I read Mauve Walsh’s story in the Dispatch titled “No Easy Answer for Teen Suicide Spike” on March 4th. Adults like to blame social media (cyberbullying), television programs (13 Reasons Why), and social trauma. In Walsh’s article, Dr. John Ackerman, suicide-prevention coordinator for the Center for Suicide Prevention and Research at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, was quoted to say, “It’s complex. Suicide is almost always multi-determined.”
He later in the article makes a point that made me stop and think. “…it’s difficult to directly associate social media with suicide, especially when other countries — with the same access to technology as the U.S. — are not experiencing youth suicide at the same rates…Compared with other developed nations, the U.S. has less-restricted access to firearms, which might explain its higher rate of youth suicide…”
In another article by Rick Nauert of the website Psych Central, writes, “Emerging research finds that many teens and young adults use social networking sites and mobile technology to express suicidal thoughts and intentions — often as a way to reach out for help.” Teens do not use the Suicide Hotlines that are at their disposal. In 2018, Ohio State researchers learned that kids use text messages as the second most common way to express their suicidal thoughts. Talking to a friend or a person in their family ranked number one.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death among youths between the ages of 10 and 24 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2018) Suicide is the country’s second-leading cause of death among children ages 10 to 14, and the rate of youth suicide nearly tripled from 2007 to 2017, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nauert).
Youth suicides in Ohio mirror this trend. The number of suicides among Ohioans ages 10 to 24 jumped 64.4% from 2007 to 2018, from 7.3 to 12 deaths per 100,000, according to the Ohio Department of Health. (Walsh)
Let’s bring in another article. Traci Pederson, an associate news editor for Psych Central, wrote in 2018, “The two most common substance groups in all age groups were over-the-counter (OTC) painkillers such as acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and aspirin, followed by antidepressants. In youth (ages 10-12) and adolescents (ages 13-15), ADHD medications were common and had the highest risk of serious medical outcomes. Opiates only accounted for 7% of cases with serious medical outcomes.”
As a high school teacher for 31 years, I only had one student from my class commit suicide. I was teaching in the Cleveland City Schools (1973). My student was mad at her dad, who was a Cleveland policeman. He wouldn’t let her talk to her boyfriend one night. She took her dad’s service revolver and shot herself in the left side. She told her dad she didn’t think anything important was there. An administrator told me; she destroyed her spleen and bled to death.
Home can be a difficult place for some teens. My fictional character, Lexie, in Downward Spiral, was in emotionally damaging situation. It did drive her to make bad decisions. During an emotional spiral, Lexie could have made the ultimate wrong decision.
Schools are so aware of teens and their mental health. In early 2000, Dr. Diana Lindsay (Mattern) #dmrmlindsay, my principal at the time, requested that our high school have a social worker. But that suggestion was not taken until 2018. Some students received red “emergency passes” that allowed them to visit their counselor any time (if they were in and available). Teachers are required to take suicide prevention Professional Development.
In many cases, medication may help. But this takes more vigilance for the parents. (Don’t live in Denial campaign #OhioOpioidEdu) Parents can’t assume their teen can be responsible not to overdose or grab self-medication. Here is John Ackerman again, “Because medications are so readily available in homes, many families do not take precautions to store them safely. Our findings suggest this is a big problem.”
Many parents feel they have experienced similar events when growing up. Slam books (the sixties form of bullying), Marilyn Manson’s lyrics, Judas Priest “subliminal messages,” and Ozzie Osbourne’s songs were all blamed for suicides when our present parents were growing up.
There is help out in the community. At Concord Counseling Services, here in Columbus, Ohio, for example, they have prevention workers in area schools, including New Albany, Westerville, Groveport, and Gahanna. The prevention workers also include a component of substance use disorder counselors. The prevention workers are integral to receiving counseling services at Concord counseling.
Nauert, Rick “Suicidal Teens Turn to Social Media, Not Hotlines & Support Groups.Pych Central. March 04, 2020. August 08, 2018
Pederson, Tracy Common “Household Drugs Often Used By Youth in Suicide Attempts.” Psych Central. March 04, 2020. October 08, 2019
Walsh, Mauve. “No Easy Answer For Teen Suicide Spike.” Columbus Dispatch, 4 Mar. 2020, p. A8