Father Shares Heartbreaking Photos From His Daughter's Deathbed To Help Stop Online Bullying

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Father Shares Heartbreaking Photos From His Daughter's Deathbed To Help Stop Online Bullying

Adrian Derbyshire has lived through every parent's nightmare, and he's determined to stop it from happening to anyone else. Derbyshire, who's a wheelchair fencer that has competed in the Paralympic Games, is sharing photos of his daughter's final moments alive to raise awareness about online bullying.

Derbyshire's daughter Julia was born in the UK but raised in America for most of her life. A few years ago, she moved back home because of online bullies harassing her.

While Derbyshire was helping his daughter and involving her in his charity work, she sadly attempted suicide almost two years ago. Since then, Derbyshire has avoided looking at the photos he took of his daughter, but on her 18th birthday he reconsidered.

Warning: some of the photos in this article may be disturbing.

Adrian Derbyshire

Derbyshire suffered a brain aneurysm in 2008 that left him in a wheelchair, then he went on to learn wheelchair fencing and compete at the Olympics, but he still says that sharing these photos was "one of the hardest things I have had to do in my life."

What changed his mind 17 months after his daughter died was the online campaign he's started in her honor. #SASSY (Support Against Self-Harm and Suicide in Youth) warns about the dangers of online bullying.

Adrian Derbyshire

"Instead of taking her out for champagne to celebrate her 18th birthday, I was placing flowers on her grave," Derbyshire wrote. He hopes that if people see the repercussions of internet harassment he can help to stop it once and for all.

While he still feels conflicted about his decision, Derbyshire says he's received an overwhelmingly positive response from the parents of children affected by online bullying.

"If it can help a parent or a family not to go through what I have been through then that is what the campaign is all about," he says.

You can learn more about #SASSY and support Derbyshire's anti-bullying campaign by following @TheJDCampaign.

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