Last Sunday, a mother jumped from the bridge onto Hwy 401 in Toronto, with her 2yr old son in her arms. People who stopped tried to talk her out of it, but she didn't, or couldn't listen. Neither carried any identifications, so it took a while for the police to find out who they were.
As the week went by, more information about them came out. What basically happened was that the mother had depression and was on medication. She stopped taking meds because she was breastfeeding her son. As a result of being off the meds for so long, the depression got a hold of her. Unfortunately, she was estranged from her family, and was living in a shelter. People who knew her thought things were going well for her. She graduated school, and found an apartment, so she could leave the shelter.
Nobody knew that she was 'deteriorating', until it was too late. A family member said, in an interview, that everyone need to pay attention to themselves and others around them for signs of depression.
At first, people were shocked and saddened. Then there was anger. They were angry at her for taking her son's life as well. It must be hard for people to understand that in cases like this; there was no malice or selfishness intended.
This incident is a reminder of an incident that occurred last year - also on Hwy 401 in Toronto. A father, who was going through a divorce and didn't want to lose custody of his 5yr old daughter, threw her over the bridge, and jumped after her. He died, but miraculously, his daughter lived. She has fully recovered, at least physically.
Stories like these are very hard to deal with. I can only imagine the trauma the people who tried to help went through.
As the week went by, more information about them came out. What basically happened was that the mother had depression and was on medication. She stopped taking meds because she was breastfeeding her son. As a result of being off the meds for so long, the depression got a hold of her. Unfortunately, she was estranged from her family, and was living in a shelter. People who knew her thought things were going well for her. She graduated school, and found an apartment, so she could leave the shelter.
Nobody knew that she was 'deteriorating', until it was too late. A family member said, in an interview, that everyone need to pay attention to themselves and others around them for signs of depression.
At first, people were shocked and saddened. Then there was anger. They were angry at her for taking her son's life as well. It must be hard for people to understand that in cases like this; there was no malice or selfishness intended.
This incident is a reminder of an incident that occurred last year - also on Hwy 401 in Toronto. A father, who was going through a divorce and didn't want to lose custody of his 5yr old daughter, threw her over the bridge, and jumped after her. He died, but miraculously, his daughter lived. She has fully recovered, at least physically.
Stories like these are very hard to deal with. I can only imagine the trauma the people who tried to help went through.
