On social media, presenter Dennis Schouten (28) is busy with the popular RoddelPraat. However, things are apparently not going well at all in his daily life. Dennis has been unhappy and struggling with his life for years. In fact, he is doing so badly that he would rather just commit euthanasia. He tells this candidly in his biography Dennis Schouten: Damaged, on the way to death.
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Dennis Schouten struggles with mental problems
You may know Dennis Schouten from RoddelPraat, which he makes together with co-presenter Jan Roos. Although the young presenter also briefly participated in Expedition Robinson in 2021. Only he doesn’t appear here at all and he loses weight after one night on the island. Unfortunately, for health reasons: he gets similar symptoms as with the TIA, which he had two years earlier. Dennis was already struggling with life then, although more so due to his health. Although he apparently also suffers from mental problems, as he explains in the latest episode of RoddelPraat.
Euthanasia
He says he has been struggling with mental problems for years. It is so bad that he no longer sees a way out. “On paper I have a very good life, but in practice I rarely feel happy,” Dennis writes in his own statement on Instagram. He often feels lonely and restless. “In recent years, these negative feelings – which take a lot of energy – have worsened. I know they are wrong, but I cannot get them out of my body.” He certainly sought help from psychologists, tried medication and even returned to Enschede. Only it didn’t help at all. That is why he now talks about euthanasia, as he openly explains in his book Dennis Schouten: Damaged, on the way to death.
According to Dennis, the mental problems arose because he had experimented with medication for years. This is said to have “damaged certain things in his mind” during his adolescence. On Instagram he says he is ashamed, but: “I don’t feel obliged to live.” However, he will not simply abandon his loved ones.
Live a few more years
That is why Dennis wants to live for a few more years, so that he leaves the people in his immediate environment in good health. “After that I take control of my own life,” says the RoddelPraat host. Jan, his colleague at RoddelPraat, naturally finds it “painful” to hear. He does respect Dennis’s choice, because he realizes that it gives him peace of mind. “You come to earth, you were not asked to do that,” he says in the episode of the online program. “What you do have in your hands is that you leave the earth.”
On social media, Dennis receives both support and some hate reactions from people who think he only wants attention. The hatred is not very new for the presenter, who has also received death threats in the past. Fortunately for Dennis, he also receives enough support from people, for example someone who is in a similar situation. “Good luck Dennieboy! I have suffered from this since I was 15, it is indescribable how annoying loneliness is,” says someone in the comments at RoddelPraat. “I’m now 71 and I still often feel lonely.” Someone else on Instagram is hoping he might change his mind. And yet another writes: “The last thing you need is well-intentioned advice from everyone who knows how to solve this. Your emptiness is a fact and recognizable to many people.”
Biography
The biography Dennis Schouten: Damaged, on the way to death, written by Andries Jelle de Jong, is now for sale. In the meantime, Dennis hopes not to make life too difficult. “I’m not looking for pity or help,” he says in his Instagram post. “Nice things, love or a drink.” If you would like to meet and speak to him, you can do so on April 2, 2024 at the book presentation and live show of RoddelPraat in Almere.
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