Teen dancer's death by suicide inspires sister's advocacy

Mariam Yousefi says her teenaged sister suffered in silence before she died by suicide, but she hopes helping other young adults honours her memory.

Mina Yousefi, 17, of Hamilton, Ont. was a vibrant dancer who dreamed of becoming a dance teacher.

"When this happened, it just opened my eyes and all I could think about was if I couldn't save her and if I was too uneducated and blind to hear her cries then the least I could do was help others," Yousefi says of the 2012 death.  

Yousefi started Minds In Need of Attention or MINA to raise awareness of mental health and to provide mental health services to those aged 13 to 24, in the hopes of reducing the rate of suicide among youth in Canada.

Yousefi said she assumes her sister was troubled by the transition from high school to postsecondary education.

Mina Yousefi (Facebook)

Looking back, she recalls signs, such as impatience, a loss of interest in school and fascination in a movie featuring a suicide. At the time, the family attributed those to teenage rebellion.

One of MINA's programs is called Bridge the Gap. It brings together high school students with postsecondary students to lower stress, create a safe zone, build mental health skills and raise resilient leaders.

Researchers at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health said Thursday that among Ontarians aged 18 to 29, the number who said they have poor mental health jumped from nearly three per cent in 2009 to 12 per cent five years later.

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