'I want to grab life with both hands' - Daughter urges people to speak out after losing mam to suicide

Rachel and eight friends walked for 12 hours in aid of charity.

Rachel Carr 28 who lives in Horden walked from Peterlee to Roker on a 12 hour trek with nine friends dressed as superheroes, carrying a total of 70KG between them to raise money for Mind and Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide after sadly losing her mam Wendy Cook to suicide last year.

The 28-year-old, who is originally from Hartlepool set up the ‘Walk it out, Talk it out’ campaign and held the fundraising walk last Sunday, May 16.

Rachel, who has a 20-year-old sister called Chloe, said the death of their mam Wendy was the driving force behind the campaign, which has now raised £3,800.

Rachel Carr with her sister Chloe Harness and mam Wendy Cook.

The legal operations manager is now on a mission to spread the word that ‘things do get better’ and is encouraging people to talk about things they’re struggling with.

She said: “Tragically I lost my mam last year to suicide and I think of myself as a strong person but losing mam really took its toll on the family because you feel a mixture of emotions you’ve never felt before, we are all still struggling.

"I wanted to turn it into something positive and it made me want to grab life with both hands – I don’t want others to be bereaved by suicide.”

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Rachel Carr with her mam Wendy Cook who sadly passed away last year.

Rachel is planning on making the fundraiser an annual event on the same date each year to encourage people to ‘speak up and seek help.’

The fundraiser, who says she’s “over the moon” with the support and donations she has received chose two charities close to her heart including Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide who have helped to support Rachel.

She added: “Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide have been absolutely fantastic and it’s like a community – they have really helped.

"I think coronavirus has had a huge impact on mental health so I want to spread the word that things do get better, it’s not first nature to talk about things you’re struggling with but it’s vital to speak up.”

Rachel set up the campaign in memory of her mam Wendy Cook.

You can donate to Rachel’s fundraiser here.

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