sad news from the world of pro wrestling, as another wrestler has taken their own life, and this played out on Social Media Wednesday night when Daffney Unger (real name Shannon Spruill) took her own life after she went on Instagram Live to announce that she was about to kill herself, luckily for those who watched the live stream, she didn't kill herself live on a webstream, but tragically, she killed herself shortly after. but many fans who did see the stream as well as some pro wrestlers who also saw the stream or saw on social media that she was suicidal, they were trying to save her and getting her some help, but sadly it was too late, no info has been officially released about her death but it's pretty much assumed this was indeed a successful suicide attempt, the wrestling word reacted to her death quickly. at one point in the Instagram Live stream, she pulled a gun out and possibly attempted to kill herself on a live stream but the gun jammed on her. she also in the stream held some papers which was her will and also said that she wants her brain to go to Boston (a reference to Boston University and the Concussion Legacy Foundation, ran by retired WWE Wrestler Chris Nowinski who founded it after his WWE career ended thanks to having multiple concussions) as she had suffered from numerous concussions during her career and had her career ended in 2011 from a severe concussion after a match in TNA Wrestling put her out of action for good.
the tragic suicide playing out on social media mirrored that of the May 23, 2020 tragic suicide death of Japanese women's wrestler Hana Kimura where she tweeted her suicidal goodbyes/cry for help on twitter and instagram and posted pics of her committing self-harm on herself, which didn't go unoticed as then WWE women's wrestlers Kairi Sane (who unofficially retired from WWE as active wrestler in July 2020) and Io Shirai (currently still with WWE) saw the tweets and warn those close to her, her mom and World Wonder Ring Stardom (the promotion she was working for at the time of her death) co-founder Rossy Ogawa about the self-harm/suicide note post and they tried to get help, but were too late to save her. the suicide death of Daffney fell just on the eve of what would had been Hana Kimura's 24th birthday (Hana was 22 when she killed herself) as the birthday was on September 3rd, and also occured in the open days of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, which falls in the month of September.
the reaction of her death also lead to WWE encouraging their talents to seek mental health counseling if they need it, which they previously did in the wake of Shad Gaspard's drowning death, Hana Kimura's suicide death after she was cyberbulled, the Covid19 pandemic and the 2020 round of mass releases in April and the George Floyd death & related Black Lives Matters protest/riots that followed it in June 2020.
Daffney was best known as part of the WCW roster in late 1999-2001 (when the company unofficially folded after being bought out by WWE when WCW TV was canceled due to a change of leadership at TNT/TBS under Jamie Kellner) and then wrestled in the Indy scene in the 2000s and worked for pre-Sinclair Broadcasting Group era Ring of Honor and also was well known from her TNA Wrestling (now Impact Wresting) tenure from 2008 to 2011 where she was forced to retire and she first appeared in TNA as a impersonator of then Vice Presidential candidate for the 2008 US Presidental Election Sarah Palin. she was 46 years old at the time of her tragic death.
Deadline's story about her suicide death:
Daffney Unger Dies: Pro Wrestling’s Goth “Scream Queen” Was 46
People Magazine's story of her death:
Former WCW Wrestler Daffney Unger Dead at 46 After Concerning Instagram Live Video
the story on WWE's offer of mental health counseling in the wake of Daffney's death from Wrestling Inc:
WWE Offers Mental Health Counseling To All Talents - Wrestling Inc.
the tragic suicide playing out on social media mirrored that of the May 23, 2020 tragic suicide death of Japanese women's wrestler Hana Kimura where she tweeted her suicidal goodbyes/cry for help on twitter and instagram and posted pics of her committing self-harm on herself, which didn't go unoticed as then WWE women's wrestlers Kairi Sane (who unofficially retired from WWE as active wrestler in July 2020) and Io Shirai (currently still with WWE) saw the tweets and warn those close to her, her mom and World Wonder Ring Stardom (the promotion she was working for at the time of her death) co-founder Rossy Ogawa about the self-harm/suicide note post and they tried to get help, but were too late to save her. the suicide death of Daffney fell just on the eve of what would had been Hana Kimura's 24th birthday (Hana was 22 when she killed herself) as the birthday was on September 3rd, and also occured in the open days of National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, which falls in the month of September.
the reaction of her death also lead to WWE encouraging their talents to seek mental health counseling if they need it, which they previously did in the wake of Shad Gaspard's drowning death, Hana Kimura's suicide death after she was cyberbulled, the Covid19 pandemic and the 2020 round of mass releases in April and the George Floyd death & related Black Lives Matters protest/riots that followed it in June 2020.
Daffney was best known as part of the WCW roster in late 1999-2001 (when the company unofficially folded after being bought out by WWE when WCW TV was canceled due to a change of leadership at TNT/TBS under Jamie Kellner) and then wrestled in the Indy scene in the 2000s and worked for pre-Sinclair Broadcasting Group era Ring of Honor and also was well known from her TNA Wrestling (now Impact Wresting) tenure from 2008 to 2011 where she was forced to retire and she first appeared in TNA as a impersonator of then Vice Presidential candidate for the 2008 US Presidental Election Sarah Palin. she was 46 years old at the time of her tragic death.
Deadline's story about her suicide death:
Daffney Unger Dies: Pro Wrestling’s Goth “Scream Queen” Was 46
People Magazine's story of her death:
Former WCW Wrestler Daffney Unger Dead at 46 After Concerning Instagram Live Video
the story on WWE's offer of mental health counseling in the wake of Daffney's death from Wrestling Inc:
WWE Offers Mental Health Counseling To All Talents - Wrestling Inc.
