An inquest into the death of a local man has raised discussions of stigma surrounding the mental health of young men.

Martin Pound, 30, was described as someone who “was sociable and had lots of friends.” However, on April 1, earlier this year, Martin tragically took his own life while on a walk in Delabole.

The inquest heard that Martin had anxiety but had not reported any other problems with his GP. The inquest heard from Sarah Partridge, Martin’s General Practitioner who said: “Back in December 2007, Martin had reported hearing voices over a period of three days but did not experience any self harm but had struggled sleeping.

“In a depression test, he scored seven out of 27, which would be considered as mild depression.”

Since then however, Martin only attended a doctor appointment on two occasions, most recently in 2013 for something unrelated to his mental health.

The inquest heard from Detective Constable McDonald, who said: “In October 2020, following an argument with his mother, Martin threatened to take his own life and was later found in his car by his sister with bruising on his neck.”

Despite struggling, Martin did not reach out for support. “Martin would often downplay circumstances,” DC McDonald explained.

Martin’s mother told the inquest that, prior to his death, he had purchased clothes and expressed an interest in going on holiday, giving no suggestion of a desire to end his life.

This raised discussions of the stigma surrounding mental health and particularly with young men. Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 35 in the UK and Coroner Guy Davies explained the difficulties many young men have when looking for support.

He said: “This is a tragic case, seen all too often, often young men suffering with mental health issues do not reach out for support.

“Martin’s family had suggested he seek help but he did not.”

The coroner recorded a conclusion of suicide.

If you are struggling with mental health, support is available from the Samaritans for free on 116 123.