KJRH spoke with one of Henry’s 13-year-old friends who would like to remain anonymous due to the backlash she has been experiencing through social media, by having known Henry. We will call her “Reese.”
“We met in science class. She was one of my first friends [at the school],” said “Reese”.
“She was fun to be around. She was very smart, and she loved art. She had great grades and she was funny. She was a great friend when she wanted to be. She was very big on boys and attention. She would pay guys to go to the dance with her and bring bags of candy to school, so she could offer it to [guys]. She wanted their attention, even if they were dating her friends. Rachel did not know her self-worth,” said “Reese”.
“Her mom and dad gave her a lot of attention and loved her so much. They would do anything she wanted them to. She lost her dad at the beginning of high school. Rachel’s dad was sick. That made things a bit rough for her,” said “Reese”.
“Rachel would say violent things, [like] talking about hurting or hitting people. If a kid in the cafeteria made her mad by cutting in front of her or bumping into her or if someone annoyed her, [she would react]. Rachel was always playing around aggressively with her mom to where she would hurt her, and her mom would have to tell her multiple times to chill out and stop. Rachel did the same with some of her friends. She would get mad or irritated out of nowhere and act as if she was wrestling around and hurt them. When [her friends] would raise their voice and say that she was hurting them by squeezing them tightly, digging her nails into them, she always wore fake nails, or hitting them, she would just say she was [just] messing around and to quit being a baby or stop being sensitive,” recalled “Reese”.
“I think she had postpartum depression with a few other mental illnesses like anger problems and drug addictions. [I had heard] she [also] lost her mom around the time her first child was born,” said “Reese”.
KJRH spoke with Emily Mobley, a Licensed Professional Counselor from Crossroads Counseling in Tulsa, about postpartum depression or PPD.
"If left untreated, postpartum depression can worsen and potentially develop into a chronic mood disorder. In severe cases, postpartum depression can present with more severe, and potentially dangerous, postpartum psychosis. Depression, including postpartum depression, and addiction are not an unusual coupling, and can have severe and dangerous consequences. The combination of the two can increase the risk of child abuse or neglect, violent or aggressive behavior toward others, and even manifest in delusions, audio/visual hallucinations, or other psychotic behaviors,” stated Mobley.
“They should reach out to knowledgeable professionals who can provide support, safety planning, and needed resources. In the Tulsa area, one excellent resource for people in crisis is COPES -
(918) 744-4800. Of course, if the situation is critical, friends and family members should call 9-1-1,” said Mobley.
Rachel Henry's middle school friend reacts to the recent tragedy
