Blue October frontman Justin Furstenfeld was forced to announce the cancellation of the band’s Pick Up The Phone tour today because he’s been hospitalized for an “extreme mental anxiety attack.” Ticket refunds for the tour, which was set to make charitable contributions towards suicide prevention and counted Postsecret.com, To Write Love On Her Arms, and 1-800-SUICIDE among its partners, are available at the point of purchase.
“Mental health diseases are unpredictable,” Furstenfeld said on the band’s site. “And on the eve of this tour in support of a cause that means the world to me, I am in need of time to heal from a setback in my own personal life, which is severe enough for me to seek hospitalization. I hope that my action to seek the strength and safety of treatment will inspire others that are suffering to do the same.”
Furstenfeld, who recently joined author Stephanie Meyer for a four-city sold-out tour in support of the latest in the Twilight series, Breaking Dawn, has struggled with a bipolar disorder in the past, but was hoping to use the upcoming tour to raise awareness and reduce “the stigma associated with mental health, depression, and suicide.”
Something tells me that his sacrifice in canceling the tour in favor of his own recovery may do even more to raise awareness about this important issue.