this post was submitted on 03 Mar 2026
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I have a theory that his family was abusive and he learned to distrust strangers and became convinced that he needed to always stand on his own two feet because nobody would ever truly have his back. I've been through a similar phase in my life caused by neglect and abuse throughout my childhood and adolescence. Could be totally wrong ofc but it seems to fit for me
Edit: Apparently his sister confirmed this in a memoir she wrote called The Wild Truth. There's an interesting article on the NPR website about it:
This is a really similar situation to mine. Took many years of therapy to get to where I am, but I'll probably never really fully heal from it.
Is that theory based on a hunch you had, or is it maybe based on the memoir that his sister wrote where she says so?
It was a hunch, I didn't know about any memoir, what's it called?
The Wild Truth
Dang, thanks so much for mentioning that, it's lowkey crazy to have this theory I've kinda kept to myself be confirmed all these years later. I'll edit my original comment
Does this "stand on your own" thing include not reading survivalist books, bringing maps or assorted tools? Because that's what I would do if I wanted to live in the wilds. The "he was literally suicidal" theory is a much better explanation for his actions IMO.
He did read survivalist books, there was a book about identifying edible plants he had with him when he died. He even hired a botany/foraging tutor I believe. Ultimately though it's kinda the same thing, if he was suicidal, it would have been because of the abuse, most likely. Personally, I don't think it holds much water, suicidal people don't typically go off and live in the wildernees to starve to death, they usually kill themselves a bit more directly
And the final note vibes with that. Why kill yourself slowly if you want to die? And why change your mind at the last minute?