Olympic cyclist Kelly Catlin is DEAD

Her triplet Christine is purportedly on reddit saying she used helium in her dorm room after suffering a concussion some weeks ago.

Was it trans?

I support suicide and believe it’s a personal choice. I support it the way I support abortion. And, she’s no longer in pain—that’s all that matters. It takes a lot of courage to end your own life and sometimes it’s the best and smartest choice that a person could make.

Suicide by helium? Is this common? I never heard of it before.

Horrific. More comments from her sister on Reddit:

[quote]Thank you. This is the worst thing that has ever happened to any of us. My brother and I feel so unbalanced without her.

[quote]She had a bad crash and broke her arm and hit her head. Pretty sure it was at the velodrome track cycling. Her other teammates got injured too. Chloe Dygert broke her clavicle then as well.

If her sister really did say that, I beliebe the concussion could have made her depressed. I’ve know a few people who seemed to change personalities after a brain injury, and become prone to bouts of rage and confusion.

Concussions can cause personality changes.

R6, are you a belieber?

R2 'It'? Some of you are absolutely insufferable.

Rest in peace to her and I hope her family copes well.

A post she made last month about the difficulties of time management as a student and pro athlete. Too bad she didn't reach out for help.

[quote]Now I am going to say something cliché: The greatest strength you will ever develop is the ability to recognize your own weaknesses, and to learn to ask for help when you need it. This is a lesson I have only just begun learning, slowly and painfully, these first few months as a graduate student. I still fail. As athletes, we are all socially programmed to be stoic with our pain, to bear our burdens and not complain, even when such stoicism reaches the point of stupidity and those burdens begin to damage us. These are hard habits to break.

R4 idk if it's common, but a guy in my dorm killed himself that way. Put a bag over his head, piped the helium in, passed out and then died.

It's supposed to make you giddy before you pass out. Not the worst way to kill yourself I suppose. I could see the appeal if you wanted to die.

She may have reached out, and it wasn't enough.

R19 that letter IS reaching out for help.

[quote]Suicide by helium? Is this common? I never heard of it before.

Yes, R4. Many of of the right-to-die organizations suggested using a helium a tank but In the U.S. they starting adding more oxygen to the helium tanks.

What a load of crap R3. Courage to commit suicide? More like the opposite. Suicide is for cowards and it is the most selfish act anyone can commit. Not an ounce of regard for what she just did to her family and friends, some of whom will NEVER get over this as long as they live.

She could have gotten help but instead she chose the easy way out. I only have contempt for those who choose suicide.

R15 is all heart. Hard heart.

I can’t even see R 15. I wonder why.

Very sad. I feel like certain industries and competitive sports circles at this level need to have mental health caretakers who have developed programs tailored to the unique issues of these environments, particularly when dealing with those who entered as children.

When the prospect of losing competitive ability seemed imminent, it was like she was programmed to self-destruct. She probably needed the same kind of support as people who have life altering injuries and lose the ability to walk, speak, etc.

R15's sentiments aren't new. They're tiresome and absolutist, especially when it comes to a subject as complex as suicide.

R16, I’ve seen plenty of families have their lives destroyed by a suicide. One mother I knew almost took her own life after the grief her son put her through.

The level of selfishness one must have to take his or her life is something I can’t even imagine. You say I have a heart of stone, but I am the one thinking about the real victims- the ones who are left behind and made to pick up the pieces.

R20 has a child's mind and thinks in absolutes.

There needs to be safe and humane methods for suicide in the US. It’s awful how violent it is to people in pain. I wish suicide wasn’t met with such hostility. And, because it is, people take violent measures against themselves.

I didn't know that about adding oxygen to helium. So not only can you not get adequate health care that might actually address what is causing you unbearable pain, you are not allowed a pretty easy, painless way out.

You're assuming suicidal ideation is sane and rational, R22.

Funny how some people can't imagine a pain so excruciating that it blocks out all thoughts of anything else, including loved ones. So that oblivion is seen as the only option.

Who says it’s not, R24? And, that’s not fair.

What r23 said. I was kind of counting on the helium for when and if I need it. Heard it was easy and painless.

And do you say that a person with advanced MS (where they’re swallowing their own tongue) or final stages of cancer right to die, R25? You don’t have to be in a place like that to not have a right to die.

I'm sorry that you think I wasn't being fair, R24, but suicidal ideation is, by definition, not rational as it's a symptom of a mental health disorder.

Is she a MtF?

If so, RIP to another Trans Warrior

That’s just ignorant of the US psychiatrict or psychological association because in Denmark they have suicide pods.

R24, I read your post at R22 again and I am sorry that I missed the tenor of it. People who are in the end stages of terminal diseases are in a different category to people suffering from depression.

I had never heard of her, but what horrible news.

She was clearly a perfectionist: math, engineering, violin, Olympic-level cycling. And she certainly looks like family (I'm a lesbian), which may have added minority stress that she and her family didn't fully understand.

Having researched suicide methods before, I'm familiar with the helium option. There's a fair amount of preparation required in order to carry it out properly, and it breaks my heart to think that she gave this final act the same meticulous care that she gave everything else in her life.

I agree with R3 in situations where someone has been suffering for a long time, has tried various measures to feel better, and has reason to believe that things will not improve. But when someone is this young, and still has such a good shot at a happy life, there has got to be more that we can try on their behalf. I'm so sad for her.

This story reminds me of the young nutritionist in NYC who killed her self recently and left a haunting note on her website. It’s hard to imagine people with so much life ahead of them feel so hopeless. But they do.

There is a difference between assisted suicide when suffering from a terminal illness and taking the easy way out when you have depression instead of working to get better.

In the case of the former, you know there is no getting better and you are able to say your goodbyes and inform your loved ones of your decision. There’s no leaving people wondering why or if there was anything else they could have done. This is not a selfish act.

This was not the case here, or in the linked story of the NYC nutritionist. These were young people with much to live for and decided to destroy every life around them rather than act like an adult and deal with their issues like the rest of us have to do everyday.

She should have picked her nose.

If only she had told someone how hopeless she felt. Then perhaps someone would have arranged an intervention, gotten her into counseling, and maybe on medication. And perhaps she could have withdrawn from classes and moved back into her parents' home temporarily. (Falling behind in school work would just have compounded her stress.) When you're in your late teens / early 20s, problems feel like they're all-encompassing, and it's hard to imagine that they'll pass.

I guess the answer is: starting with school-age, teach kids that it's normal to feel depressed at times, that it happens to lots of people. Don't be embarrassed; tell someone so that you can get help. Colleges should post signs in every dorm to encourage kids to visit the nurse or counseling center if they're feeling depressed or suicidal.

The closet kills.

How do you know she was in the closet, R39?

How do YOU know she wasn't in the closet?

R40, R39 doesn't know shit and doesn't care. He just wants to be cute.

As the Stage Manager says in OUR TOWN:

"All that education for nothing."

RIP.

I feel kind of heartbroken for this woman. She had so much ability - too much, perhaps - and compacting that with the high achieving lifestyle she chose and the concussion and it seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

I wish she could have been saved. For whatever reason, I feel more for her than I do for the nutritionist, who seemed obnoxious.

But the nutritionist ate meals most could only dream of!

She was gay, right? She looked like a total baby dyke. What a list of achievements for a 23 year old - 3 time world champion, Olympic silver medallist, grad student, musician and artist. The triplet sister posted on Reddit that Caitlin committed suicide via helium but later edited the details so as not 'trigger' anybody else.

FYI.

[quote]taking the easy way out when you have depression

Your stupidity is staggering.

But is she dead to YOU, OP?

This is like picking up the Scrabble board and tossing it across the room because you lost the lead score. Very selfish.

This woman is tragic. The nutritionist was pathetic.

Depression is depression. Anyone who doesn’t even try to understand why people are suicidal and have some empathy is cold hearted.

R35, the problem is that people who are suicidal [italic]think[/italic] they are doing the best thing for everyone, or they are in so much pain they can't see past that. Depression is an evil beast.

I think we can have empathy and still be clear-headed about the issue, R53. We all know what it’s like to be depressed at some point in our lives, but most will choose not to wallow in it and get back to normal. If someone needs to seek help from a therapist to get back, there’s no shame in that. The only shame is giving up.

Unless you have had clinical depression, R55, you can't say that, and even if you did, your experience is not a rule for everyone else's. It's not a choice, any more than someone with MS can choose how their physical symptoms affect them. The very best they can do is develop coping mechanisms, but they can't predict when an episode will occur.

I hate it when well-meaning people say, “oh I wish she had reached out to someone, maybe she’d be alive today!”

Who, though? I’m sure she did talk to someone. But people are so wrapped up in their own personal shit, and most don’t have the tools or resources to save a clinically depressed person. Effective therapists are few and far between, thanks in no small part to our shitty healthcare system.

We live in hard world, and have developed a culture in which good is never good enough. My heart goes out to this exceptional young woman who sadly couldn’t enjoy her life or her accomplishments (which included no less than an Olympic medal).

It was her choice.

Wait, R56. Are you actually comparing someone dealing with MS ago to someone with depression??? Are you joking?

And this person had plenty of people to reach out to. Do you think if she had told her triplet siblings that she was feeling suicidal that they would have ignored her? Highly unlikely. In fact, the triplet sister was shocked.

I've noticed others upthread talking about perfectionism, "Type A" personality issues. I brought up how there needs to be specific programs tailored to "child stars", dancers, athletes, musicians and actors who had this intense and unusual experience as a very, young person and don't have coping skills when everything they've known is gone in an instant or has changed drastically.

A multiple times Olympic star by 23 was someone who had her ambitions and training embedded in her childhood and youth; it was her life, her memories, all she knew. I've long thought that these kind of child stars should be assigned social workers and psychologists who check up on them, once they reach a certain level of performance and publicly celebrated success. Monitor how they're managing it.

She sounds like she was an amazing woman, this is horribly tragic. I can't imagine having that many commitments in life and dealing with a concussion.

R61 And she was probably the type that kept her problems and personal concerns to herself and just kept going.

Here's the thing:

People love to say, "If only they had reached out" after the fact. When you actually do it, you run the risk of being dismissed as "dramatic" or "looking for attention" or "creepy."

A close friend of mine lost her career because she made the mistake of confiding in a colleague (that had been a close friend) that she was going through some serious mental shit because of how she lived her life in the wake of being repeatedly sexually abused as a child (essentially her form of therapy has been finding men like her uncle).

The friend proceeded to ghost her and tell people not just at their workplace but in their field how "fucked up" my friend is, and while she eventually found some therapy that worked for her to process her life, she can't find a new job because all kinds of people have heard all kinds of stories (you know how the telephone game works) about her.

That was an extreme example, but I know other, smaller versions of the judgment people exude when people in need reach out.

R63 She should start her own company and compete towards revenge to put that fake friend out of a job. That would heal some hurts.

In education, r64, where reputation ruthlessly rules. She switched careers and is really happy, but she was excellent in the classroom and that's lost now.

[quote ]It takes a lot of courage to end your own life and sometimes it’s the best and smartest choice that a person could make.

Sometimes, yes—but not when you're a bright, healthy 23-year-old Stanford grad student and Olympic medalist with a zillion outstanding achievements already under your belt and the potential for a brilliant future ahead of you. Catlin clearly put way too much pressure on herself to excel in multiple areas, then spiraled into depression when an injury made it impossible for her to meet her usual standards for herself. Her best and smartest choice would have been to seek help for depression and with learning to be less hard on herself and more resilient in the face of unexpected setbacks. It is tragic that she was unable to do that.

Poor kid

"Healthy 23-year old." But she wasn't was she?

Yes, she was physically healthy. She'd been injured in a bike race, but nothing permanently disabling. Obviously, she was having mental health issues, but most probably they were treatable with measures less drastic than suicide.

Such a robust young gal.

R49 And s/his malevolence

R63 with friends like that, who needs enemies?

Silly me, I thought it was a photo of some cute twink. I mean, guys can be named Kelly, can't they?

Her family knew she was in trouble - she tried to kill her self in January as well.

I don’t think kids are mature enough after high school to compete in sports, take classes and the college experience is too much.

R74 why wasn’t she in hospital?

R74, do you have insider information?

Had she taken the semester or year off to receive intensive mental health care, she might have been able to pull through. But, as R63 points out, we're not always kind to those who do this. We call them "histrionic" or "attention-seeking." Suicide prevention is a bit of a catch-22, which is why a therapist's instruction to "Call the emergency line if you're thinking of hurting yourself" can feel so unhelpful: by definition, a person who has decided that s/he wants to die is not a person who is going to pick up the phone to prevent that death.

Such a tragedy. My brother committed suicide. One never recovers from that. I myself am alone. Friends but no family. I feel like asking for mercy death. What's the point of my life? I have no one to live for anymore. So don't judge as people have many dimensions to their mental health.

She had mental health problems of severe “Be Best” her be best killed her.

Some overachievers feel they are not enough. They achieve to cover up profound shame that never goes away.

Ugh, I'm too tired to find and link the article I read about her earlier today but the suicide was 100% a result of her concussion. Some concussions are totally minor, others fuck you up for months or years, or for the rest of your life. This young woman's personality did change and she became compulsively suicidal as a result of her brain injury. Her family was well aware and she was in treatment. Her first attempt failed but caused heart and lung damage. They had her promise not to try again (a technique that is often very effective) but she did it anyway. Would she have recovered from her suicidal impulses in time if her concussion healed? Possibly, although there's no guarantee.

That performance artist who did monologues, Spalding Gray, had a similar ending after he suffered a head injury in a car accident. His family and doctors were doing everything they could to help him but he was experiencing relentless suicidal urges. He even talked about it in detail in his last monologue. Said his mother had killed herself by jumping off a ferry into the Hudson river and he kept feeling an almost hypnotic urge to do the same thing. When he disappeared, everyone knew what had happened, though his body didn't wash up on shore for three months.

Sports kill.

Suicide in the face of terminal illness can be a blessing. In the case of emotional or physical pain, which can be transient, it's often not the best option.

[quote]Her family knew she was in trouble - she tried to kill her self in January as well.

This was reported in the Washington Post article on her suicide. That article made her family sound completely clueless, I thought.

1 800 273-8255 is the national suicide prevention hotline.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

New in-depth piece in the Times.

It’s a shame, and I feel for her family and friends. Hopefully she’s at peace wherever she is now.

Wrong R81. She had long standing emotional issues. This is discussed in the NYT article. She had attempted suicide previously and called therapy useless and said she could not find any psychiatrist who met "her needs".