Love Island star’s gay brother Tal Booker opens up about his mental health: ‘It’s OK to struggle’

“I am proof that a problem shared is a problem halved,” says Tal Booker, the brother of Love Island star Eyal Booker.

“Sometimes it takes a little bit of time, but if you hold on, it really does get better,” the self-professed “wounded healer” tells PinkNews about his mental health struggles.

In February, the tattoo artist was appointed an ambassador for Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) – a suicide prevention charity that, among other resources, offers a suicide prevention helpline and online mental health support.

He discovered the charity in 2018 at a talk, which he recalls being the “first time I think I’d heard other men talking about depression and mental health and how it affected them in life.”

“I’ve gone through my own journey of addiction and struggling with my sexuality and suicidal rumination,” he candidly shares, adding that he lost his 19-year-old cousin to suicide.

For this reason, he admits that suicide has been on his “radar for a very long time,” tied in with his own struggles and those of people around him.

He describes his role as a CALM ambassador as an “honour” and a position through which he hopes to “enhance the voices around mental health and suicide”.

Tal has previously been open about his ongoing journey to accept his identity as a gay man.

Chatting to his brother on his podcast It’s Not That Deep, Tal explained that he feels he often has to “come out on a daily basis,” and together the pair urged people to stand against homophobia, even if it is disguised as a joke.

He tells PinkNews that his path to self-acceptance continues to be a “work in progress.”

“The feelings are really deep-rooted for a lot of us. It requires a lot of work to unpick and unlearn those ways of existing,” he says, adding: “It’s always been more about my own acceptance than that of others and those around me,” he shares, adding that he is lucky enough to be surrounded by “amazing people.”

Last year, a survey revealed that queer women are much more likely to have attempted suicide than the overall US population, while a long-term Danish study found that trans people in the country experience higher rates of suicide and mortality.

In reference to a 2016 Mind Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, Tal says: “One in five of us will have suicidal thoughts in our lifetime.”

There can be an idea that “you’re the only one struggling,” he continues, adding that safe spaces are “hugely important” to enable people to realise that they are not on their own.

“There are a lot of us that struggle with these things. If we can be more open about the fact that we’re struggling, and the fact that it’s OK to struggle, hopefully, we can bridge the gap between those that struggle and those that don’t, and create better spaces for everyone.

“I think we need to change the narrative around who we’re talking to. We need to stop talking to those that are struggling and start talking to those that can be allies,” he suggests for combatting suicide.

In support of CALM, Tal, who says his own tattoos help him “heal” and tell his story without the need to talk about it repeatedly, will hold a 24-hour tattoo-athon to raise money for the charity from 6th to 7th June.

“I get massive amounts of joy and gratification by being able to give them something that means so much,” Tal says of his job as a tattooist.

Further information regarding Tal’s tattoo-athon will be sent to those who sign up for CALM’s newsletter.

If you’ve been affected by the themes in this article, you can speak to CALM in confidence. Find out more about CALM’s helpline, tools, and resources at thecalmzone.net.