Teen Suicide

What is suicide?

Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. The act or an instance of taking one's own life voluntarily and intentionally is suicide. Growing up, teenagers have many tough situations to go through. There are many factors that can cause a teen to commit such a drastic action. And unfortunately, many are consulting to suicide as their only solution. Each year there are thousands of attempts and deaths. Suicide is an ongoing problem that continues to grow, and it's substantial to raise awareness. Informing ourselves about this issue can help us handle future possible situations.

Facts and Statistics

• Suicide is the second leading cause of death in young teens and adults worldwide
• It takes the lives of over 38,000 Americans every year
• Guns are involved in almost 50 percent of all suicides
• There are 2 times as many deaths due to suicide than HIV/AIDS
• Males have the highest suicide percentage of 77.9 percent
• Suicide costs the US $51 billion annually
• On average, there are 121 suicides per day

Risk Factors and Warning Signs

Teens that have attempted suicide in the past are likely to attempt suicide again and about ⅓ of all teen suicide victims have tried to commit suicide before. Many teens, before deciding to take their own lives, display warning signs of stressful life events such as loss of relationship, friends, or family which may have enough negative impacts on teens’ lives to drive them to suicide. Domestic violence, physical abuse, sexual harassment, and being a victim of bullying at school can also be the lead. When suicide is planned, youth frequently become negligent, so the dropping of grades and school attendance are noticeable.Studies indicate that teens’ moods shift rapidly around the time frame of suicide. They become more depressed, exasperated, fractious, frightened, and untalkative. Lacking care of themselves, such as loss of appetite and sleep, may occur. A majority of teens suffer from low self-esteem and self-hatred, making them feel they are inadequate, and everyone one would be better off without them. Some illustrate ideas of suicide through talking about disappearing, having no reasons to live, feeling trapped, self-harm, etc. The victims sometimes give away their valuable personal possessions and visit or call people to say their farewells.

Treatment

Psychotherapies: Specific types of psychotherapies have been proven effective for treating depression which is the cause of most suicide. These are usually short term lasting from 12–16 weeks and they are formalized and interactive. Sessions may take place one to two times a week with a professional who has been specifically trained and certified in the treatment they are using.

Medications: Many medications are available to treat depression, the most common of which are antidepressants. About 22 medications are currently approved by the FDA. Since there is no accurate test to match a person’s symptoms and complaints with the right medication, there is no way to know which drug will work best for a particular person. The person who may be depressed should discuss with their doctor the medication choice and how to take it, as well as the potential side effects. Sometimes there is the need to try a few different medications before finding the one that gives the best result with minimum side effects. When the optimal dose with the best medication is achieved, the antidepressant may take from 4–12 weeks to achieve maximum benefit, but it is possible for one or two symptoms to improve in the first few weeks.

Sources

American Foundaton for Suicide Prevention

I learned most of this stuff in class at my home school.