Dean Scott Booth, 18, a trainee auctioneer, was found by his mother hanging from a loft hatch by a computer cord in the bedroom of their home on Calder Street, on September 16 this year.

He had written the words 'Bestrafe Mich' – German for 'Punish Me' – on his arms, from the lyrics to a song by German rock band Rammstein, whose videos he had been watching on his computer.

An inquest at Wakefield Coroner's Court on Thursday heard Mr Booth had a "long history" of psychiatric problems, including depression, anger management and he was a heavy drinker.

He had tried to hang himself on several occasions before, and in May this year had been escorted home by police after trying to throw himself in front of cars on night out in Castleford.

In a statment read out in court, his mother Margaret Booth said she believed his psychiatric problems began when he was 15 at Castleford High School, where he was being bullied.

He had also become further depressed after a friend of his, a landlord at a local pub whom he confided in, had hung himself in November 2008.

The inquest heard Mr Booth was receiving help from mental health professionals and was taking anti-depressants when he died.

Mrs Booth said: "Since earlier this year, he had started scratching his arm, causing superficial marks.

"About a week before he died he injured his arm with a nail gun.

"I couldn't say whether this was intentional or an       accident."

She said on September 15 this year, she had picked him up after a night out in Castleford and taken him to the KFC takeaway at Xscape, which he ate on the drive back to their house.

Mrs Booth last saw him at 11.30pm when they both went to bed.

She discovered him hanging in his bedroom at 6.30am the following morning.

Paramedics were called and pronounced him dead at 7am.

The court heard a postmortem examination found he had 121mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood, which would have had a "significant effect on his moodset and cognitive skills".

Mrs Booth said she had seen his psychiatric problems manifest over a number of years and believed his death was a "cry for help, rather than wanting to take his own life".

Assistant deputy coroner Mary Burke agreed and recorded an open verdict.

She said Mr Booth's past attempts to harm himself had always followed the use of  alcohol.

She added: "In May there was an incident when he had been out drinking and tried to jump in front of cars.

"His response when asked why he had done this is that he had no memory of doing it. So at the time, and subsequently, he didn't realise what he was doing.

"Clearly he was under the influence of aclohol (on September 15].

"Based on the evidence I am not clear or sure what Dean's intentions were at the time and I'm certainly not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Dean intended to take his own life."