CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Editor's Note: This story discusses suicide. Reader discretion is advised.
Mental health experts agree it's important to find help when you find yourself having suicidal thoughts.
Heather Hedrick, Senior program director for Daymark Recovery Services, said, "In addition to utilizing that 9-8-8 resource, I really encourage folks to reach out to a trained professional to get that additional support, and potentially, participate in ongoing services to help their symptoms improve."
A local comedian from the Matthews area, Sonja Goodwin, told WCNC the news of Stephen "Twitch" Boss dying by suicide, resonated with her.
She said, "I'm an entertainer, too. The show must go on. That's what we do. We entertain, and then we go into ourselves, and feel all that pain by ourselves."
Goodwin said her depressive state hit her a week ago, so she called the 9-8-8 suicide lifeline. She said the person on the other end talked to her for a couple of minutes and then referred her to another crisis number.
On the 9-8-8 website, the most recent report referring to North Carolina, which was published in 2020, says, "When calls are rerouted to centers out of state, North Carolina callers in crisis often wait two to three times longer."
A spokesperson for 9-8-8 told WCNC's Jane Monreal they will look into her situation and take the feedback given to them very seriously. They said they want to make sure people who reach out to them, are supported and comforted during a difficult time. They added they want to make sure any issues Goodwin may have had, are not repeated in the future.
Goodwin ended up calling a friend.
She said, "She told me, it was okay to feel the way I was feeling. And we talked for two whole hours. And I finally could breathe. Because I couldn't breathe."
Twitch's devastating death is pain that one of WCNC's own Coach LaMonte Odums knows all too well.
The host of "You Day" said, "When I heard about Twitch yesterday, it was a very eerie feeling for me because I was there."
Coach LaMonte shared with WCNC a year ago, his own struggles with bi-polar depression. As someone also in front of the camera, he said he understands showing only one version of himself to the public.
He said, "I was in a lot of pain. And a lot of people can't always see it and the reason is because we learned to perfect and mask our pain."
He said every day is still a work in progress.
"There are days you feel you're on top of the world. There are days where you feel the world is on top of you," Coach LaMonte said. "It is a journey. It is a challenge, but it's something worth waking up for. Are there hard days? Yes. But we have to keep plugging in because I know on the other side of this pain, is a promise that is greater than anything I've ever felt."
He also offered words of encouragement to those who may be going through a similar personal ordeal.
"I tell them to keep going. Every day is a new day, a new opportunity for you to grow personally. I'm not gonna say everything is going to be easy. It won't be. There will be days it'll be challenging," he said. "But if you just hold on, and if you continue to seek help, seek people who can help you, that necessary help. And I'm telling you, there are good people to push you in the direction you should go."
If you or a loved one are facing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, there is help readily available. You can call Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat with them online. There are also resources in North Carolina available here and in South Carolina available here.
Contact Jane Monreal at jmonreal@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.