Tyler Perry opened up about his own previous suicide attempts in the wake of Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss’ death by suicide on Wednesday, December 14, 2022.
The 52-year-old actor took to Instagram on Thursday, December 15, 2022, to share his own experiences in an effort to uplift anyone else “going through hard times” or “struggling.”
“I, like the rest of the world, am shocked by the death of Stephen Boss, tWitch,” Perry said. He shared that while he had met the So You Think You Can Dance alum only “a couple of times,” he always seemed “like such a light.”
“With that said, I just want to take you back to a time in my life when I tried to commit suicide, a couple of times, because it was so dark, I didn’t think it would get any better. I had endured so much pain, so much abuse, sexual abuse, it was all so hard to just move through that I thought the only way to make this better was to end my life.”
“Had any of those attempts happened, I would’ve missed the best part of my life,” he continued.
“I know you may be going through some things and there may seem like there is no hope. But, please, reach out to someone.”
The Madea actor went on to urge people “call” and “ask for help” if there is “anything” that is “emotionally taking you to a [suicidal] place.”
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He continued the video by saying he is “the happiest I’ve ever been” before urging people once again to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), via Page Six.
“Life is full of joy and love, things I never thought I’d get to. I’m saying that to you, if you are a person who’s considering suicide, ending your life, you’ve already been through a lot of hell, please, please, please, think about what the other side could be. It could be amazing. And you would miss the best part of it going through the darkness. Don’t let the darkness stop you from getting to this incredible place of life.”
On Tuesday morning, December 13, 2022, Boss was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head in the bathroom of his motel room in Encino, California.
Staff at the Oak Tree Inn told TMZ that tWitch did not seem “visibly” upset when he arrived Monday night with just a small overnight bag.
On Wednesday, Boss’ wife Allison Holker confirmed his death in a statement issued to multiple media outlets.
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