Suicide: What about the forgotten victims? Inverness man speaks out after death of his mother
A CALL for better support for those left behind following a suicide has been made by a man still picking up the pieces after the death of his mother.
Nick Lyon (34) of Drakies Avenue, Inverness found Fiona Macleod (64) in her home after she took her own life at Christmas last year.
The marketing manager who previously ran the Highland Bottle Shop specialist off licence in Inverness now wants to see more joined-up working between organisations to better support people like him.
Mr Lyon said that in the aftermath of his own trauma he was left to find support entirely on his own.
He said his mother, a former teacher who lived in the Lochardil area of Inverness, had planned a trip to Hamburg in Germany during the festive period but did not go – and when he did not hear from her he knew something was not right.
Discovering her at her home when he went to check, he said: “It was absolutely a complete body blow. I was lying in the driveway making a god awful noise.”
He initially suffered flashbacks and had trouble sleeping and dealing with anger.
“I am a completely different person than I was six months ago,” he said.
“It changes your world view.”
NHS Highland was asked for comment but failed to respond by the time of going to press.
See today's Courier for full story.
