Increasing Teen Suicides

Jon Carmichael,  an eighth grader died of suicide yesterday in Joshua Texas. Celebrity Marie Osmond's eighteen year old son Michael Blosil died of suicide  last month on February 26th.  Suicide is the third leading cause of death among  ages 15 - 24 and fourth for ages 10 - 14 according to the American Acadamy of Pediatrics.  The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta states that 60% of high school students have thought about committing suicide, and approximately 9% have tried killing themselves at least once.  According to the National Institute for Mental Health (NIMH), about 8 out of every 100,000 teenagers committed suicide in 2000. For every teen suicide death, experts estimate there are 10 other teen suicide attempts.
Bulling - an age old problem is one of the major causes and has garnered recent headlines. Social Media such as Facebook and twitter with use of cellphones increases the indiscriminate behavior exponentially leaving children the feeling of having no way out, no where to hide because of the brutal invasion of their privacy.  Anti-Bullying laws are being passed and many school districts are now focusing on recognition and prevention.

According to the Massachusetts 2006 Youth Risk Survey, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers. In addition, the San Francisco State University Chavez Center Institute has found that LGBTQ youth who come from a rejecting family are up to nine times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers.


Signs that a teen may be contemplating suicide:

• Talks about death and/or suicide (maybe even with a joking manner).
• Plans ways to kill him or herself.
• Expresses worries that nobody cares about him or her.
• Has attempted suicide in the past.
• Dramatic changes in personality and behavior.
• Withdraws from interacting with friends and family.
• Shows signs of depression.
• Shows signs of a substance abuse problem.
• Begins to act recklessly and engage in risk-taking behaviors.
• Begins to give away sentimental possessions.
• Spends time online interacting with people who glamorize suicide and maybe even form suicide pacts

I've known people who have said there were no signs leading up to the suicide. In my small rural and very religious home town the boy who was slated to be the valedictorian, who was the quarterback on the football team and active in his church was found dead by his father - shot with the gun he'd given him earlier that year as a gift. We need to recognize that teens have a high stress life. We should help them to de-stress, relax, and find healthy ways to let out the steam. Give them a safe place, trusted person to where they can come when they need help. Don't let their pleas go unheard. Silence is not a sign of safety.

Resources for Teenage Suicide Prevention:
Free Teen Suicide Hotline The National Suicide Prevention Directory
Youth Suicide Prevention Program Focus Adolescent Services
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline - 1-800-273-8255
Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program , Trevor Project
Author Jodi Piccoult wrote about this phenomenon in her novel The Pact.  A new YA novel that includes this issue as part of a subplot is Summer in Paris by Michelle Ashman Bell.

When Caregivers Need Help

One category of caregiver that needs support and tends to be overlooked is the mental health provider, be it psychiatrist, psychologist, counselor, social worker, behavioral health tech, hot-line operator or other numerous personnel in the field field - both civilian and military. A psychiatric injury acquired on the battlefield, from trauma, or from chronic exposure to other's distress is not readily recognized or acknowledged. Their wounds are hidden. They do not bleed, cause physical deformity or other visibly notable signs.

I know from personal experience that debriefing after an event is helpful - but may not even scratch the surface of the abscess that forms after emotionally disturbing situations. Caregivers are reluctant to confess to needing aid to find comfort or solace after a shock. Doctors, nurses, counselors and chaplains receive repeated jolts to their psyche as a matter of course performing their duties. When in the military the strain is compounded immeasurably.

The tragic incident at Ft. Hood has brutally brought this issue to the forefront. Scott & White nurses in Texas had to quickly combine critical thinking skills to deal with the fall out while testing their mass casualty plan on November 5th. Urgency demanded expedient care and military patients were transported to civilian facilities. Our country has not experienced this phenomenon much, since war usually doesn't take place on our soil.

It appears that one of Homeland Securities' functions will need to be preparing for attack from within. It looks like mental health needs were ignored when gearing up our defenses. The focus has been on nuclear fall out, bio-weapons, terrorism, and other physical items. A holistic approach would demand that the mental, emotional, spiritual and social well being of the nation's be considered as important as infrastructure, munitions, intelligence and so forth.

Temptation to ignore what some call "fluff" during economic stress is strong. Let's not forget to take care of our whole selves no matter what kind of care giver we are. If we don't, we won't be available when needed and become part of the problem instead.