I’m always uneasy about this type of thing. This is a personal matter and if the family didn’t want it revealed then why do we need to know? But then I also want to stop the stigma of mental health, major depression and even suicide itself.
After Naomi Judd passed away this weekend, the family revealed she had died “from mental health”. Which led many to speculate that it was possibly suicide or even dementia.
Naomi was a longtime advocate for mental wellness, and even spoke of the pain saying “No one can understand it unless you’ve been there”. Which could not be truer. People wonder all the time how someone could be moved to do something so drastic, but this isn’t a decision made easily. These people have suffered for years.
People magazine now says they have multiple sources confirming the death was suicide. And given Naomi’s lifetime of work with mental health programs, I think she would be ok with that info being shared.