Youth who have strong connections to family, friends and community are less likely to harm themselves. Kids who have good problem-solving abilities are also at lower risk. It is important to limit access to highly lethal weapons, including guns, pills and kitchen utensils.
Watch out for warning signs, such as talk of suicide, creating a plan or increased access to firearms or drugs.
Risk Factors
Several types of risk factors contribute to the likelihood that a youth will commit suicide. Mental health issues like depression, alcohol or drug abuse and a family history of mental illness are important. A previous suicide attempt or suicidal thoughts are also significant. A teen who feels lonely and isolated may be more likely to consider suicide. Bullying and a lack of social support can also increase the risk for suicide. Finally, a kid who has access to a lethal substance or object, such as a gun, is at increased risk.
Epidemiological studies suggest that suicide in youth is rising. It is a particularly tragic outcome of the adolescent years, which are by nature a vulnerable time for mental health problems. Youth suicide involves a tremendous amount of pointless suffering and societal loss. This is the primary reason for integrating neuroscience research and clinical care at the Center for Brain and Mind Health at Yale.
Symptoms
Teens who are at risk for suicide often show warning signs that they’re thinking about or planning to kill themselves. They may talk about suicide, write notes or poems or make final arrangements. They might also complain of frequent headaches, stomachaches or fatigue that don’t seem to be related to their emotions. They might give away prized possessions, withdraw from family and friends or start acting aggressively. They might become obsessed with death, violence or guns and knives.
Other warning signs include a sudden change in eating or sleeping habits, withdrawal from friends, declining school performance and increased irritability. They might begin to take risks or display self-destructive behaviors, such as cutting or self-mutilating themselves.
If a young person seems preoccupied with thoughts of death, violence or weapons, it’s important to err on the side of caution and ask them about their feelings. It’s a sign of a mental health problem and they should be evaluated by a trained professional.
Treatment
Fortunately, there are psychotherapeutic and prevention strategies with documented benefits for reducing suicide and suicide attempts and effective medication treatments for disorders associated with suicide risk. A combination of these interventions should be offered to youth at risk.
In addition, many youth who commit suicide are influenced by factors that can be overcome with effective community support. This support can come from parents, teachers and school administrators, extracurricular activity leaders, peers and service providers. Sensitive listening and appropriate advice or debriefing can be helpful.
Some key prevention strategies include education on mental health resilience, careful media coverage of a suicide and restricting access to lethal means. However, most programs reviewed do not place significant emphasis on these or other prevention strategies.
Prevention
Youth who contemplate suicide often give warning signs that can be detected by parents, teachers and friends. When they are identified, it is important that they are referred for professional help.
Youth suicide prevention involves promoting protective factors such as strong family and community connections, positive social networks, a sense of purpose, and a supportive environment that is conducive to learning. It also involves implementing strategies to reduce risk factors for suicide including providing education and training to adults, school staff, and youth.
Schools can play a vital role in the prevention of youth suicide by identifying students at risk and helping them access mental health services. School counselors, school psychologists and social workers, and local mental health specialists can all be helpful in this effort. Additionally, research has shown that asking youth about suicidal thoughts using validated screening tools is not harmful and may actually help them get needed care that they otherwise would have missed.