THE daughter of a successful championship racing driver who took his life on New Year’s Day has issued a powerful message urging people to talk about their problems before it is too late.

Mark Patrick Flaherty, from Church Lane, Ascot, was a four-time UK champion rally driver in the 90s who enjoyed a flourishing career in rallycross driving.

The 59-year-old father of five died on January 1 after falling from the roof of the Oracle car park in Reading. An inquest recorded a verdict of suicide.

Paying tribute to her dad, Lauren Flaherty described him as a “proud” man of a different generation, who grew up where mental health issues weren’t commonly discussed.

Speaking to the News, the 32-year-old flight attendant said her father’s ‘embarrassment’ about battling bipolar disorder led to him feeling ashamed and avoiding medical help.

She said: “My dad was [a proud man], and was too proud to see therapists. People of his age weren’t really told that it was okay to speak to someone or it was okay if you were having these thoughts.”

Mark was recorded as having depression in 2000 and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder eight years later.

Lauren said he had always suffered with his mental health. She described her dad as someone who cared about providing for his five children and wife, whom he split up with just months before his death.

She said: “I feel like most people think it is a crime to have mental health issues but so many people suffer and unfortunately for my dad, he didn’t speak about it. He was too embarrassed and I feel like so many people are.”

Lauren continued: “I want people to know that it is ok not to feel ok. And it is okay to go and get help.”

Lauren said she could see why many teenagers - an estimated 20 percent experience depression before they reach adulthood - were struggling. Throughout her life, Lauren said she has suffered from eating disorders and feels passionate about increasing awareness about the many different paths people can turn to for help.

Reflecting on the challenges of living and loving someone who is suffering, Lauren said: “It is so hard to love somebody who doesn’t want to help themselves or can’t get help.”

But she said where possible, it is important to understand where they might be coming from.

“It’s no different than cancer, it is just that it is in the brain that [it is affecting],” she said. “People can feel so shut off and isolated [when they are suffering]. I wish there were more articles and different apps that allowed people to ask questions about their mental health without feeling embarrassed.”