A MISSING woman from Slough Green was found dead beside the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal, an inquest heard on Thursday, December 9.

West Somerset Coroner Michael Rose ruled that Joy Smith, 44, died of a haemorrhage, due to lacerations to her wrists.

The body of Mrs Smith, a married mother of two teenagers, was discovered in a ditch beside the canal at Creech St Michael on May 21.

Mrs Smith's disappearance had sparked a major police search after she went missing a day earlier. Her car was discovered abandoned in the canal car park at Creech St Michael.

The inquest heard from her husband, Tim, that their marriage was a happy one, although his wife had an affair with a family friend ten years ago.

In a statement, he said that following this she became depressed and had taken an overdose in April.

Last year he had been made redundant and so his wife had taken up part-time work as a care assistant with autistic children. Mr Smith said he had started drinking and sometimes became a little aggressive.

He said that working full time had made his wife tired and that on April 26 she had taken an overdose of anti-depressants and alcohol.

She was treated in hospital and went to Rydon House in Taunton where she was thought to be making good progress.

After this he said that he felt his wife had "become the mother and wife she used to be."

On the day she went missing, she had left a message on the answering machine saying she was going shopping after she had dropped the children into school.

"She sounded quite normal on the answering machine, almost a little too jolly. She never said she was going to take her own life," said Mr Smith.

A police search and team and Exmoor search and rescue team then searched the canal, footpaths and fields with the help of a helicopter from Avon and Somerset Police.

Recording a verdict that Mrs Smith took her own life while the balance of her mind was disturbed, Mr Rose said: "This is yet another tragic case.

"At 44 years of age, she appeared to be happily married.

"But unfortunately the depressive illness shows that it was not being treated as well as it could have been."