Mikayla Smith

ENGL 151-03

11/12/14       

Causes of Teen Suicide

            Suicide is one of the highest causes of death, ranking just under cancer and heart disease. Varying from age to age, the causes of suicide change. Most of people that commit suicide have a mental illness at the time of death. The most common of these mental illnesses is depression; no matter what age, this is the leading cause of depression. Many different aspects of a teen’s life can cause them to commit suicide and end their own lives at a very young age. Depression, bullying by peers, substance abuse, stress, family issues, sexual orientation can all be causes for teens to commit suicide.

            The leading cause of suicide in teens is depression. Depression leads to many different causes that ultimately end in suicide. Depression is a mental disorder that causes people to feel overwhelmingly sad. People with depression usually lose interest in activities they normally like to partake in. Peer acceptance in high school and middle school to teens is crucial. If they feel as though their peers do not like them, teens can go into a depressed state in which they feel extreme loneliness. Having the feeling that there is no one there for support makes a teen sad. Teens might feel like they are worthless because no one can accept who they are and bring them into the teen social circle. This disorder does not just affect feelings, but also can affect overall physical well being. Depression can cause insomnia, the inability to sleep, and fatigue, feeling of constant tiredness. Unable to feel fully rested, and the feeling of not being able to be a part of a group can cause a teen to not want to be here anymore. All of the symptoms to depression can lead a teen to wanting to end their life.

With school comes peer groups, and the possibility of bullying. Every teen has gone through some form of bullying, all depends on how severe each case is. Teens joke around with each other all of the time. Interpreting the jokes for how an individual will take it is up to them. Some things that may be funny to some, may be offensive to others. High school students are taking the bullying beyond the halls. A new type of bullying during the age of the internet comes from social medias. Cyber bullying is now a big problem from social networks of teens. Criticism over pictures that teens post cause low self esteem in some people. Different posts teens may put on the internet cause others to judge and write back rude comments. With this age of social networking, access to everyone is available. People can bully anyone just by typing something rude and hitting the “send” button. Constant rude remarks to people can bring their self esteem to an extreme low and cause teens to feel like nothing. Abuse from others, whether it being physical, emotional, or verbal, all can hurt someone. When the constant abuse continues, bringing a person to their breaking point, the decision to end life is considered.

            In some cases the cause of suicide can be linked to substance abuse. Teens get into alcohol and drugs at younger and younger ages nowadays. Drugs, whether it be over-the-counter, prescribed, or illegal, can be dangerous for teens. Chances for overdose is never out of the question. Not reading the correct dosage clearly may cause the wrong amount to be taken. Some drugs must be taken at an absolute amount. Overdosing on medications can lead anybody into critical care or even to their deathbed. Addiction is another problem with drugs and alcohol. Not being able to stop consumption of these harmful products can bring a person into a bad state. Unable to control the substances can lead to a total blackout. During this blackout, a person goes into a state where they have no idea what they are doing, and who knows what they might do to themselves or others. Drugs and alcohol can make anyone do things they would not normally do. Suicide may be accidental as a blackout happens, or when a teen overdoses.

            Every teen, literally everyone goes through this next cause. Stress. Teens have a ton on their plate. Depending on each individual, the stressors may be different. School could be a universal stress for all teens. Having to get a good grade, having time to study, and having the time to complete all assignments and on time too! Student athletes make this school stress even more intense. Finding the time between school and sports to get anything done is hard. From being a student athlete myself, this is for sure a struggle. Many little things can stress any person out. Teens find many things to stress about. Pressure on teens to make the big life decision of college and future careers is huge. Overwhelming teens into choosing something they are not ready for is not good. Building up that anxiety, having people looking for answers, is overwhelming as well. Some cannot handle the added pressure by others. Suicide comes from people who cannot handle life, or do not want to deal with the issues of life. When people push and push, teens can get to a point where they cannot take it anymore.

            Family issues can be a cause of suicide. Being a child of separated parents myself, understanding the struggle of family is relatable. These days, separations of parents is not rare. Whether it is divorce, or just split parents, children go through a hardship. Parents not getting along, constant fighting can bring a teen down. Having to mask the emotions at school to make it seem like at home is fine. Living in that double life can hurt anyone. Pretending to be happy is never good. Occasionally the child blames themselves for the breakup of their parents. Putting that kind of burden on their shoulders brings them down more. Teens may try to bring their home back together by working on their parents’ attitudes towards one another. This normally puts the child in the middle and makes everything worse. Parental abuse could be occurring as well. Constant abuse can wreck anyone for wanting to continue life. Ending the pain is the choice by some teens. No longer wanting to take the constant abuse from people that are supposed to love you most can make them feel so worthless and unloved. When a person is so belittled, their ultimate choice is to get out of the situation. Sometimes the only way out is to leave.

            Suicide in teens is not just related to one specific cause. Many things can contribute to the decision for a teen to end his or her life. To think there are actually this many, and even more, reasons that could cause this is crazy. Teens are supposed to be just starting their lives, beginning their futures. With all of this extra stress and problems, teens are not able to get this future. These teens can be future doctors, lawyers, presidents. They could be somebody. Potential for their future is thrown away once the decision to leave this world is made. Helping this problem will take a lot of work, but trying to set up groups to stop teen suicide must happen. Teens need to be able to start their future without the worry of stress, depression, bullying, family issues, and substance abuse. This time of their life has to be relaxed and supported by all angles. What should be done to help the issue of teen suicide?

Resources:

"Suicide Prevention." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 9 Jan. 2014. Web. 14 Nov. 2014. <http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pub/youth_suicide.html>

"Signs of Clinical Depression: Symptoms to Watch For." WebMD. WebMD, 21 Aug. 2014. Web. 16 Nov. 2014. <http://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/detecting-depression>