Phone Call From Son Saves Father From Taking His Own Life At Sea
Aaron Cargill was about to take his own life at sea until a phone call from his son turned everything around.
In 2018, Aaron lived in Oxford with his partner and unfortunately, the couple lost a baby and divorced shortly after.
Four months later, he found he had no home and was forced to move back to Norfolk, where he grew up and suffered a turbulent childhood.
His Aunt then suffered a heart attack and Aaron would visit her in hospital.
As well as having to sell his home and carry his clothes in bin bags, eventually, the series of events would lead to a severe case of depression.
"I just thought actually I just can't deal with this pain anymore," Aaron, 38, told LADbible.
"Sat on the beach, I thought 'who's going to care if I was to just go into the sea now, who would be worried about me'. My brain was telling me 'nobody'.
"So I walked to the sea and no word of a lie, as soon my feet touched that sea, my phone went off.
The phone call was from his son, Kaileb, 20.
"People that know me, will know my phone is either on vibrate or silent, and it was my boy calling me and that was the slowest, most painful walk, back to that phone and seeing that it's my son, that I've ever done.
"That boy saved my life. He said 'hello dad, how are you, are you alright,' which is what he says every time.
"It was those words and I thought, 'what am I doing here'.
"I thought, this boy, I'm his life and I could have affected him so much from what I was about to do.
"I realised then that actually there's much more than what my brain's telling me about life, to what's actually going on, but I just couldn't see it at the time."
As well as Kaileb, Aaron thanked his dog for helping him get through such a tough period.
"My dog has been a bloody godsend. I've got a five-year-old sprocker spaniel and she's been with me every step of the way. When I didn't want to get up in the morning and go outside because I wanted to just deal with my depression, I had to get up and get on," he revealed.
Aaron wants to help spread awareness of suicide and depression, and he has issued some advice for people going through a similar situation.
"My advice for somebody would be to 'be brave'. In terms of taking the step to say to yourself, not to anybody else, 'I'm really suffering and do you know what, it's okay'."
"Just look after yourself and aim to talk to somebody.
"If you do get knocked back, which people do, keep chipping away.
"And if you can't chip away, there are so many people out there to talk to."
Following the need to help people, this year Aaron started a clothing business called 'It's Okay', which is what he used to say to himself during dark moments.
The brand focuses on spreading awareness for mental health and suicide prevention, with 10 percent of profits being donated to charity.
Movember is an annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men's suicide.
To learn more on how you can help, visit the following link - https://uk.movember.com
UOKM8? is a campaign by LADbible, featuring films and stories that provide advice and inspiration on mental health.
Explore more here and don't suffer in silence. Let's talk mental health.
MIND: 0300 123 3393.
Samaritans: 116 123.
CALM: 0800 58 58 58.
Topics: Mental Health
Anish Vij