Grieving mum reveals contents of cryptic note left by girl, 16, before she 'killed herself'
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A heartbroken mother has revealed the contents of a cryptic note found among her daughter's possessions - just hours after finding out she had died.
The body of Maisie Cousin-Stirk, 16, was found in woodland near her home in Misterton, Nottinghamshire.
Her older sister Amy Cousin, 27, found a note on top of a set of drawers in her bedroom.
Her distraught mum, Helen Cousin, 46 – who was identifying Maisie’s body at the mortuary at the time – believes her 16-year-old daughter was depressed and took her own life.
And she has now revealed the tragic contents of the note in a bid to help other teenagers speak out about their mental health.
(Image: PA Real Life)
Viewed one way, the note read: "I'm fine," but tragically, when the piece of paper was turned upside down, the note read: "Help me."
Admitting she had no idea Maisie was depressed, Helen said: “I never thought she would do this. We were very close and she was always by my side. I really thought she could talk to me about anything.
“I had no idea she was hiding these feelings and I hope that I can just help other teenagers now to speak to someone before it is too late.”
Maisie, who was deciding whether to go to college and complete a childcare course or go to sixth form to do her A-Levels, died six weeks ago, on June 19 – just days after completing her GCSE exams, the results of which her mum will receive later this month.
(Image: PA Real Life)
It was the day of her school leavers’ assembly, but she had decided not to go.
“Normally I would have a chat with her before work, but I thought she’d want to lie in on her first day off,” recalled Helen. “ Just before I left, she shouted out to me and I said a quick goodbye.”
In the days before her tragic death, Helen, Maisie and her younger brother Oliver, 12, had been planning for their family holiday together at the beginning of August to Crete.
Helen said: “We had such a lovely day on the Saturday before she died. The sun was shining and we went to the optician to get Maisie her first pair of prescription sunglasses. She was really excited about going away. We were making plans for the summer.
“I remember walking through town behind Maisie and Oliver and just thinking how lucky I was.”
(Image: PA Real Life)
Maisie, a high achiever who was expected to get A*’s, A’s and B’s, had finished her exams and decided not to go to the leavers’ assembly at school as it was optional.
On June 19, Maisie spent the morning with Amy and her children Joel, three, and Scarlett, nine months.
Helen said: “She loved her nieces and nephews and they couldn’t wait to spend time with her. Her older brother Luke, 24, also has a little girl called Esme, one.
“Maisie spent most of her free time with them and wanted to work with kids when she was older. It breaks my heart that there are three little people who won’t have auntie Maisie anymore.”
Maisie told her sister she was going to the shop to buy some cookies but, instead, she went home and took the family dog Diesel for a walk.
(Image: PA Real Life)
Helen caught sight of her at around 3pm that afternoon, heading home from her walk across the fields around the primary school where she works, just behind their family house.
But when she got home at 5.30pm, after working extra hours helping with cleaning, she realised Maisie was not home and assumed she was still with her sister.
“She was a 16-year-old so she was used to doing her own thing,” Helen, who is no longer with Maisie’s dad, Mick, 51, continued. “I just thought she was spending time with her niece and nephew, or maybe she was at her dad’s.”
Helen took Oliver to youth club, but on her way home at 6.30pm, she received a message from Maisie’s best friend, asking if she had spoken to her, as she hadn’t heard from her all day.
Concerned by the message, Helen rang Amy, but Maisie was not with her.
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She also called Mick, who lives nearby, but he hadn’t seen her either.
Anxious, as she ran out of places to check, Helen phoned the police, reporting Maisie missing.
Within an hour of posting about her daughter on Facebook, the community formed a search party - scouring fields and streets, looking for Maisie.
Helen said: “I had all sorts of things running through my head. It was really hot that day and I thought maybe she had passed out somewhere. I never imagined she would do anything to hurt herself.”
Sadly, around 5am, Amy’s partner Liam Hunter, 24, was on the phone to Helen, when he discovered Maisie’s body in a lane, only a few minutes from their house.
(Image: PA Real Life)
Helen said: “I just screamed and screamed. I couldn’t believe this had happened to us.
“I had no idea that Maisie was feeling so bad that she felt she had to do this. I don’t know why and I don’t think I ever will.”
The next day, Helen and Mick travelled to Nottingham to identify Maisie’s body.
Trying to feel closer to her sister, Amy looked through the things she had left in her bedroom and discovered the note, carrying the two opposing messages – showing it to her mum when she got home.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about the note,” Helen said. “There are kids out there, like Maisie, who don’t talk about their problems or seem to be upset. This summed it up for me.
“I woke up in the middle of the night and realised I wanted to use her doodle to do something positive.
“I looked at a few companies then and emailed the Lapel Pin Company about creating some badges, carrying the same message, and in the morning I woke up to a response them.”
(Image: PA Real Life)
As they prepared for Maisie’s funeral at Misterton on 13 July, 750 of the badges arrived and Helen shared them with friends and family.
Within days, they had all gone and Helen decided to do something positive with the raised by their sale and a justgiving page set up in Maisie’s memory, using her cryptic note as the logo for her campaign.
The family are also raising money through Justgiving to create a sensory garden at the primary school where Helen works.
In addition, Helen is fundraising for the suicide prevention charity Papyrus, who she hopes to work with to train teachers and school staff across the country in how to deal with depression and suicidal thoughts in young people.
And, despite still struggling to come to terms with her grief, Helen is determined to speak out to help other children.
“Maisie was a fantastic daughter. She was doing well at school. She didn’t have loads of friends, but I think she wanted it that way and she had a few very close friends. I know they had fallings out and there were stresses and worries but I thought those were just normal teenage things.
“She didn’t leave any letters or anything explaining why. I have so many unanswered questions but now I just want to raise money and awareness so maybe I can stop another family having to go through this.”
For more information about Maisie’s campaign, visit the Facebook page here .
If you’re struggling to cope with mental health issues here are some of the ways you can access help.
Samaritans (116 123) operates a 24-hour service available every day of the year. If you prefer to write down how you’re feeling, or if you’re worried about being overheard on the phone, you can email Samaritans at jo@samaritans.org.