'I jumped off a bridge to end my life but was saved - by a sea lion' …True Spectacular Story Told by a Man.
A man
who was suffering from mental illness and depression has revealed how a sea
lion saved his life after he tried to kill himself.
Kevin
Hines jumped off San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge in 2000, but against all
the odds he managed to survive.
Hines
told how his depression had led him to see life through a "bit of tunnel
vision," leading him to think he had to die.
Getty
Battle
with depression: Kevin Hines
After
plummeting into the waters and surviving the fall, he thought he could see a
shark underneath him.
He
told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation: "[I was] in the water
desperately trying to stay alive and stay afloat, [and] I guess you would call
it a mammal began swimming beneath me and I'm thinking, 'Oh man, a shark is
about to devour me'."
But it
was no shark - it was a sea lion.
Tough
memories: San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge
He
added: "I was on a show for suicide prevention and I mentioned that I
thought there was this shark on this show and a man wrote into the show and he
said, 'Kevin, I'm so very glad you're alive, I was less than two feet away from
you when you jumped'
"He
said: 'It haunted me until this day; it was no shark, it was a sea lion and the
people above looking down believed it to be keeping you afloat until the coast
guard brought a ride behind you.'"
Hines
now dedicates his life to trying to prevent suicides, working as a mental health advocate
and giving speeches around the world.
Getty
Mental
health advocate: Kevin Hines now tries to prevent suicides
If you
are having suicidal thoughts, you can call Samaritans by phone on 08457 90 90
90 or visit a UK branch in person.
For
more information, visit their
website.
You
can listen to the full length audio of Kevin Hines on the Australian
Broadcasting Corporation's website here
Via -
Mirror
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