THE friend of a young Southampton man who killed himself few months before seeing his first baby is urging people to be open about their inner feelings.

This comes after Liam Cullum, 21, hanged himself in his home in Southampton.

An inquest held at Winchester Coroner’s Court heard how Liam, better known as Cully, was happy about becoming a father.

“He was very excited,”his mother Cheryl said.

And added: “He was happy, he was a joker. He was quite sensitive. He had a normal childhood, he used to play football. Occasionally, he had low mood or angry mood and some mental health issues, he was mentally unstable sometimes but if you asked him what was wrong he would not tell you anyway.”

The court heard how Cully and his girlfriend had been together seven months and were in a “rocky relationship”.

On August 28, 2018 Cully returned to his home in Mathieson Road where he lived with his mother and siblings.

The court heard how it was about 1am when he returned home and went into his bedroom while his siblings were watching a movie in the living room.

“There was something wrong, just looking at his eyes I just knew there was something wrong,” his sister Kayleigh said.

And added: “I ran upstairs and I saw him, I started screaming. I put my hands on his chest and pushed as hard as I could. I didn’t stop until paramedics arrived.”

The court heard how Cully was pronounced dead at the scene and neither drugs nor alcohol were found in his body at the time of his death.

“I think he felt very worthless in himself, he didn’t believe in himself, he was his worst enemy, as a child he was bullied very badly”, Kayleigh said.

Before recording a verdict of suicide, assistant coroner Samantha Marsh said: “He was very sensitive although he didn’t show that. He appeared to keep his feelings bottled up. I don’t think anyone knew what he was thinking."

After the inquest his friend Jamie Helm has launched an appeal to people who don’t feel comfortable about talking about their feelings.

Jamie, 20, from Southampton, said: “Don’t be afraid to open up to people. There are always people around you that you can trust. Just look up for the people, no matter where you are, you always have someone there. This would have saved him [Liam], if he would have opened up he would still be here.

“He didn’t ask for help. He’d rather deal with it himself. He was joyful, he was excited about being a dad, he had bought clothes and saved money.”

People who feel they need support can contact their GP or Samaritans on 116 123.