Last night marked the return of The Late Late Show, but for one Cork mother, it also marked a tragic day in her family’s history.
Host Ryan Tubridy was joined by Helen O’Driscoll who was the final guest on the RTÉ show last night.
Helen is the mother of two boys killed by their brother Jonathan in Charleville, Co. Cork exactly a year ago yesterday. Jonathan then took his own life.
Speaking honestly and openly to Ryan about the events that day, Helen spoke tenderly about her three boys, forgiveness and being open about mental health.
In an emotionally charged interview, Helen closed with a heartbreaking plea to anyone struggling to cope with mental health issues:
“I’d like to say to all the community out there, young and old, boys and girls, there is help out there if you feel that you’re down, or if you’re in a little black hole that you don’t feel like you want to come out of anymore.
“There is help there, but you might have to climb a barrier in some cases. You should really climb that barrier to get the medicine, the help that you need. Is it out there, you just need to go out and look for it. The first step is always going to be the hardest. If you look for it, you’ll find it. You might have some chance of a life.
“But if you don’t, it could be your mother sitting here, broken hearted, in 12 months time. When she realises she doesn’t have a son or a daughter left anymore. That could be stopped.
“I loved him [Jon], but people need to know. If Jon had have been right, if he had taken his medication, if he’d done things in a different way maybe, they’d all be alive today.”
To watch the interview in full, check out the RTE player here.
