Yahoo Movies Woman Who Almost Jumped Off Bridge Now Leaves Encouraging Notes There to Save the Lives of Others
Paige Hunter
Every two weeks, Paige Hunter visits Wearmouth Bridge with laminated notes of encouragement that she hopes will prevent someone from taking their own life.
The 21-year-old once stood on the edge of the bridge in Sunderland, England, herself, contemplating the worst.
"I was going through a lot at the time and dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder," she told The Washington Post.
As she considered jumping off the bridge, two strangers approached her and said, "You are worth so much more than this."
"Those words changed my life," Hunter recalled.
Paige Hunter
After returning home, Hunter began to think those words could change someone else's life too. The next day she wrote what those strangers had said to her on a piece of paper, and stuck it to Wearmouth Bridge.
Since that day in 2018, Hunter has continued to bring uplifting messages to the bridge — decorating it with over 1,000 signs in the past three years, she told The Post.
In addition to those original eight words that were imparted on her, Hunter has also written messages like "Don't give up. Not now, not tomorrow, not ever," and "Even though things are difficult, your life matters."
She includes a phone number for those in need to seek mental health services, too.
Paige Hunter
Hunter said she's received countless messages from strangers who have told her that her initiative, which she calls "Notes of Hope," has helped them.
One of those people was Callum Doggrell, who told The Post that, after experiencing suicidal ideation in 2019, Hunter's notes kept him alive.
"I was going through a really rough patch, and I was at a point in my life where I didn't want to be here anymore," Doggrell said.
That's when he read one of Hunter's signs, which said "Pause. Stop. Breathe. There are better options, and so many people who love you."
"It saved my life," he told The Post.
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In 2018, the Northumbria Police Department recognized Hunter for her initiative, according to BBC.
"Paige has shown an incredible understanding of vulnerable people in need of support," the Police Chief Superintendent Sarah Pitt told the news outlet at the time. "For somebody so young, Paige has shown a real maturity and we thought it would only be right to thank her personally."
Hunter told The Post that sharing those messages with people who need them is "definitely therapeutic."
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"I believe helping other people has helped me tremendously," she said, adding: "I feel really grateful that I've been able to help people through my own struggle."
If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
