How Do We Fight Youth Depression? In today’s world, depression is the first leading cause of adolescent suicides. It is a growing problem in our present society and is often a major contributing factor to one’s personality. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (of the US), one out of every four teenagers undergoes depression. The statistics about teenage runaways, alcoholism, drug problems, pregnancy, eating disorders, and suicide are startling. Every year, thousands of people succeed in taking their lives and even more have attempted suicide at some point in their lives. Although we have reached the stage that hearing about suicide is now common, it is was viewed as trivial and petty back then. It seems like a reverse spectrum …show more content…
Common examples include listening to music, trying to make their own decisions, daydreaming, trying to figure out solutions, keeping up friendships, watching television and being close to people they care about. These behaviors are appropriate for adolescents who are trying to become independent, take responsibility for themselves, and draw on friends and family for support.
There are as many misconceptions about teen depression as there are about teenagers in general. Yes, the teen years are tough, but most teens struggle with balancing all the filial and school responsibilities they have. They try so hard to balance them it burns them out and eventually weighs them down to procrastination, then unproductivity.
Occasional bad moods or acting out is to be expected, but depression is something different. Depression can destroy the very essence of a teenager’s personality, causing an overwhelming sense of sadness, despair, or anger. Depression is not just something that spurred out of nowhere. It is THE effect of multiple issues that have never been addressed properly by an individual to his or her elders. It is not just something you could talk someone out
Suicide is one of the top 10 leading causes of death throughout the country for all age groups, and the second leading cause in the United States for college students, Harrington said. “We want to reduce the rate of suicide by at least 20 percent in the next 10 years,” Harrington said. It’s such a stigmatized subject. It’s a thick line people don’t want to cross or discuss, Klein said. “People are so easy to say that they go to physical therapy for a knee problem, but to say that you’re going to mental therapy or behavioral therapy for depression, people look at you different,” Klein said.
“A sense of hope and something to live for is what teens need. They also need a way to raise their self-esteem. When they look at this world and see it through a hopeless window, there is nothing that will make them want to stay in it,” said Dan Snarr, a Skyline High science teacher. Suicide among teens is a recurring issue in today's world. The article “Suicide - Killing the teens & young people in America” written by Christopher Wager discusses the hopelessness that teens feel that leads them to commit suicide.
For youth from the ages of 10 to 24, suicide is the third leading cause of death, and eight percent of teens report attempting suicide (“Suicide Prevention”). In Palo Alto, California, the suicide rate for high schoolers is between four and five times the national average, and 12 percent of students contemplated committing suicide in a 2013-2014 survey (Rosin). As a result of this epidemic, the issue of the Silicon Valley Suicides has gained national attention over recent years. However, as the press and media target the systemic issues, administrators, teachers, and, parents seek external help and explanation for internal problems. In covering the suicides of Palo Alto, the press and media have encountered issues including the stigmas in discussing
Suicide happens frequently in this society because of people’s inability to express emotions and having to live in fear of backlash.
The author embedded herself to the community and interviewing the kids about how prior to the 1960s teenage suicide "was a virtually nonexistent category" yet by 1987 it was seen as “epidemic". Teenager’s life would not be miserable until people’s bad decisions has vanished. The author, establishes techniques like interviewing the teens in the community, interviewing the parents of the four youths, probing school records, and communicating with the teachers about the behavior of the kids in school. Moreover, Donna Gaines had some bias coming into the study.
According to “Teen Suicide Statistics,” suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15-24-year-olds. With this in mind, Building Life and the Suicide Awareness Voices of Education made the “Empty Seat” PSA, in an attempt to combat not only suicide, but to focus on suicide among teens. To reach this point, a literal and symbolic approach to purpose, the use of a general, yet specified audience, effective appeals to ethos and logos, and a fundamental appeal to pathos were used in the “Empty Seat” PSA. Though the purpose of this PSA is quite obvious, simple aspects of it are used to emphasize its importance, and catch the viewer’s attention.
Teenagers will keep saying they are ok but inside they are really not. They refuse help from other people and try to face the problem themselves. “What I really felt like, though, was committing suicide.” Many teenagers today have at least thought about committing suicide at least once.
As of 2015, 5 in 100,000 girls and 14 in 100,000 teenagers commit suicide (Lewis). Teenagers are becoming more vulnerable and schools seem to be taking no notice. If these lives could be saved, it would help so many families across the united states. The National Institute of Mental Health states that there “are as many as 25 attempts of suicide to every one that is actually committed” (Eco Child’s Play). Suicides can be prevented by treatment of the illness.
The issue of suicide has been around for quite a long time since the Middle Ages. Suicide still continues, which hasn’t disappeared, in fact, it has increased over time because due to lack of effort of attending therapy and seeking the help they need to solve
There are 175 countries in the world right now (Countries). The United States is ranked 48th in suicides. An alarming total of 44,193 people commits suicide here, each year (List). It’s daughters, sons, mothers, fathers, friends, and coworkers taking their life. It’s everyday people taking their life.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among the youth aged 15-29. (WHO, 2014) Youth are the future of generation and work population. The human value and cost of a human life are then should be questioned in the social norm. Besides, a significant number of people, includes governments, international and national non-government organizations, religious groups and education institutes emphasises that actions have to be taken to prevent suicide problem.
An emphasis is placed on the importance of identifying warning signs and risk factors for depression and suicide amongst teens. According to the research conducted by King and Vidourek (2012) early detection and suicidal warning signs is seen to be crucial for effective intervention. Teenagers need to be encouraged to be more proactive when it comes to their personal mental health. Positive coping mechanisms such as problem-solving skills, effective communication skills, and good conflict resolution skills are all essential in lessening the likelihood that a teen exhibiting depressive behaviors will go forth and take their own life. As most teenagers spend most of their time in school, better prevention and intervention programs need to be in place.
Kassandra Lee Valerie Swartz 82836 12/14/2014 Exercise: A Cure For Depression? Approximately 121 million people worldwide are currently suffering from some sort of depression, and this number increases approximately 20% per year (Healthline). Depression, the most common mental illness, effects 25% of Americans (Olga Khazan).
Suicide is a dominant cause of death among teenagers and young adults. The rate of suicides and suicide attempts increases from time to time. For some, suicide is the permanent solution to a temporary problem and most pressing public health issues across the world. Suicides case is so often these days even becoming a trend and we are not even flinch anymore. The depression and substances abuse for teenagers currently become issues that lead to suicide cases among teenagers.
Depression Teen depression is much more than feeling temporarily sad or down in the dumps. It 's a serious and debilitation mood disorder that can change the way people think, feel, and function in their daily life. Teens who are depressed may feel hopeless and helpless and it can seem like no one understand and depression is far more common in teens than you may think. Many people assume depression is just a change in behavior that may die out in a few weeks or even a month; however there is much more to it than that. Often, it goes without notice because people don 't want to face the fact or don 't know what is actually going on with them.