Former Hull City striker Dean Windass has revealed he has tried to kill himself twice in the last week and is struggling with depression.
The 42-year-old guided Hull into the Premier League after scoring the winner in the 2008 play-off final before ending his playing days with Darlington in 2009.
"I have cried every day for the last two years since retiring," the player told The People. "People outside football think we have it all. But I was in a hole that I honestly didn't know how to get out of.
"Just over a week ago I hit rock-bottom and decided to end it all. I first took an overdose and when that didn't work tried to hang myself. I felt so alone and believed I had nothing to live for. I need to sort myself out which is why I'm speaking out now.
"People have this image of me as this big strong man who can take anything life throws at him. But I'm not ashamed to say I wanted to end it. I knew I'd been a fool but I couldn't shake off the depression at feeling what a failure I'd become."
Windass, who has also played for Aberdeen, Bradford, Middlesbrough and Sheffield United, called on the Professional Footballers' Association to assist players with similar problems.

Yeah must be hard living with all that money

Money doesn't buy you happiness.

prick

Oh well done United a very intellectual and erodite argument around a very sensitive and emotive issue. You ever thought of councelling?

That's sarcasm by the way United, just pointing it out for you as not everyone is able to get it.

Yeah but I don't think I'd be much help

People who’ve survived suicide attempts have reported wanting not so much to die as to stop living, a strange dichotomy but a valid one nevertheless. If some in-between state existed, some other alternative to death, I suspect many suicidal people would take it.

In general, people try to kill themselves for six reasons:

1. They’re depressed. This is without question the most common reason people commit suicide. Severe depression is always accompanied by a pervasive sense of suffering as well as the belief that escape from it is hopeless. The pain of existence often becomes too much for severely depressed people to bear. The state of depression warps their thinking, allowing ideas like “Everyone would all be better off without me” to make rational sense. They shouldn’t be blamed for falling prey to such distorted thoughts any more than a heart patient should be blamed for experiencing chest pain: it’s simply the nature of their disease.

Often people suffer with it silently, planning suicide without anyone ever knowing. Despite making both parties uncomfortable, inquiring

2. They’re psychotic. Malevolent inner voices often command self-destruction for unintelligible reasons. Psychosis is much harder to mask than depression — and arguably even more tragic. The worldwide incidence of schizophrenia is 1% and often strikes otherwise healthy, high-performing individuals, whose lives, though manageable with medication, never fulfill their original promise.

Schizophrenics are just as likely to talk freely about the voices commanding them to kill themselves. Psychosis, too, is treatable, and usually must be for a schizophrenic to be able to function at all. Untreated or poorly treated psychosis almost always requires hospital admission to a locked ward until the voices lose their commanding power.

3. They’re impulsive. Often related to drugs and alcohol, some people become maudlin and impulsively attempt to end their own lives. Once sobered and calmed, these people usually feel emphatically ashamed. The remorse is usually genuine, and whether or not they’ll ever attempt suicide again is unpredictable. They may try it again the very next time they become drunk or high, or never again in their lifetime. Hospital admission is therefore not usually indicated. Substance abuse and the underlying reasons for it are generally a greater concern in these people and should be addressed as aggressively as possible.

4. They’re crying out for help, and don’t know how else to get it. These people don’t usually want to die but do want to alert those around them that something is seriously wrong. They often don’t believe they will die, frequently choosing methods they don’t think can kill them in order to strike out at someone who’s hurt them—but are sometimes tragically misinformed.


5. They have a philosophical desire to die. The decision to commit suicide for some is based on a reasoned decision often motivated by the presence of a painful terminal illness from which little to no hope of reprieve exists. These people aren’t depressed, psychotic, maudlin, or crying out for help. They’re trying to take control of their destiny and alleviate their own suffering, which usually can only be done in death. They often look at their choice to commit suicide as a way to shorten a dying that will happen regardless. In my personal view, if such people are evaluated by a qualified professional who can reliably exclude the other possibilities for why suicide is desired, these people should be allowed to die at their own hands.

6. They’ve made a mistake. This is a recent, tragic phenomenon in which typically young people flirt with oxygen deprivation for the high it brings and simply go too far. The only defense against this, it seems to me, is education.

The wounds suicide leaves in the lives of those left behind by it are often deep and long lasting. The apparent senselessness of suicide often fuels the most significant pain survivors feel. Thinking we all deal better with tragedy when we understand its underpinnings, I’ve offered the preceding paragraphs in hopes that anyone reading this who’s been left behind by a suicide might be able to more easily find a way to move on, to relinquish their guilt and anger, and find closure. Despite the abrupt way you may have been left, those don’t have to be the only two emotions you’re doomed to feel about the one who left you.

^^^^ End of Thread..

Read John Burridges story. It's more common than you might think

So how many former/current football players are going to have to own up to having some form of depression before it's taken seriously?

All this "oh how can you be depressed whilst you have all that money blaw blaw blaw" bullshit is one of the most ignorant things anyone can say.

Mental health problems are equally common in men and women, but the types of problems differ. Women are more than twice as likely to be affected by depression, while men suffer more from substance abuse (80% of those dependent on alcohol are men). Men are also more prone to suicide: British men are three times more likely than British women to die as a result of suicide.

I'm guessing that most suicides/ suicide attempts are blokes? Just a hunch.
Most divorce cases basically hand over the entire belongings to the woman plus anything the bloke earns in future, to the point where a lot of blokes are basically barely existing just to provide for a split arse?

Without sounding sexes the man in the majority of cases comes out second best in all divorce cases.

That isn't sexist, it is an assumption based on facts that divorced men will back up and any search of the web for tales of divorce will throw at you.

Ah right forgive me I got it wrong. Because he HAD loads of money and now doesn't. Aw poor him eh? Let's all have a whip round. Must be hard going from having loads to nothing and working for Sky. I should be thankful for the 12 hour shifts I do eh

I think you should just stop talking United, you pathetic 'lovely lovely person'

Agreeing with b

Ok I must do as you say

I better stop before I start then, United i`m with you on this

Don't worry Mr Butt someone will post soon saying how we don't understand this illness and we're uneducated

if you think depression is linked to how much is in your bank then your very stupid the both of you.

If it was id of killed myself a long time ago.

i would have given up at 17

My cousin has depression and Schizophrenia and its not a thing to be joking about and United comes across as a bit of a tool.

No I don`t think it is linked, however in this case it may have something to do with it, you earnt all that money and now you have got nowt, hmm I may get depressed too!!

And before the politically correct slappy back brigade start, YES, I have been through a bout of depression when I was made redundant, lost my home, self asteem etc, got that, good!!

I came through it ok by the way, thx

Or maybe playing football was his whole life and when he retired he pretty much had his whole life tore apart. Personally I couldn't imagine being as down as he claims he is, but that doesn't make me a better or stronger person.

but working simply to hand it over to someone else who may have deserted you, has got to be demoralising at the very least.....

^^^Gary Speed ...strange how they've forgot him already.. just another statistic now..

Frank Bruno anyone?? Fancy giving him the benefit of your wisdom Mr Unied/Butt??

'Go on you big baby, you've got nothing to be.........'

Whump!!

I guess when you've been exposed to the drug of football and the successes that go with it for such a long time like Dean Windass has that as soon as this is taken away from you (and throw in some difficult personal circumstances) that it's only natural you're going to be in a pretty depressed state.

So fck if he's got a few quid in his sky rocket. What does that get you? A slightly more comfortable car, a few more bedrooms, peace of mind you won't have to work till you're 65 and a fortnight in the Maldives instead of a week on Tenerife self catering. Hardly enough to stop you being immune from being unhappy.

United's post is ignorant beyond belief and not really worth paying attention to.

My brother met him a few years back and he said he was like a cowering baby. So I'll take my chances with him yes

A cowering 6'4" baby??

I'll call Frank Warren...... No doubt nothing has changed in a few years. Depressives sometimes like to lash out and that'd save us from having to put up with the cack you spout.

He want to play for the Loids - he could be depressed and justified

If you'd suffered from depression you'd surely have some understanding from another person going through it?

By the way, what the fook has political correctness good to do with this?

Well you know how some of the sanctimonious twats on here, who once read an article, overheard somebody say, you can`t say that about whoever brigade, the jump down your throats because you have an opinion that differs to theirs, that`s what I mean

And whilst I have some understanding of the symtoms, I at no stage thought about topping myself, even in the darkest hours, when you feel alone in the world etc, you dig deep and look for the positives, even when there aren`t many I may add, the little things like that count, how would my daughter react, my aged mother, what effect it would have on them, rather than the selfish, I can`t go on bollocks, in my opinion, it is the easy way out rather than face up to the issues and deal with it.

One word I wouldn't use about taking your own life would be 'easy' I'd say theirs not much easy about taking such a devasting decision. To be at a stage were your thought process is telling you that is the best thing to do doesn't really bare thinking about.

It sounds to me as I suspected that you have been depressed in your life, you've not suffered from depression. It's very different. You don't understand depression, or are very ignorant.

I bet you think Windass should 'snap out of it' Thankfully professionals are on hand to help people and not everyone has such a black and white outlook on life as yourself.

People like you and United are why people in the public eye need to speak out about this issue because plenty obviously needing educating on the
matter.

It's got nothing to do with being 'pc' you are completely uneducated and wrong.

Told you it wouldn't be long before the uneducated line came into play

I could have used thick but I have manners.

Just watched "Tyson" the documentary about his life by him.. I'm sure he'd have a few choice words about depression to aim at the so called "hard men" of the board..

The responses of Messers United and Monkeybutt on this topic go to prove why it is such a big problem.

Bloke to mates - Lads I feel really down and can't seem to get interested in anything.

Mates - Stop being a girl and come for a pint or six.

2 weeks later it's not better, and it repeats until he stops going out, starts drinking and having dark thoughts.

By the end of the Winter he has either attempted suicide or ended up repeating the episode that fella in Horden had a few weeks back or Derek Bird had.

I felt mildly depressed once, the doctor told me to take a week off work and go for a walk, at the time 80% of my job involved going for walks.

united, you are thick as fuck.

monkeybutt, all joking aside, i expected better from you.

Reading all the above I've realised that all in all the vast majority of people on here are quite sensitive and thoughtful, not your typical stereotypical neathanderal football fans. Well done most of you.

There are one or two exceptions though. Get in touch with your feminine side boys, you know you want to.

luckily i dont

I`m not complotlee unedukated aktualee, I have 2 gcse`s!!

And I`m wrong because I don`t agree with your philosophy, well I will still sleep at night despite not having your approval of my opinion!

And the board messiah has spoken, take heed all ye of differing opinion for ye shall fall in line or be cast asunder

It's not my 'philosophy' it's a proven medical condition. You don't agree with that!?

It's like any other medical condition as well, it has no prejudices anyone can suffer from it, whether you are on job seekers allowance or an ex professional footballer. You are exactly the type person as well that needs to read up on the subject because if you ever were suffering from it you'd brush it off like a lot of men do and not get the help you needed.

My dads had it since 1995, he hid from it for years n just got in with it, as his dad just told him to do that, it wasnt until he had a major breakdown in 2006 that we even knew he had it.

He'll be on pills for the rest of his life i'm sure.

It's good too see so many people having the balls to talk about it these days, hopefully windass n collymore talking about so openly will help others.