Depression and Suicide

A recent study showed that 60 percent of all high school students said they had thought about killing themselves by commiting suicide. 9 pecent of those studied said they had attempted to kill themselves. Suicide and depression are some of the biggest problems plagueing teens today.

Suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15 -24 year olds and thousands of teens commmit suicide every year. Many times, when teens are depressed or in a horrible situation, they will think that suicide is a "way out" or a "good solution", but it really never is.

Although many adults don't always recognize it, teens go through enourmous amounts of stress and depression in their daily lives. Many different factors, such as school grades or relationships with friends, can contribute to causing stress in teenagers.

Feeling sad is normal, but being depressed for a long time and letting it ruin your life is not. If you feel sad or depressed, try thinking about something else for a while, until you can safely think about what you are depressed about and how to overcome the difficulty you're having. Concentrating on another activity for a few minutes can help your mind calm down to be able to tackle your problems more rationally.

It is very important to take all suicide threats seriously, no matter what you think about their validity. In many cases a threat of suicide is really someone calling for help, and it's important that you recognize that and help them through the hard times they may be experiencing.

It's also important to pay special attention to helping your friends and people you know that you think may suffer from acute depression. Some symptoms of suicide are as follows:

• Loss of interest in normal activites
• Social withdrawl
• Loss of energy or motivation
• Reduction of achivement in school
• A sense of hoplelessness
• And, of course, expression of suicidal intent

Remember, suicide is never the answer. You can alway solve your problems, and, no matter how badly you feel, there's always a way out. Suicide isn't it.

If you are thinking of commiting suicide and need help or counseling, you can call a 24 hour, 365 day hotline, the national Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-827-7571.