Suicide Among Adolescents

Running head: SUICIDE AMONG ADOLESCENTS

Suicide Among Adolescents

The taking of one’s life, as hard as it is for some to fathom, is becoming increasingly common. Suicide is even the third leading cause of death among adolescents age fifteen to nineteen (Hallfors, PhD, et al., 2006). Suicide in general is hard enough to swallow, but children and adolescents are now turning to taking their own life instead of facing the life they have ahead of them. Their thoughts about suicide are increasingly manifested in their behaviors. Adolescents are getting help from the mental health community and from the administration of SSRI drugs, but there are still those who are so desperate that they turn to whatever method of suicide that is most readily available, then leave their family and loved ones to deal with the stresses and pains of losing a child and a friend. Suicide does more than just take a single life; Suicide takes the lives of that individual and so many friends and family members as well. Suicide may not physically take those lives but emotional pains and stresses do.
Adolescents considering suicide are not as much of an anomaly anymore. What is being seen is disconnect between the suicidal act and actual death in the minds of the adolescent. Others claim that there is a correlation between suicidal thoughts and manifestations with mental illness, advising that those who have attempted suicide need to be held in mental hospitals. Adolescence is broken down into three developmental positions: chaos, narcissistic depression, and renewed cathexis of the object (Manor, Vincent, & Tyano, 2004). The transition periods between these positions can be painful for the adolescent and can cause crisis in his or her life. A factor in coping during these transitional periods is the decision to live. Although usually an unconscious decision, adolescents all make a choice to live during the transitional times. The adolescent searches for their purpose in life at this time and begins to think in the abstract. As adolescents progress into the fourth position developmentally they may experience and display degrees of behavioral manifestations due to the transitional difficulty. There are several degrees of these behavioral manifestations. Mild manifestations occur in adolescents whose pain in dealing with the transition is most dominant and this pain leads to emotional scarring. These individuals also are more aware of their “decision to live” than those who unconsciously choose (Manor, Vincent, & Tyano, 2004). Moderate manifestations are those that make a conscious decision to allow fate to determine their destiny. They may be more apt to “flirt with death” and gamble with their life dabbling in risky behaviors. Severe manifestations are those who may be multiple suicide attempters. They carry out the act of trying to commit suicide but do not totally follow through. They express themselves through the act and demonstrate a lack of capacity to choose life. Finally, there are those who actually totally go through with the act and commit suicide, leading to their death. The suicide in these cases are often a rebellion against growing up, wishing to remain in their childhood pathologies (Manor, Vincent, & Tyano, 2004).
Those who link suicide and suicide attempts to metal illness view suicide as extreme consequence of depression. Suicidal thoughts are seen as a symptom of depression. Often individuals, especially those in adolescence, are clinically deemed depressed and prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), otherwise known as antidepressants. The Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings that these medications can lead to an increased risk of suicide (Howland, 2007). Many of the new drugs that are marketed have no assurance of the safety of the drug. The only way the drug can truly be known to be safe is after it has been used in real-world practice for several years because many of the adverse effects do not become apparent until it has been prescribed and administered by those in the public (Howland, 2007). Researchers have begun to examine the correlation between suicide rates and SSRI prescription rates; they have found countries with higher rates of SSRI prescriptions in the 5 to 14 year old age range have lower suicide rates. The studies also identify that rates of suicide and suicide attempts lessen after the prescription of SSRI drugs to individual patients (Howland, 2007).
Methodologies used by adolescents committing suicide are varied. Suicide was found to be extremely less frequent in the 0-14 age group by comparison to the 15-19 age group (Hepp, Stulz, Unger-Köppel, & Ajdacic-Gross, 2012). Young males tended to have a more violent means in their deaths than did young females. The most common methodologies for young males included the use of firearms, hanging, rail-way suicides, and jumping from heights. For young females, the most common methodologies were rail-way suicides, jumping from heights, hanging, and intoxication (Hepp, Stulz, Unger-Köppel, & Ajdacic-Gross, 2012). In comparison with suicides of the adult population, there are a few methods of suicide that adolescents used a significantly less amount. Adults much more frequently used methods such as death by gas and drowning. Although firearms are the most common of the methods for young males, in comparing the percentage of suicide deaths caused by firearms to the percentage of adult males using firearms, the use of firearms is significantly less common among adolescents. The most obvious factor in an adolescent’s choice of suicide method, seems to be how readily available that methodology is to them. In trying to prevent suicide in the future, an effective strategy of the prevention of suicide would be by restricting access to the means used to take the suicide victim’s life. In countries where firearms are most prevalently owned, suicide by firearm rates are also significantly higher (Hepp, Stulz, Unger-Köppel, & Ajdacic-Gross, 2012). For example, Switzerland and the United States have the highest percentage of households with gun owners, with 36 and 32% respectively; not surprisingly, those two countries have the highest suicide by firearm rates at 27 and 57% respectively (Hepp, Stulz, Unger-Köppel, & Ajdacic-Gross, 2012). Also, in preventing other methods of suicide, having more safe-guards around high ledges and near rail-ways could be essential in lowering the number of suicides using those particular methodologies. Although suicidal ideations are common in adolescent years, the actual act of suicide is still a fairly rare occurrence. Those suicidal ideations are commonly temporary and the impulsiveness and short term triggers seen in youth in other areas may contribute to the actual suicides we see in this age range.
When a parent loses a child, regardless of age or cause, the bereavement period is highly intense. Violent deaths including child and adolescent suicide are traumatic for anyone in contact with the victim but those in parental roles are definitely the most difficult. Murphy finds that these parents have a higher risk for negative consequences than other populations (Murphy, 1996). The parents interviewed in Murphy’s research saw significant negative changes in their personal and social lives, as well and lessening their cognitive function, personal health, legal standing, and found economic hardship. Divorce rates heightened and the support received from their immediate social circles was little (Murphy, 1996). Depression and physical illness were also both common with the parents of suicide victims (Murphy, 1996). Due to all of these factors parents also often became absent from work thus causing higher economic problems in addition to the cost involved in dealing with the depression, physical illnesses, and legal trouble.
Another group that is significantly affected in their bereavement of an adolescent’s suicide is the victim’s peer group. Many peers of suicide victims, especially those who are close to the victim, experience problems with posttraumatic stress disorder. The extent and complication of the grief had a high correlation with the sex of the individual, a feeling of personal guilt (feeling that they could have done something to stop the suicide), their closeness to the victim, and a predisposition to depression or anxiety disorders (Melhem, et al., 2003). Another factor in the degree of complication of the bereavement is the time elapsed after the suicide. The most adversely effected by the suicide drew their complications from the feeling of guilt. Those individuals are usually in major depression and feel strongly that there was something they should have done to prevent the suicide or at least seen some sign in the suicide victim to alert someone of the danger. The most negative consequences were seen in peers who were either already diagnosed with depression or had a conceived predisposition to suffer from depression (Melhem, et al., 2003). As many as 79% of individuals dealing with the suicide of a peer who experienced more complicated bereavement have a previous connection with depression in contrast to only 40% experiencing complicated bereavement with no previous connection to depression (Melhem, et al., 2003). There is a chance that the high rate of complicated grief experienced after the suicide death of an adolescent peer is partially a result of youths who are in close contact with one another often have similarities in their personalities and vulnerabilities. Thus, there is a higher possibility of youths with suicidal tendencies to form bonds and friendships with one another due to their similarities (Melhem, et al., 2003).
Adolescent suicide is a tragic event that is happening all too often in this day and age. The process of death and dying in the situation of adolescents with their whole lives ahead of them committing suicide is one of the saddest ways to die. The process in which the adolescent goes through is one that can be avoided if the signs are seen in time. As the young person’s behavior changes and manifests there is time for action to be taken. Although somewhat new, the SSRI drugs on the market today are proving themselves to be staunch opponents of suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, and of the finality of actual suicide. Also taking steps to make suicide methodologies less available could lead to a lessening suicide rate. It is evident that those who commit suicide are apt to choose the most available method to them so taking away that availability should deter the suicidal adolescent. Bereavement periods for parents are tough and affect all aspects of their lives. Peers of suicide victims also experience complicated periods of grief and may lead to their own period of depression. Suicide is not a single act of death but an extended period of dying. It begins far before the individual actually takes their life in the physical sense. It seems they being to die slowly due to the rapid changes taking place in their lives even with their desire to remain stagnate. Then, even after the action of taking their own life, the process of dying takes over the parents and peers of the victim.

Works Cited
Hallfors, PhD, D., Brodish, MSPH, P. H., Khatapoush, PhD, S., Sanchez, DrPH, V., Cho, PhD, H., & Steckler, PhD, A. (2006, February). Feasibility of Screening Adolescents for Suicide RIsk in "Real-World" High School Settings. American Journal of Public Health, pp. 282-287.
Hepp, U., Stulz, N., Unger-Köppel, J., & Ajdacic-Gross, V. (2012, February). Methods of suicide used by children and adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, pp. 67-73.
Howland, M. R. (2007, July). Antidepressants & Suicide: Putting the Rise in Perspective. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing, pp. 15-19.
Manor, I., Vincent, M., & Tyano, S. (2004, Summer). The Wish to Die and the Wish to Commit Suicide in the Adolescent: Two Different Matters? Adolescence, pp. 279-293.
Melhem, N. M., Day, N., Shear, M. K., Day, R., Reynolds III, C. F., & Brent, D. (2003). Predictors of Complicated Grief Among Adolescents Exposed to a Peer 's Suicide. Journal of Loss and Trauma, pp. 21-34.
Murphy, S. A. (1996). Parent Bereavement Stress and Preventative Intervention Following the Violent Deaths of Adolescent or Young Adult Children. Death Studies, pp. 441-452.

Cited: Hallfors, PhD, D., Brodish, MSPH, P. H., Khatapoush, PhD, S., Sanchez, DrPH, V., Cho, PhD, H., & Steckler, PhD, A. (2006, February). Feasibility of Screening Adolescents for Suicide RIsk in "Real-World" High School Settings. American Journal of Public Health, pp. 282-287. Hepp, U., Stulz, N., Unger-Köppel, J., & Ajdacic-Gross, V. (2012, February). Methods of suicide used by children and adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, pp. 67-73. Howland, M. R. (2007, July). Antidepressants & Suicide: Putting the Rise in Perspective. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing, pp. 15-19. Manor, I., Vincent, M., & Tyano, S. (2004, Summer). The Wish to Die and the Wish to Commit Suicide in the Adolescent: Two Different Matters? Adolescence, pp. 279-293. Melhem, N. M., Day, N., Shear, M. K., Day, R., Reynolds III, C. F., & Brent, D. (2003). Predictors of Complicated Grief Among Adolescents Exposed to a Peer 's Suicide. Journal of Loss and Trauma, pp. 21-34. Murphy, S. A. (1996). Parent Bereavement Stress and Preventative Intervention Following the Violent Deaths of Adolescent or Young Adult Children. Death Studies, pp. 441-452.