A father-of-three has produced a video in which he talks openly about his suicidal thoughts because he is determined to reach out to people struggling with mental health issues.

Richard Argyle, aged 40, of Brampton, speaks of the turmoil and pain he has suffered in secret for decades during the eight-minute video he posted on Facebook.

He told the Hunts Post that even his wife, his two brothers, Ben and Sam, and close friends were unaware there were days when he simply did not want to continue to live.

Richard, who runs a flooring business with his brothers, admits he has struggled with his “demons” for more than 20 years.

“I am not depressed, I can go 363 days of the year and be fine, but on those other two days I am at rock bottom, in a black hole, and I can’t see a way out and anything can trigger it off,” he explained.

During the video he describes several occasions when those feelings of wanting to end his life overwhelmed him.

“One night I just took myself up to a bridge, climbed over and contemplated the end, and only stopped because a man walked passed with his dog and said ‘don’t do it son, it’s not worth it.”

Richard’s mental health issues began when he was 12 after his parents split up and his “world fell apart”.

He says: “I didn’t want to be here any more.”

He wnet on to throw himself down the stairs several times, on one occasion it resulted in him breaking his collar bone.

Richard talks about being bullied at school and admits his behaviour deteriorated and he was eventually suspended.

He describes good and bad times over the next few years. At one point he left St Neots in an attempt to run away from his feelings, but he now has a family and a successful business and struggles to understand his negative feelings.

One day last year he left the house telling his wife he was going for a cycle ride, but he was planning to take his own life.

“I had the rope with me and had worked out how I would do it and what I would need to make it work properly and was going through the motions of all of this while I stood under the tree, when I received a text message. The message was from a friend whose mum wanted some flooring laid, and it sounds stupid, but that was enough to stop me in my tracks. I just didn’t want to let her down.”

He adds: “I had my beautiful family. I had everything that everyone thinks they want in life. There was no reason for it, but I felt like there was no way out. The very next day I got a telephone call from my brother telling me that the brother of a close friend had killed himself. I saw the devastation that caused to everyone around him and I swore that was it and I was going to do everything I could to stay well and make sure I never got to that point again.”

On making the video, he says: “I know some people switched it off after 20 seconds and some people watched it all and there will be people who think I am doing this for attention.

“Believe me, I am not doing this for attention, People with mental health issues do not want attention, it’s the last thing they want, they want to hide from this, they want the world to go away.

“I have made this video for people to share. Even if it goes to one person and that one person learns something from it or it changes something I will be happy. I’ve done this for no other reason than to open up people’s eyes.”

To watch the video, go to: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10156834814927559&id=538512558

FACT: While male suicide rates are at their lowest since 1981 (15.5 deaths per 100,000 people) suicide remains the single largest killer of men under the age of 45. In the UK, the figure for women is 4.9 suicides per 100,000 deaths.

INFO: If you need help, contact The Samaritans on: 116123 or go to: www.samaritans.org or email: jo@samaritans.org.uk or information is available at the mental health charity MIND at: www.mind.org.uk.