Rachel Kolisi opens up About Her Suicide Attempt

Rachel Kolisi has once again opened up about her struggles with mental health. The 33-year-old wife of rugby player Siya Kolisi got candid during an episode of My Guest Tonight with Anika Larsen, which aired earlier this year. A clip from the interview was aired just recently on eNCA.

“It is still very stigmatised and people are still on a backfoot if they do choose to speak about it or there must be something wrong with them … as much as it is spoken about today, it’s not nearly enough. We have just seen now this horrible thing that happened to Twitch, that amazing dancer and rapper who committed suicide,” she said on the television show. Drawing from her own experience, Rachel Kolisi said her ailing mental health as a teenager led to her attempting suicide.

“It got to a point when I was 15 that I actually tried to take my own life. That’s how bad that it got. I think now as an adult, I’ve learnt how to manage depression a lot better. But there are people who are unable to talk about it because they are looked at as less than or something wrong with and that’s a problem,” Kolisi said.

She has stressed the importance of using her platform and reach to voice and speak about mental health and other vital issues.

“I just think I happen to have a platform. I have an experience and it is something that I work through and I do struggle sometimes and am happy to talk about it if it encourages somebody else to talk about it and get help.