UK TV star's harrowing open letter to her young daughters about their father's suicide
UK Apprentice star Jessica Cunningham has penned a harrowing open letter to her three little girls about their father’s suicide.
The TV beauty sought the opportunity on World Mental Health Day yesterday, to open up about the family tragedy for the first time in the gut-wrenching note she shared on her new parenting blog.
In August, Cunningham’s former partner Alistair Eccles took his life, leaving the family devastated.
The Celebrity Big Brother star has now shared the heartbreaking moment she had to tell her daughters of their daddy’s passing which "changed our lives forever".
"You were all still sleeping silently and innocently in bed without a care in the world. Too little to understand the true extent of what had happened, and too young to deserve this unfairness of life," she wrote.
“One by one as I heard your tiny footsteps come down the stairs, my heart sank deeper into the pit of my stomach knowing I would have to tell you that daddy would not be picking you up this morning,” she recalled of the morning that changed their lives forever.
“I wanted you to remember that day a little less painful, so we went on a walk and we talked about life and death. About heaven, about the clouds, about our souls and what we believe happens when we die.
“My beautiful children, you told me that when we die, we go to heaven, we sit on a cloud and we wave to the people we love. Then I told you, that your daddy had died,” she wrote.
“The pain in your eyes, the noise of your cry and the feeling of helplessness when I held you tight made me more determined to give you all that I have and be all that you need.”
While Cunningham admitted she hadn’t told her girls how their dad died, the mother said she would one day speak to them about his suicide.
"When the time is right, you will understand what happened and that he took his own life.
"You will know that it was not your fault, that you, nor I, could change what happened.”
Despite the reality of her girls, aged three, four and six, growing up without their dad, Cunningham promised to surround her children with love, to treasure them and guide them with courage.
“The void may never be filled from the loss of your father, but I will help you to make the right choices, I will be the best teacher I can, and you will lead happy and normal lives,” she wrote.
If you are concerned about the mental health of yourself or a loved one, seek support and information by calling Lifeline 13 11 14, the Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467, or Beyond Blue 1300 22 46 36.
