After a teen commits suicide, the obvious question that arises is why. No one knows for certain, because the youth who die by suicide take their answers with them.
Experts say teens who attempt suicide and survive cite reasons including bullying; peer pressure; sexual orientation; abuse such as dating, domestic and substance; parents divorcing; and neglect.
“As adults, we tend to forget the harsh realities of adolescence, where everything seems to matter and too many things get overblown,” said journalist Jerry Davich. “We need more talk of suicide prevention and fewer whispers of suicide notes.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), males commit suicide at higher rates than females, though females have higher rates of suicide attempts.
The CDC also said the suicide method of choice is a firearm, followed by suffocation and poisoning.
Whites tend to commit suicide more than any other race, but Blacks shouldn’t be so quick to list suicide as something “white kids do.”
A CNN report said suicides among African-American children have doubled in the past two decades, particularly among Black boys.
Teen suicide prevention advocates know this is a hard mountain to climb, but they are taking steps to rectify the situation. Mindi Goodpaster, director of public policy and advocacy at the Marion County Commission on Youth, said Indiana is included in the journey to help save teens’ lives.
“We analyzed data and realized that suicide was a huge issue for youth in the entire state. It’s the second leading cause of death for youth ages 15 to 24 in Indiana. Marion County has the highest number of suicides (in the state),” said Goodpaster. “I don’t think (Hoosiers) truly understand what’s been happening here. And it’s something people don’t like to talk about.”
Teen suicide prevention proponents looked long and hard at policies Indiana has in place and found some areas that needed improvements. For example, Goodpaster said in 2011 there was a law passed that trains teachers in suicide prevention and awareness, however the law only pertains to teachers licensed after July 1, 2013.
“You think when it comes to supporting children it should be a no brainer. They’re vulnerable, they can’t speak for themselves, and it’s our responsibility they’re cared for. In Indiana, we’ve got some challenges in our public schools that I think lend to some of the problems we’re seeing with social/emotional behavioral problems,” said Goodpaster.
She said because schools have had to do more with less and that learning has become less holistic, critical skills such as problem solving and support services have been removed from a place where kids spend the most time. This void also applies to other teen issues such as bullying prevention and dating violence.
Goodpaster and other key stakeholders in teen prevention created recommendations based on their findings and have taken their thoughts to the Indiana Statehouse. Critical legislative changes include Hoosiers doing more to train schools and teachers on how to understand, recognize and prevent suicides and offer more help to teachers after a student has committed suicide.
They also want the legislature to focus on improving and increasing Hoosier crisis services.
“We also need to work on workforce development. We don’t have enough mental health and behavioral health professionals to handle the growing need that’s going to come when we start to do more awareness training,” said Goodpaster.
The proposal has bipartisan support from Democrat Sen. Jean Breaux and Republican Sen. Randy Head who will formally present the ideas during the 2017 legislative session. Goodpaster said this is strategic because what they are recommending has a cost, therefore it needs to go before legislators during a budgeting session. In the meantime, advocates of the recommendations will garner more support for their ideas and educate the public more on the topic of teen suicide.
Goodpaster went on to say that in addition to the recommendations, data on teen suicides in Indiana is “sketchy.” This is in part due to dishonest death certificates based on families’ wishes.
She also said that although Black teens aren’t taking their own lives at the same rate as their peers, help is available for them and anyone who is struggling emotionally.
“Parents should also pay attention to their kids and offer help if you see signs,” said Goodpaster.
For more info, visit Indiana Suicide Prevention at In.gov/issp or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at (800) 273-8255. Contact the Marion County Commission on Youth at (317) 921-1266 or visit mccoyouth.org.
