A teenager who was found dead in bed by his mother after having suffered a cardiac arrest had earlier complained of feeling 'sick and overwhelmed', an inquest heard.
George Edwards, 18, was found unresponsive at his home in Altringham, near Manchester, on November 12, 2021. When police and paramedics arrived the youngster was tragically pronounced dead at the scene, clutching a teddy.
As reported by MEN, an inquest at South Manchester Coroner's Court overseen by assistant coroner Anna Morris heard a heartbreaking testimony from George's mother Tracy in which she revealed she had checked on him that morning and found him 'lifeless'. Ms Edwards said her son had reported feeling 'overwhelmed' and had vomited in the week leading to his death.
The day before his death, he told his mum he had a headache, a sore throat and that 'his lungs felt funny'. Pathologist Dr Vicki Howarth said the evidence suggested George suffered a loss of blood flow to his heart some hours before his death, but there was 'no evidence as to the cause of the initial cardiac event'.
George struggled with depression for a number of years and had a breakdown at the age of 15, the inquest heard. Ms Edwards said her son - who had boundless energy - started to struggle when he started high school.
She told the court: "He was gentle, he wasn't a sportsman, I just think he found it very overwhelming. He just started to struggle. He was very clever and very intelligent and he was just over-aware and thought about everything.
"I think that awareness made it really hard for him. He went from being really lively to almost trying to make himself invisible at school."
Ms Edwards said she tried to apply for additional support and would often take her son to the gym and to private councillors. She also took him to visit his girlfriend in London after they met online.
She added: "I could see his pain and I just felt like I wasn't doing right by George. I just felt that I needed someone to come and see him, but I was struggling to get anywhere."
George was prescribed antidepressants in July 2019, however - when they didn't have the effect he had hoped - he was prescribed a different drug in January 2021. This came after medics found out he had stopped taking his original medication.
George continued to struggle with his mental health and had difficulty meeting psychiatrists over the phone - instead of in person - during the pandemic. Ms Edwards said her son 'clearly struggled' during his 18th birthday on November 30, 2021, and didn't open his birthday cards until Boxing Day - nearly a month later.
She added: "He was very vulnerable. He hadn’t had a normal life. I think it just overwhelmed him that he was 18. He didn’t want the responsibility of being 18."
Tracy told the inquest she had concerns over the medication prescribed and urged for more research to be made into its use on younger people. She said: "It's a very, very serious medication. My concerns are that some guidelines state that they don’t prescribe it to someone under-18. Technically, he was an adult, but he was a very vulnerable person who hadn't lived a normal life and was still developing. There are question marks over it."
Dr Kate Jennings, of Altrincham Medical Practice, said the medication worked similar to other antidepressants and told the court George wasn't considered to be on a high dose. His mother added: "Despite his own mental health issues through his teenage years, one thing that was apparent is how much he supported his friends and other people even though he really wasn't in a good place himself."
Tracy said George was very creative from a young age and used to design comic books, having created more than hundreds of pages based on his cat Toki. She told the court: “He just didn’t stop drawing from the minute he could hold a pen until he got to his teenage years.”
Assistant coroner Ms Morris concluded George died of natural causes, recording sudden adult cardiac syndrome as the cause of death - but the trigger unknown.
After the inquest, Tracy told the Manchester Evening News: "George was intelligent, caring and sensitive. He was so creative and imaginative and could have done so many amazing things in his life but we will never know. He was funny and lovely with his friends and everyone's go to person if they were struggling or feeling low."
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