Paragraph three reads: "The inquest is looking at whether Ms Dragun deliberately jumped or was in a drug-induced psychotic state at the time."

Last paragraph reads: "The court also heard that three weeks before her death, Ms Dragun was on a new treatment plan that involved reducing her dose of Effexor and introducing another drug, Lexapro."

Paragraph five reads: "She said her daughter, who battled depression for 10 years, wanted to stop taking anti-depressants because they 'gave her an artificial feeling' and 'stopped her creative thinking'."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03/09/2840639.htm?section=justin

Newsreader 'felt worthless' before suicide

By court reporter Jamelle Wells

Updated 7 hours 34 minutes ago

An inquest into the death of Channel 10 employee Charmaine Dragun has heard she had panic attacks before reading a nightly news bulletin.

Ms Dragun's mother told the inquest about a phone conversation she had with her daughter two months before she jumped to her death from the Gap in eastern Sydney in 2007.

The inquest is looking at whether Ms Dragun deliberately jumped or was in a drug-induced psychotic state at the time.

The 29-year-old's mother, Estelle, said her daughter felt worthless, was having panic attacks and was contemplating suicide.

She said her daughter, who battled depression for 10 years, wanted to stop taking anti-depressants because they "gave her an artificial feeling" and "stopped her creative thinking".

Mrs Dragun burst into tears while recounting the phone call in which her daughter said she felt worthless.

She said she told her daughter: "Darling, don't go there. We can work on this."

Mrs Dragun told the Glebe Coroner's Court that her daughter was a perfectionist who agreed to see a psychiatrist after developing anorexia at university.

She said the psychiatrist told her daughter: "If you lose another 500 grams you'll be in hospital next week."

The court also heard that three weeks before her death, Ms Dragun was on a new treatment plan that involved reducing her dose of Effexor and introducing another drug, Lexapro.

Tags: community-and-society, suicide, law-crime-and-justice, courts-and-trials, australia, nsw, watsons-bay-2030, wa, perth-6000

First posted Tue Mar 9, 2010 12:48pm AEDT