Sexting minister Andrew Griffiths spent 31 days in psychiatric hospital after scandal left him ‘suicidal’
2 min read
Disgraced former minister Andrew Griffiths has revealed he was left suicidal in the wake of a sexting scandal and spent a month in a psychiatric hospital.
The married Tory MP, who stepped down in July after sending a barmaid and her friend over 2,000 lewd text messages, has revealed he spent 31 days in a mental health unit after a "manic episode".
The former small business minister had used the messages to offer money in exchange for racy pictures, called himself “daddy” and boasted about his escapades with other women.
But Mr Griffiths has now admitted the exposé may have saved his life after it forced him to confront depression brought on by sexual abuse he suffered as a child at the hands of an older boy.
The Burton MP said the messages became his “coping mechanism” after his depression was compounded following news that his brother had been diagnosed with cancer.
He told the Sunday Times: "Two days later, my mind in turmoil, I sent the first text that led to my downfall.
"Twenty-one days and 2,000 messages later and my fall was complete. A friend said to me, 'who in their right mind sends 2,000 messages in three weeks?'
"And of course they were right. I wasn't in my right mind. For me, anxiety felt like my head was ablaze and nobody could see the flames.
"Work helped - it distracted me from my anxiety and dimmed the flames. Yet once the work stopped, the flames would burst back into life.
"And that is where the texts came in - a sprinkler system; a coping mechanism of a virtual and imaginary world."
He added: “Just like people can’t explain why they cut themselves, it was just something in my mindset that I needed to do to cope at that time.”
Mr Griffiths will discover his political fate later this week when an internal Tory disciplinary meeting decides whether he can remain a party member.
But he also called on his party and parliament to do more to help politicians suffering from mental health problems.
“What I have realised is that mental health is bloody and brutal and completely inexplicable and I can’t explain why my coping mechanism was to send those texts," he said.
“The Government has a suicide minister but I am not sure it knew how to handle a suicidal minister. That needs to change.”
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