'I contemplated suicide', Second Lady Dorcas Rigathi speaks on battling mental health

The event, dubbed 'Sikika, Tubonge, Tusifiche', was held at the Mwai Kibaki Convention Centre and attracted hundreds of MKU students and general youth from Thika and it's environs.

Pastor Dorcas Rigathi, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua's spouse, spoke at the event focusing most of her speech on the plight of the boy child and shared her mental health journey with attendees.

While revealing that she battled suicidal thoughts herself, Mrs Rigathi confessed that she once attempted to end her own life by breaching the security protocol at former President Daniel Moi's event.

"My mother was in distress. I was in the university and I was contemplating suicide. Marriage was the last thing on my mind. At a visit to Kabarnet Gardens, I ran to President Moi because I wanted his security to shoot me dead. Thankfully, the President lent me an ear, " she said.

Mrs. Rigathi, who has in the past made her stance on the plight of the boy child known, also reiterated the message as she rallied for young men and urged society to treat them honourably.

"I will speak about the boy child until the end. As a mother, I must speak about it. Sometimes, because of the way the world's culture is, we assume men are wired for anything and we don't care about the boy," she said. 

"The boy child always has to stand up for a broken home and that's why most of them are drug addicts with mental health issues." 

Also speaking at the event, MKU co-founder Dr. Jane Nyutu, a counseling psychologist and educationist, talked the youth out of engaging in activities that would harm their mental health.

"We've seen so many young Kenyans struggling with mental health issues and most of them are caused by comparing themselves to their peers. Things like social media, influencers and the internet in general are some of the major causes of mental imbalance and we hope you can consume them wisely, " she said.

The 'Sikika Tubonge Tusifiche' initiative aspires to witness a significant reduction in the number of young people living with anxiety and depression in Kenya while also committing to reduce the alarming rates of suicide, particularly among young men.