Text messaging becoming a common form of suicide note

PEOPLE about to take their own lives are increasingly using text messages and voicemail instead of handwritten notes as a means of delivering the chilling messages, a coroner revealed at the weekend.

The coroner for south Mayo John O’Dwyer said the use of mobile phones was becoming a common way of notifying family or friends.

Mr O’Dwyer told a seminar on the Portrayal of Suicide in the Media that the question of why do people kill themselves is a matter for society to deal with.