Tragic Details About Jacksepticeye

Jacksepticeye, also known as Sean McLoughlin, stands among content-creating titans like Pewdiepie as one of the first creators that rose to fame before streaming even became a thing. His YouTube channel, where he started his career, currently boasts over 27 million subscribers.

The Irish YouTuber has a long list of accomplishments and has worked on a variety of projects. Longtime fans know Jacksepticeye for his vlogs, comic series, and Let's Play videos that entertain millions of viewers. He mingles with other big-time content creators like Markiplier, Pewdiepie, and Corpse Husband. He has a name in philanthropy thanks to his charity streams like Thankmas, which raised over $4.7 million dollars. In 2021, he played a role in the video game-themed movie, "Free Guy."

However, his fame didn't come without a price. The poor guy's gone through some trouble when it comes to both his physical and mental health, including having to fight off irrational hate from strangers. In fact, he's even admitted that he's wanted to quit being a content creator. 

Jacksepticeye takes breaks from content creation during episodes of burnout or grief. There's no harm in taking a break, but the YouTuber admitted that he sometimes pushed himself too hard during his career in order to avoid lapses in content. He spoke out about burnout in 2018 when he took his first break.

"My mental health has not been in the best place recently. So the reason I've been taking more time off is because I have to," he told his viewers in a nearly 12-minute clip. "I need to take the time off to get my brain back in order, to just get that energy and that motivation back, to record the videos." So he took about a week-long break to recover. 

He later collaborated with licensed therapist and YouTuber Kati Morton to discuss mental health in a video series. He discovered Kati through one of her videos about burnout, and the two decided to discuss the unique exhaustion content creators can experience from the pressure to constantly engage online for work. In one of the videos, he explained to his viewers that "you don't have to be broken to do therapy" and that he now realizes the importance of implementing self-care to keep himself grounded. 

Jacksepticeye and Felix "PewDiePie" Kjellberg go way back to when he first started his channel. In fact, he credited PewDiePie for some of his fame in an interview with Metro.co.uk, noting that the YouTube star gave him a shoutout on his channel in his early days. However, his friend's shady side sometimes causes secondhand trouble for him. PewDiePie has stirred up a number of controversies with of his tendency to go too far with various jokes and feuds with other creators. Jacksepticeye broke his silence on these controversies in an exclusive with Metro.co.uk, where he said that they also personally affected him. 

However, despite the flak he might receive for associating with PewDiePie, he seems content on staying friends and defending him when needed. ​​"He's a lot more down to earth than people seem to think he is," Jacksepticeye told Metro. "And he doesn't give off the vibe that he's the number one channel on YouTube at all, he always has a lot of time for people to just hang out and have fun."

As if the last few years weren't enough cause for health scares, Jacksepticeye has suffered even more because of his chronic illnesses and other health issues. It had nothing to do with the pandemic, although it did coincide with the global crisis and put him in a category of high-risk individuals because of his history with asthma.

"I haven't had Asthma since I was 18, but it's back in full swing," he said on stream (via Sportskeeda). "I've had lung issues this year, I've had digestive issues this year, I've had a lot of physical issues this year that have completely drained all of my energy."

One viewer suggested that it could be just his age, but the YouTuber said it was more than just "getting old." He recounted how he sometimes wakes up without much energy to do anything. Even worse, his poor physical health also affects his mental health. Luckily, Jacksepticeye has been open and aware of his struggles, encouraging others to seek support and de-stigmatizing prioritizing health.

Jack announced that he would be taking an indefinite hiatus in January 2021 after the death of his father. He posted the sad reason for his break on Twitter, where many of his fans responded with their support. "My father passed away today. I won't be doing anything for a while. Please respect me and my family's privacy during this time," he wrote in his post.

However, others thought it would be funny to tell jokes about his dad's death like "Jack's dad was not the Impostor," referencing "Among Us." Meanwhile, Sportskeeda reported that one particular person created a now-deleted video about how Jack's dad "deserved it" and said that he was now "burning in hell." His dad's death became such a horrific joke among trolls on the internet that Jack felt the need to address the haters in a TikTok video.

"To any of you who posted memes about it and posted negative stuff about it, you are absolute scum and I f***ing hate you, because you made something that was so hard so much harder to go through," he said in the video. These harsh words shocked even his fans, who know him for typically kind personality. However, at the end of the video, he also took the time to thank his supporters for having his back throughout the debacle.

Though Jacksepticeye had built a fanbase with his sardonic wit and quippy personality, fans are also drawn to him for his honesty. He's not afraid to cry on camera when a game really touches him on an emotional level (more on that in a bit), but he's also been up-front with viewers about his struggles with imposter syndrome. As impossible as it may seem for someone with millions of followers, even someone as well-liked as Jacksepticeye has the occasional moment when he feels like he doesn't belong in his position.

In a video from 2019, Jacksepticeye explained that he sometimes takes a step back to really think about how massive his brand has become, and "it almost feels like a different person has done them." He continued, "You get those moments where you feel down, and you feel sad, you just don't want to record, and you feel like, 'Man, people don't care anymore, or I don't care anymore' ... that little voice in your head creeps in starts to take over, and you kind of have to push it out." According to Jacksepticeye, he's usually able to ignore that voice and channel his nervous energy into his work, but it's not always easy to maintain perspective.

Jacksepticeye was reminded of a truly difficult personal moment when playing the video game "That Dragon, Cancer." The game, which tells the true story of parents caring for a child with terminal cancer, has been praised for its unflinching emotional storytelling, and it's plain to see that it struck a chord with the YouTuber. At one point in the game, the player is given an opportunity to read a series of greeting cards. Some of these express their condolences and some are a bit more lighthearted, but all of them added up to an emotional moment for Jacksepticeye. Though his grandmother didn't die of cancer, he explained that "That Dragon, Cancer" caused him to reflect on his last visits with her.

"She was in hospital for a few months before she died and her mind completely went," Jacksepticeye explained. "And I remember going in one time with my sister to see her. And we were talking to her and my granny was like, 'Is Sean going to come in to visit us?' I was sitting right next to her and she didn't know who I was." He explained to viewers that the game was becoming very difficult to keep playing.

In July 2021, Jacksepticeye shared one of his most personal projects yet, a short film called "15 MONTHS." This wordless short offered viewers a glimpse into the content creator's mind as he gripped with feelings of isolation and anxiety during the quarantine period of COVID-19, as well as the constant threat of asthma.

Viewers have commended Jacksepticeye for his vulnerability in creating "15 MONTHS," as well as for the surreal and often heartbreaking visuals seen in the short film. Solemn shots of drawers full of medication, half-empty glasses, and rows of critical YouTube comments projected on a wall are just a few of the sequences that have stunned fans of Jacksepticeye's more lighthearted output. In the time since its release, fans have debated the full story behind the movie, with many viewers finding their own meanings in the short film's various vignettes. "15 MONTHS" paints a vivid picture of how the YouTuber was feeling in these days, making the short a must-watch for Jacksepticeye fans.