"I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki" author passes away at 35

Baek Se-hee, the South Korean writer whose candid memoir about depression became an international sensation, has died. She was 35 years old.

Her death resulted in five people receiving life-saving organ transplants. South Korea's organ donation agency reported that Baek donated her heart, lungs, liver and both kidneys.

Baek's work centered on an innovative concept: publishing her actual psychiatric sessions as a book. "I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki," released in 2018, contained real conversations between the author and her therapist about living with depression and dysthymia. This format challenged traditional mental health writing by avoiding sanitised narratives.

The title itself became iconic. Tteokbokki, a common Korean street snack of chewy rice cakes in spicy sauce, represented everyday joys that coexist with severe mental illness. Baek's pairing of suicidal ideation with food cravings captured a contradiction familiar to many depression sufferers—wanting to die while simultaneously clinging to small comforts.

The memoir found massive success in South Korea, where discussing mental health openly has long been difficult. Young readers particularly embraced Baek's honest approach. When English translations appeared in 2022, the book reached global audiences and sparked wider conversations about therapy, stigma and psychological struggles.

Authorities have not released information about the circumstances of Baek's death.