Chantal Thomas's suicide in 2005 prompted her brother James Thomas to pore through her diaries trying to understand it. (Courtesy of James Thomas)The personal story of an 18-year-old from Brockville, Ont., who took her own life is being told on film by her older brother, who hopes it will help prevent similar tragedies.

After Chantal Thomas killed herself in 2005, her brother James Thomas was compelled to find out why. His documentary, The Truth about Teenage Suicide, which he anticipates completing in the spring, comes out of the hours he spent poring through his sister's diaries and exploring her artwork.

"It was important for me to find answers, important to understand what had caused her to get to that point," he said, adding that he had never before known anyone who had committed suicide.

Thomas, 27, hopes the video, which he describes as being an "in-your-face, MTV-style" documentary, will eventually connect with teens across Canada and around the world, educating them about how they can help those battling suicidal thoughts and get help if they face the struggle themselves.

Thomas remembers his sister as a happy, fun person who was always there for friends and strangers alike. She did well in school, excelled in sports and was a talented artist.

"She really … was somebody who had so much potential."

Chantal's family knew she was troubled, and she was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder. But her brother said it was hard to tell what was really going on in her life because she seemed to connect more with her friends than her family.

After her death, her diary revealed that unbeknownst to her immediate family, she had been sexually abused by a relative starting in Grade 7.

James Thomas believes she turned to drugs and alcohol to escape the pain, but it ultimately led to more physical and sexual abuse that she relived in nightmares as her mental health deteriorated.

"Looking back at it, if she realized that she wasn't alone and there wasn't so much stigma related with her issues, she herself likely could have gotten more help," her brother said.

Waiting list

James Thomas, 27, said said more needs to be done to reduce wait times for counselling, medical help and housing for teens with mental illnesses. (Chad Pawson/CBC)

He added that if her friends and family had been better educated about suicide, they might have been able to help Thomas get the aid she needed.

Thomas had sought assistance, but wasn't necessarily able to confide in counsellors, her brother said. She tried to get into a residential facility for at-risk youth, but was put on a waiting list and never got a spot.

More needs to be done to reduce wait times for counselling, medical help and housing for teens with mental illness, James Thomas said.

Thomas has been working on the movie project with the Canadian Mental Health Association's Leeds and Grenville branch in eastern Ontario. He is already showing the trailer in eastern Ontario high schools and using it as a jumping-off point for classroom discussions.

In the meantime, Lori Veltcamp, a public educator with the Canadian Mental Health Association branch, said she thinks Thomas's video has the potential to connect with a much larger, wider audience than she can currently reach with her own classroom visits.

"It's based on a real person," she said, "so I think it's going to be a great asset to the classroom."