WHEN Daniel Cooke left home in 1990 to study electronic engineering at Hull University, his future seemed bright.

He was not only fit and well, but also an intelligent, sensitive and artistic young man, who played the guitar and wrote hundreds of songs.

His parents Peter and Deanna, of Back Lane, Easingwold, knew little then of schizophrenia.

Their traumatic experiences over the past six years have proved a painful education, as he became withdrawn, frightened, confused and at times suicidal, and eventually died while being treated at Clifton Hospital.

Now they are keen to do their bit to educate society about the mental illness and also help other parents going through the sort of pain and anxiety that they have suffered.

Deanna says the first signs that something was wrong came in 1992, when Daniel's fellow flatmates in Hull noticed he was becoming withdrawn but put it down to stress.

Then Daniel returned home one weekend and without warning went into a catatonic state, when he just froze and could not speak or move. "We didn't know what was going on," she said.

A doctor said he would call in a psychiatrist if his condition did not improve within an hour. But he recovered rapidly, appeared to be back to normal, and returned to university.

Then the couple received a call one day to say their son was in a very distressed state at the university clinic. Mr Cooke rushed to Hull and Daniel was admitted to a local psychiatric hospital. He was subsequently released without diagnosis and returned home.

Then he suddenly disappeared and travelled to see one of his friends in Bognor Regis. His parents received a call saying he had taken 80 paracetamols and also tried to go on an electric railway line.

Mr Cooke made a nightmare round journey through the night to bring him home, and eventually doctors at Bootham Hospital, York, diagnosed Daniel as suffering from schizophrenia, a mental illness which may be hereditary and can be sparked off by stress, for example by going away to university.

He went through a pattern of deterioration followed by recovery. "Our spirits would rise when he had a good day," said Mrs Cooke.

"The next day he would be too ill to come to the phone."

There were further suicide attempts, including one occasion when he was spotted on the parapet of the bridge over the River Foss in Fossgate, after which the couple agreed to his being sectioned.

He became a full-time patient in the Westerdale ward at Clifton Hospital where he eventually died. Doctors told them he was far more resistant to drugs than most schizophrenics, who respond better to treatment.

The couple believed they were doing the right thing in getting him sectioned, but have felt tremendous guilt since his death.

"We have suffered a great deal through this," said Mr Cooke. "Suddenly it has come unexpectedly to an end. In one sense, our distress has been relieved. We do not have to worry about growing old and leaving Daniel. That burden has been taken from us. But it does not remove the utter shock and devastation of losing a very much loved and wonderful son."

The couple are aware that other parents have to struggle on for years, without the support they need while at the same time feeling isolated and lonely.

The Cookes are left with the feeling that society only wants to know about schizophrenia if sufferers become a social nuisance or a danger to others.

* The couple are happy for anyone with relatives suffering from schizophrenia, or who have worries about a son or daughter who has gone away to university, to contact them on 01347 821969.

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