Young woman battles depression but chooses to live

Jazz Thornton shares her story about overcoming depression.

Warning: This article is about suicide and may be distressing for some readers.

We wanted to showcase people who have successfully faced battles with suicide and wider mental health issues to let others know there is hope.

New Zealand has the second worst suicide rate among those aged 25 and under in the developed world. It has the worst suicide rate among those aged 15-19. The number of young people killing themselves has remained largely unchanged for about two decades. The series aims to encourage young people to talk; to know there's hope; to know help is available. And we want to start a national conversation about what New Zealand is doing about the issue - and whether it's enough.

The portraits were taken by Herald visual journalist Mike Scott.

• Some of the stories of hope came from the HopeWalk Suicide Prevention Movement. Find them on Facebook.

Jazz Thornton shares her story about overcoming depression.

"I read my Child Youth and Family file a few years ago and it states that I went from "bubbly and energetic" to "dull and lacking emotion."

"You see, at the age of 3 my innocence was taken away from me by the men in my life and I guess you could say that my life has been a process of trying to gain back that 'bubbly and energetic' girl that was once written about.

"I struggled a lot growing up with not ever feeling good enough and I began to develop the core belief that I was unlovable. This led to a long string of suicide attempts, with my first at age 12.

"However there is one attempt I remember very clearly. I woke up in the Intensive Care Unit in hospital after being put into a coma following a very serious attempt. It was at that moment that I realised just how close to death I was and that I had a choice now to live or die.

"I chose to live.

"While my battle wasn't won over night, I was so incredibly blessed to have a couple of amazing people who knew my entire situation and loved me anyway. They didn't let me dwell, but instead taught me that nothing is going to change unless I choose to make the change. And that's what I did.

"I chose to not add to the statistics, but to begin to break them. I am now speaking in high schools across New Zealand and Australia with an organisation I founded with my friend, Genevieve Mora, called Voices of Hope.

"We were fortunate enough to receive $30,000 from Jetstar to fund our project as we work towards seeing our suicide statistics become non-existent."

WHERE TO GET HELP:
If you are worried about your or someone else's mental health, the best place to get help is your GP or local mental health provider. However, if you or someone else is in danger or endangering others, call 111.

If you need to talk to someone, the following free helplines operate 24/7:

DEPRESSION HELPLINE: 0800 111 757
LIFELINE: 0800 543 354
NEED TO TALK? Call or text 1737
SAMARITANS: 0800 726 666
YOUTHLINE: 0800 376 633 or text 234

There are lots of places to get support. For others, click here.