‘Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. ‘; I feel that it isn’t the right solution, that there are other options. This is one reason why I chose Teen Suicide as my I-search topic. I have had personal experience with teen suicide involving my friends, and the next time that one of my friends comes to me saying, ‘; I want to die.
‘; I want to be able to understand where they are coming from and how I can help them. I also chose this topic because I want to educate others on how serious of a problem teen suicide really is. Teen suicide as an extremely complex tragedy, that unfortunately happens all the time throughout the United States. There are friends, parents, and peers that are facing the misfortune of losing a young, close, loved one to suicide. Most people don’t realize that adolescent suicide is common.
They don’t want to believe how often this occurs in the secure environment found in the small towns of America, as well as in its largest cities. Suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15 to 24 year olds, and the sixth leading cause for 5 to 14 year olds. Suicide accounts for twelve percent of the mortality in the adolescent and young adult group. Young males are more common than young woman suicides. These are only children who followed through with the suicide. For every successful suicide there are fifty to one hundred adolescent suicide attempts.
In other words, more than five percent of all teenagers tried to commit suicide, and the number is still rising. It is scary to think that four percent of high school students have made a suicide attempt within the previous twelve months. In a small safe town like Avon, in the Avon High School where you and I practically live, you can see the faces of 22 students that have tried to commit suicide. That is enough to fill a classroom. It is hard to precisely determine the cause of an adolescent suicide. But through notes that are left by the victim and the turn of events that have seemed to have taken place in the young person’s world, common causes can be found.
Some of these are broken romances, family tension, problems at school, and other pressures. All though most of the time it is more than just one of these causes. There are many signs to look out for in a teen that will/may commit suicide. Child and adolescent psychiatrists recommend that if one or more of these signs occurs, parents need to talk to their child about their concerns and seek professional help when the concerns persist. ? Change in eating and sleeping habits.
? Withdrawal from friends, and family and regular activities. ? Violent actions, rebellious behavior or running away. ? Drug and alcohol use. ? Unusual neglect of personal appearance.
? Marked personality change. ? Persistent boredom, difficulty concentrating, or a decline in the quality of school work? Frequent complaints about physical symptoms, often related to emotions, such as stomachaches, headaches, fatigue, etc. ? Loss of interest in pleasurable activities. ? Not tolerating praise or rewards. ? Complain of being ‘rotten inside’;? Give verbal hints with statements such as: ‘I won’t be a problem for you much longer,’; ‘Nothing matters,’; ‘It’s no use,’; ‘I won’t see you again. ‘;? Put his/her affairs in order;#8212;for example, give away favorite possessions, clean his/her room, throw away important belongings, etc.
? Become suddenly cheerful after a period of depression. There are many misconceptions about suicide. These are also known as myths of suicide. For some reason people tend to think that adolescents who talk about suicide are not serious about doing it. This is untrue, it has been proven that almost all suicidal teens have at one point verbally or nonverbally, told someone about their considering suicide.
This leads to another myth, that suicide happens without warning. For the same reason as the myth, adolescents aren’t serious about it, suicide usually occurs with at least one warning. Some other myths are once an adolescent is suicidal, he/she must always and forever be considered suicidal (adolescent who once considered suicide); if an adolescent attempts suicide and survives, he/she will not make .
