Trigger Warning: This content contains discussion of suicide and suicidal thoughts. Please scroll down for available resources.
I just returned home to Manhattan from visiting my daughter Rosie at Cornell, where we enjoyed an amazing Fall Break together. She’s a senior, hoping to be a vet one day and I’m so grateful to be alive to watch her grow into such an independent, compassionate young lady.
I almost ruined everything in 2015 when severe depression hit and I attempted suicide. Rosie was only 11 years old. I knew nothing about mental illness at the time or why people needed to see therapists. Whenever I heard of someone dying by suicide especially a teenager, I thought how could the family not have known something was wrong.
Now I know. I was on TV every day delivering the news, focusing on uplifting stories and known for my bright smile and positive attitude. While inside, stress, anxiety, fear and depression were taking over until I truly believed my daughter would be better off without me.
I will share my story and my work on "Breaking the Stigma" on a new show launched by Neil Parekh and Dawn Helmrich Neuburg, “Shining Light on Shadows: A Candid Conversation About Mental Health.” You can watch the live show Thursday, October 24 at 7pm ET / 6pm CT OR the recording on Facebook, Twitter*, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram* and Neil's website.
*We won't know the exact urls for Twitter or Instagram until we go live. For now, those links go to Neil's accounts.
For years only my closest family knew what happened. When I returned to work months later, I brushed aside colleagues' questions about where I’d been.
Finally in 2021 I went public with my story in a half-hour special called Breaking the Stigma. Now I know the importance of talking openly about mental health and hammering home the fact that it’s just as important as physical health.
Whenever I feel like I’ve talked enough about the issue and the importance of getting help, someone will reach out to me in crisis and it reminds me that you never know what someone is going through so we have to keep sharing our stories, really listen to those around us who may need help and let everyone know there are so many resources out there to help us heal. Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom before you find the strength to get back up.
That’s what happened to me, and I’m forever grateful I got a second chance.
If you or someone you know have had thoughts of hurting themselves, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 988 for 24/7 free and confidential support. You can also visit 988lifeline.org.
Editor’s Note: In 2021, Cindy told her full story to her colleague, Dana Tyler, in a one-hour special. Here’s a two-minute version. She has gone on to produce several special reports under the banner of “Breaking the Stigma.”
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