The mother of a school boy who committed suicide has been left devastated after finding his body after he was dumped by his first boyfriend.
A 16-year-old boy, who had dreams of becoming a lawyer committed suicide in September shortly after coming out as gay and being dumped by his boyfriend. He had been a victim of bullying in the years before his death.
An inquest heard that Zenon Bartlett, 16, committed suicide days after his first relationship with another boy ended. His mother found him hanged in his room after Zenon’s, boyfriend ended their relationship
The schoolboy had recently come out as gay. The Mirror reports that he had struggled for three years with “persistent rumours about he and another boy”.
Zenon’s mother, Lynda Bartlett, told the inquest that he found her son’s body at their home in Four Acres, Botley, Hants., on September 6.
She said,
“I had my lunch and just went upstairs and walked into the bedroom.
“I had seen Zenon’s legs sticking out the wardrobe – they didn’t look right and when I walked in and saw what he’d done I was screaming ‘no’ and just calling for help.
“I went downstairs screaming for help. I phoned for an ambulance and ran upstairs with my mobile phone.
“If I had thought for a minute that he would self-harm or he would come to us to say he was depressed we would have taken him to the doctor’s or I would pay for a counsellor.”
During the investigation into his death, it was found that he had reached out to Childline where he was offered help.
Paying tribute, Mrs Bartlett said about her son,
“In his 16 years, Zenon touched so many lives, we are so proud he was part of our family.
“Our wish for this in the future is for people to not be afraid and to talk and get help if they are feeling low or suicidal.”
Samaritans (116 123) operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. If you prefer to write down how you’re feeling, or if you’re worried about being overheard on the phone, you can email Samaritans at jo@samaritans.org.
