Experts define suicide as the act of taking one’s own life on purpose. Different societies look at suicide from different perspectives. Most of these are related to the cultural and social ties. For instance, most of the western societies including Judaism and Christianity are opposed to the issue of suicide (Dryden-Edwards, 2012). Teen suicide is one of the issues that have become a major concern in the recent years. In looking at this issue, I will look at the prevalence of teen obesity, the causes of the condition as well as the preventive measures that could be used to control it. By the end of the discussion, I expect to have covered the most crucial facts and details related to the issue of teen suicide.
On the global scale, it is reported that approximately 1 million people commit suicide per annum. About 10 to 20 million cases of attempted suicide are also reported on an annual basis. In the US alone, about 30,000 people commit suicide (Dryden-Edwards, 2012). Further reports indicate that this is the third leading cause of deaths among youngsters aged 10-24 years. The rates of the vice have been gradually rising each year. It increased by 300% from 1950-1990, then gradually decreased by a margin of 35% from 1990-2003. Since then, the rate of teen suicide has been on a gradual rise. According to the CDC (2012), the three main forms of suicide adopted by the teens include the use of firearm which stands at 45%, suffocation at 40% and poisoning which stands at 8%. During a study on grade 9 through 12 in public and private schools in the US, it was observed that 165 of the students had seriously considered committing suicide while 13 percent had gone a head and made a plan on the same. A further 8% indicated that they had attempted to take their own lives in the last 12 months prior to the study. These statistics indicate that teen suicide is a pertinent issue in the country and it needs to be given attention.
After looking at the alarming rates of suicide among the teens, I will shift gears and pay attention to the different causes of teen suicide. This is mainly because if the causes are understood, then it can be pretty easy to derive solutions for the same. The CDC (2012) carried out a research on the same and looked at the various causes. I would like to put it to you that these risk factors are also the risk signs that you should look out for when dealing with a teen. If the teen has a history of previous attempts at suicide, then you should know that the tendency towards the same could still be high in the individual. The same happens for teens from families that have histories of committing suicide. Teens who seem to be going through stressful situations in life as well as those exposed to alcohol and drug abuse are also at risk of committing suicide. It is, therefore, quite important to be more keen when dealing with such individuals. The same happens to those who have mental illnesses or depression. Furthermore, teens who have access to lethal weapons or poison might be driven by impulse to commit suicide even when they had not pre-planed for it. Generally, it is known that teens undergo much stress at this stage of life. They usually are at cross roads of their lives, a situation that often makes them go through tough times as they try to establish their identity and position in the society. Due to this instability, they are easily stressed up and often choose the easy way out.
After looking at these causes, I can now turn attention to the various ways through which the vice can be prevented. The first one is that the people living with the teens should understand the teens. As already stated, the teen tend to be quite unstable and they tend to think that no one understands them. As such, if the people around them show that they understand the situation of the teens, the high rates of suicide could be minimized. Counseling and rehabilitation for the depressed and those into drug abuse respectively could also be another effective way of controlling the situation. The aim is to make the teens realize that they have a bright future and convince them that the possibilities and opportunities in life are endless. This gives them hope and makes them feel that they can still go on even though it might get tough. Lastly, if the risk factors identified above are noted in an individual, it would be better to put away any objects that can be used in committing suicide.
As I wind up, I would like to emphasize on one major point. You all understand that a society that has no young ones is doomed to perish. It is the responsibility of every one of us to know how we can protect our teens and help them go through this tough stage of life. We can successfully do this by understanding them and being there for them when the need arises.
References
CDC. (2012). Injury Center: Violence Prevention. Retrieved on 6th Nov. 2012 from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pub/youth_suicide.html
Dryden-Edwards. (2012). Suicide. Retrieved on 6th Nov. 2012 from http://www.medicinenet.com/suicide/article.htm
