I've been in very dark places myself but i'd never even contemplate it. I don't know what goes through their heads that they feel their problems can't be solved.

Turtyturd

Gurgle wrote: »

Every sympathy for the poor girl & her family, but kinda sounds like the start of the depression spiral preceeded the unemployment problem.

Its a bit of a stretch making it a story about the recession.

Agreed, Thread title is missing the word apparently, even the article used it.

Latchy

lonad wrote: »

Sadly Latchy , I am sure there are many more out there who are feeling just as low because of the way things have turned out during the downturn.

No doubt there is lonad ,the figures speak for themselfs and it's very sad and scary for the many out there in similar situation .

Biggins

El Horseboxo wrote: »

I've had 2 close friends commit suicide and in the last 2 years 3 friends from secondary school killed themselves. And i just don't understand why any of them did it. I've been in very dark places myself but i'd never even contemplate it. I don't know what goes through their heads that they feel their problems can't be solved.

For some, being told "here is the answer/solution" on its own just doesn't work.
The hard task is being able to see the way to get to that "solution", how to reach that point of happiness or even contentment again.

Its the progressiveness stages/steps between depression and a successful outcome that are hard to find for many, and a sad outcome follows because of this failure to see ones way (in actual real life stages) to happiness again.

I hope that makes sense.

landsleaving

This story is a tragic reminder that society fails to motivate people to do anything but get a job and brands people as failures when they don't. There's more to life than work, it's a pity people don't seem to realise that.

Considering the amount of young people who leave school and college to find nothing for them but the dole, the story is barely surprising, not that it isn't horrible. None of my friends, mostly recent university graduates, bar one, can find work. With education geared towards the eventual job, it's incredibly depressing to suddenly emerge into a situation where it's just not there, and everything you'd been told to believe, work hard, study, learn, you'll get a good job, was a lie.

There are thousands in this poor girls situation, and it would be good if this pushes governments to do somehting about the situation, even work placements instead of drawing the dole would help, and probably give the x years of experience every company looks for, that no recent graduate/school leaver can have.

amacachi

Biggins wrote: »

For some, being told "here is the answer/solution" on its own just doesn't work.
The hard task is being able to see the way to get to that "solution", how to reach that point of happiness or even contentment again.

Its the progressiveness stages/steps between depression and a successful outcome that are hard to find for many, and a sad outcome follows because of this failure to see ones way (in actual real life stages) to happiness again.

I hope that makes sense.

As well as that a lot of people know what it is they need to do to feel better, but how to actually do it is another task altogether.

stupidusername

What I don't get is why so many people think that going to a website like samaritans or quoting a number so they can ring it is going to be any use to a person in a position. It's crazy. Do people not realise that if you're that down a lot of things need fixing. It's not just a matter of listing all your problems out to someone over the phone, or going to some seminar! :rolleyes:

The samaritans don't help. They just try get you to talk. No one actually helps, as in the kind of help these people need.

Kasabian

landsleaving wrote: »

This story is a tragic reminder that society fails to motivate people to do anything but get a job and brands people as failures when they don't. There's more to life than work, it's a pity people don't seem to realise that.

Considering the amount of young people who leave school and college to find nothing for them but the dole, the story is barely surprising, not that it isn't horrible. None of my friends, mostly recent university graduates, bar one, can find work. With education geared towards the eventual job, it's incredibly depressing to suddenly emerge into a situation where it's just not there, and everything you'd been told to believe, work hard, study, learn, you'll get a good job, was a lie.

There are thousands in this poor girls situation, and it would be good if this pushes governments to do somehting about the situation, even work placements instead of drawing the dole would help, and probably give the x years of experience every company looks for, that no recent graduate/school leaver can have.

It is a big problem in this country and UK apparently that from very early age you are programmed into thinking that a job is the be all in society.

Biggins

stupidusername wrote: »

...The samaritans don't help. They just try get you to talk. No one actually helps, as in the kind of help these people need.

I would have to disagree.
Those skilful enough within the likes of the Samaritans (and similar) don't try to just talk a person out of depression, they try to talk or help a person to be able to help themselves - and that the important part.

Having someone that is talking to you, that is helping you to again see things that you might not see in the midst of a deep depression, can greatly help.

To be able alone to talk to someone in a way that by sheer conversation, can help them to see life and a thus stage forwards - rather than backwards - is a blessing and skill that is needed more so today than ever.

The Samaritans are a credit not to be understated.
I for one am grateful that they exist.

fcussen

Deleted User wrote: »

there's not many of them "why don't you lazy spongers stop draining the state and robbing me of my taxes you useless gits" round these times in fairness. its harder to meet someone in a job.

Could Bill Cullen please come to reception

Misty Chaos

I know of several people who killed themselves, be it young people who possibly see no future for themselves and an old enough man who took his life after he couldn't get any work because of the downturn and ran out of money. ( Yeah, I live in a suicide blackspot. )

Yes, I know it most be horrible but in the case of the guy above, I see a bit of a problem when someone defines themselves by having a job, too many people are like that in this day and age. They complain about how much their job sucks and soul destroying it is but still work at it all hours in order to pay for an overpriced house and generally stretch themselves too far because they fear they might not get the chance to earn as much again. What are you, a glutton for punishment?

I'm not saying be a lazy dole git, just you should really have more to life than working all the time ( and no, going out boozing doesn't count. Too many people abuse as it an escape as it is. ) Work to live, not live to work!

And I was in that dark place too once, it wasn't pretty. I remember openly talking about buying a rope to hang myself! I don't how I got myself out of it but I did.

cynder

Never called the samaritans but have been in that dark place, was since i was 8, that's when i first tried to stab (kill) myself, but it hurt so i couldn't. I did try again a few times but never went through with it until i turned 15. It very nearly worked and of course everyone knew then what was going on.

Saw a child psychologist who said i was fine ( i lied all the way through it). I got myself out of that frame of mind when i fell pregnant at 18. I then had something to live for. Ive been happy ever since and never went back to that dark place.

I feel sorry for the young lady, sound like her family really loved her and she really loved them. xxx rip

billybigunz

Big deal in fairness. Over 500 people took their lives in Ireland last year for all sorts of reasons. 5000 in the UK. Is this case any more tragic?

Kasabian

billybigunz wrote: »

Big deal in fairness. Over 500 people took their lives in Ireland last year for all sorts of reasons. 5000 in the UK. Is this case any more tragic?

Thats very sensitive of you , you are a class act.

billybigunz

lonad wrote: »

Thats very sensitive of you , you are a class act.

Yeah well I won't cry crocodile tears for some little media created crisis.

Biggins

billybigunz wrote: »

Big deal in fairness. Over 500 people took their lives in Ireland last year for all sorts of reasons. 5000 in the UK. Is this case any more tragic?

Its equally as tragic.
While not getting into semantics about who's cases is better or worse, the highlighting/mentioning/reminding of others that such things do happen - and happen to every one regardless of colour, class divide and status, etc - is beneficial to those that might see another heading for that depression state. Hopefully in such cases. something can be done then to lessen the occurrence of a sadder outcome.

billybigunz

More pretty white girl syndrome. Forget the scores of unfortunate young men who also take their lives. They don't warrant any column inches.

cynder

billybigunz wrote: »

Big deal in fairness. Over 500 people took their lives in Ireland last year for all sorts of reasons. 5000 in the UK. Is this case any more tragic?

No,

amacachi

lonad wrote: »

Thats very sensitive of you , you are a class act.

I think the point being made was why is this case being covered so much. I've given my opinion earlier in the thread.