Baek Sehee Death Highlights A Grim Problem In South Korea: 40 People Die By Suicide Every Day

The death of celebrated South Korean author Baek Se-hee at the age of 35 has reignited a national conversation about mental health.

Baek, whose bestselling memoir I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki chronicled her long struggle with depression and therapy, became a leading voice in a society where mental illness is often kept private. Her work gave younger generations a language to express emotional pain in a culture that prizes restraint.

Her passing comes as South Korea faces one of the highest suicide rates in the developed world, with about 40 people dying by suicide each day. The tragedy has prompted renewed debate about how far the country has come in tackling what experts describe as a persistent mental health crisis.

A Voice That Spoke to a Generation

Baek built her reputation on honesty and vulnerability. Her debut memoir, which has sold more than a million copies and been translated into multiple languages, resonated with readers who saw their own struggles reflected in her account of therapy sessions and self-doubt. According to The Guardian, her writing helped normalise the idea of seeking professional help in a country where discussing mental illness has long been taboo.

The cause of her death has not been confirmed, but many have described it as symbolic: a writer who sought to lift the stigma surrounding psychological distress becoming one of the thousands who die by suicide each year. Reports that her organ donation saved five lives have added poignancy to the loss, reinforcing her lasting impact on others.

A Growing National Crisis

Provisional data from Statistics Korea and the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation show that 14,439 people died by intentional self-harm in 2024, an average of 40 deaths a day. The national suicide rate reached 28.3 per 100,000 people, its highest in more than a decade. Men accounted for over 10,000 of those deaths, reflecting a persistent gender gap.

The rate is more than twice the average of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and far higher than the UK's, where the figure stands at about 11 deaths per 100,000. In South Korea, suicide has also become the leading cause of death among people in their forties, surpassing cancer for the first time. Analysts cite a mix of intense work culture, academic pressure, financial strain, social isolation and limited access to affordable counselling.

Call for Change

Although the government has pledged to cut suicide rates by 40 per cent over the next decade, critics say prevention services remain underfunded and fragmented. A national suicide-prevention plan announced in 2025 aims to expand mental health clinics and community support, but campaigners argue progress has been slow and uneven.

Baek's writing showed how therapy, conversation and creativity can offer vital lifelines. Her death has renewed concern that such support remains out of reach for many South Koreans. Mental health specialists warn that without stronger early intervention and sustained funding, progress could stall.

Baek Se-hee's legacy endures in her words and in the conversations she helped to start. Her death has renewed calls for open dialogue, wider treatment access and a deeper understanding of the pressures driving one of the world's highest suicide rates. For many observers, it remains a reminder that confronting stigma is both a public-health necessity and an unfinished national task.