Trigger warning: This article talks about mental health and suicide.
You have until midnight tomorrow (March 29) to grab a copy of Bryce’s children’s book ‘Tummy Rumble in the Jungle,’ with all proceeds going to I Am Hope’s Gumboot Friday.
Whether it’s been on nights out on the booze, or in various interviews, the question of ‘why would you write a children’s book?’ or ‘why do you talk so much about mental health?’ has been asked to Bryce a lot.
Bryce’s answer is simple.
“It’s because, it’s essentially us,” Bryce said.
“It’s the guy at your work. It’s the guy in your team. It’s the guy from your school. It’s the guy in your family. It’s your good mate. It’s the quiet guy. It can quite often be the guy you didn’t expect to have it happen to. It is so much of The Rock audience.”
Bottom line, as a show and a station, we simply don’t want people to get to that point, or have to live with the brutal grief of losing someone, Bryce says.
The Morning Rumble really realised the importance of talking about suicide and mental health back in 2017, when Mulls and Bryce lost their good friend Timmy Hutchins. Following his funeral, Bryce spoke on-air about the loss, how it’s affected him, and how he’s lost other friends and family members to suicide.
That chat was sadly relatable to a lot of our listeners.
“I think the chat that day changed everything for us as a show,” Bryce said.
Through these chats, we’ve hoped to normalise the conversation, help people feel less alone, maybe encourage people to seek help or medication, or even just make it easier to ask a mate how they’re doing.
“It’s all just been so worth it, and it’s why we won’t be stopping doing this any time soon… I personally don’t make any apologies for it,” Bryce said.
So, that’s why we do it, that’s why Bryce wrote his children’s book - and that’s why we’re so proud to have you as listeners.
Thanks mates x
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can check out this page for a bunch of mental health links and resources.
