Robin Westman’s final words on vaping-linked cancer fears shed light on the Minneapolis shooter’s mental health

When investigators pieced together the final hours of Robin Westman, the 23-year-old identified as the Minneapolis Catholic school shooter, they found something unusual among the scattered notes and digital breadcrumbs: a confession about vaping.

In a posthumous message, Westman wrote that they believed they had developed cancer from their heavy vaping habit. They described the damage as “entirely self-inflicted,” a line that reads less like a medical claim and more like a window into a troubled mind.That single sentence has sparked questions not just about vaping and health, but about how private struggles, self-blame, and despair can spiral into catastrophic violence.

The vaping note

According to law enforcement documents reported by several media outlets, Westman left behind a letter reflecting on their health. They said they feared vaping had given them cancer, framing the outcome as a kind of punishment for “losing control” of their own life.Now, there’s no evidence Westman actually had cancer or that vaping directly caused it. But the fact they believed it, and fixated on it, matters. For someone already showing signs of deep psychological strain, that belief became part of a broader narrative of guilt and self-destruction.

In other words, vaping wasn’t just a bad habit in this story. It became a symbol of failure and despair for Westman, feeding into the mindset that preceded the shooting.

Vaping, fear, and mental health

Public health experts in the US have been sounding the alarm on vaping for years, but usually the conversation centers on nicotine addiction, lung disease, and teen use. What rarely gets attention is the mental health side: how health anxieties, sometimes exaggerated, sometimes real, can weigh heavily on people already vulnerable.For Westman, the note suggests vaping wasn’t simply about nicotine cravings. It became tied to feelings of shame, guilt, and hopelessness. That kind of mental burden can intensify isolation, especially if someone doesn’t have support systems in place.This doesn’t mean vaping caused the shooting. But it does show how personal health fears can mix with existing mental distress, sometimes in unpredictable and dangerous ways.

Warning signs overlooked

The tragic part is that Westman’s vaping confession wasn’t the only warning sign. Investigators also found violent doodles, videos, and rambling notes filled with despair and fixation on mass shootings. Together, these paint a picture of someone spiraling for months—if not years—before acting.Mental health professionals often stress that people who commit mass violence don’t “snap” overnight. There are usually many small clues, changes in behavior, disturbing statements, or in this case, writings about health fears and self-destruction, that add up.

Unfortunately, unless those signs are caught and acted on, they can pass unnoticed.For schools, workplaces, and communities in the US, UK, and Canada, this case is a reminder that threats don’t always come in the form of direct warnings. Sometimes they’re hidden in personal struggles that seem unrelated—like a vaping habit.

Why this matters beyond Minneapolis

So why does this angle matter for readers outside Minnesota? Because it shows how the conversation about vaping, health, and mental health needs to evolve.

In the US, vaping is often discussed in political terms—flavor bans, FDA crackdowns, or Big Tobacco lawsuits. In the UK, regulators have pushed for e-cigarettes as a harm-reduction tool for smokers. In Canada, health officials continue to warn about youth vaping.But across all the countries, the mental health side of vaping is underexplored. For some users, it’s just a habit. For others, like Westman, it can spiral into a source of shame, anxiety, and distorted self-perception.

That psychological impact may not make headlines like lung injuries do, but it matters.Robin Westman’s vaping confession won’t change the fact that two children were killed and 17 others injured in the Minneapolis Catholic school shooting. But it does shine a light on the often-overlooked intersection between physical health fears and mental health crises.The takeaway isn’t just about vaping. It’s about recognizing how small struggles, whether with addiction, anxiety, or self-image, can fester in silence. And if those struggles aren’t addressed, they can become part of much larger tragedies.