A Dundee University lecturer has used his experience of depression to inspire others on the path to recovery.
Grant Fraser King, 43, returned to the university’s Kirkcaldy campus to study nursing in 2005 after dropping out at the age of 18 following an attempt to take his own life.
His story reached thousands after he shared it on Twitter, encouraging people not to give up.
He said: “I became quite depressed and suicidal in my first year at university and I attempted to take my own life.
“The breakdown meant I was unable to continue with the course which really saddened me as I’m from a family of nurses so I felt like a failure.
I’m 18 here, & a #nursingstudent. I left the course in 1st year due to #mentalhealth issues. I restarted the course at 28. Less than 18 months after qualifying I was a band seven. 10 years after registering I was the UK nurse educator of the year. Please don’t give up #recovery pic.twitter.com/QuwvKtBuiw
— Grant Fraser King (@UoDMHN) January 17, 2020
“It’s been incredibly humbling to think that my story has encouraged or inspired people.”
After taking time out to focus on his health, Grant is hoping to spread the message that recovery is possible.
Figures published by the NHS Information Service Division show suicide rates have risen to the highest level in five years, with suicides among those aged 15 to 24 increasing by 50% in one year.
He has led a successful career, achieving band seven in nursing just 18 months after graduating.
In 2013, he moved into a lecturing position at Dundee University, teaching mental health nursing.
He uses his own experiences to change the way mental illness is treated on the ward and was named Educator of the Year by the Student Nursing Times in 2019.
Grant said: “I was admitted to hospital when I was 18 after attempting suicide and I was treated in a poor and patronising way.
“I had severed my radial artery on some broken glass from a window and it was quite serious.
“But I lay in a hospital bed for three days covered in blood and no one washed that blood from me. I was discharged still covered in it.
“Thankfully this isn’t the way people are treated now and we need to encourage people to talk about their mental health. I use a lot of my own experiences when lecturing but I do it in a way to question how we can improve life for people.”
Dundee University said Grant’s story helps the university’s community talk about mental health. Campaigner Tina McGuff will host a class on mental wellbeing on Wednesday in Dalhousie Lecture Theatre 4.
