By Casey Neill
Debbie Tryhorn and her daughter Elizabeth Nakalevu have both failed – and couldn’t be more thankful.
Both Dandenong women have tried to take their own lives – Debbie in 2015 and Lizzy on 2 April this year.
Both women joined the 24-hour treadmill challenge at Anytime Fitness in Dandenong to support Suicide Prevention Australia.
Debbie walked for the entire event, from 3pm on Friday 25 May to 3pm on Saturday 26 May.
“I’m in an incredible amount of pain at the moment, but that pain is so small compared to the pain you would feel if you lost a loved one,” she told the Journal on Monday 28 May.
“I made a decision to walk the 24 hours on a treadmill to represent what anyone would do to save a loved one.
“I really wanted to create a movement.”
Debbie and Lizzy shared their journey through live videos on Facebook and connected with people from around the world.
“I never, ever believed we could reach as many people as we did,” Debbie said.
Before they even got on the treadmills, a boy reached out to Lizzy via Facebook and told her she’d helped him to turn a corner.
“My daughter, her ultimate goal was to save a life,” she said.
Debbie and Lizzy wore T-shirts with “I failed…” printed on the front and “…thankfully” on the back.
They were among eight participants who raised $2332.30.
Club supervisor Amy Williams said many others jumped on the treadmills in support during the day.
“We had Debbie and Ainslie (Wyllie) do the whole 24 hours,” she said.
“Lizzy was our ambassador.
“We would love to shout out to the crew from Dandenong CFA who turned up in their truck and ended up walking as well.”
Debbie said there were no words to describe the moment she heard about Lizzy’s suicide attempt.
“I realised my purpose in life was to really create something for other people,” she said.
She said they now looked back on that moment “almost in gratitude”.
“It’s this massive opportunity, we can really change the world for other people as a team,” she said.
“It’s almost become our mission in life to create this awareness.”
Two years ago, Lizzy was the victim of a violent break-in at her then-home in Narre Warren.
She said two men smashed her door down, threatened her with a shotgun and robbed her.
“It was very scary to be part of that,” she said.
“We went through court. We did a lot of statements.
“That was something that I struggled with a lot.
“It impacted my life and my relationship with a lot of people.”
A friend’s suicide in November and other negative thoughts piled on top of her.
She’s now seeking help through youth counselling service headspace.
Help is available from Lifeline 24 hours, seven days on 13 11 14.
