TW: Suicide
Each September, I watch my school decorate its trees with yellow ribbons, hang up posters around campus, and hand out the hotline number for suicide prevention week.
Although I myself have participated in these events for numerous years as the president of our school’s mental health club and know these efforts are made with good intentions, handing out the suicide prevention hotline at an average high school’s suicide prevention week simply isn’t enough.
Image Source: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
Suicide prevention among teens is becoming an increasingly serious issue. According to a 2021 CDC report, teen suicide attempts in the United States spiked over the course of the pandemic. The report connected this spike of suicide attempts to a multitude of effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including lack of connectedness, barriers to mental health treatment, the anxiety of family financial problems, and more.
As more teens enter school in person this fall semester, students are still facing increased pressure and workload from coming back to an in-person setting. Although more campuses are increasing the amounts of mental health professionals they have on campus, it’s time we discuss what real suicide prevention needs to look like for teens.
Simply handing out a hotline number, although done with well-meaning, is a last-minute bandaid to indescribable pain and trauma a person is feeling. As great as suicide hotlines are, people who are referred to them often do not know how they work.
Common questions about phone billing and confidentiality are rarely talked about in schools or in professional settings, leading to too much uncertainty around calling a hotline. At a time of considering suicide, these uncertainties are too much for a high-risk person to handle.
More importantly, the underlying stigmas associated with suicide must be eradicated for the hotline to become a useful tool for students and anyone facing suicidal ideation. The common myths about suicide and mental health often act as a barrier to teens from reaching out in the first place. Myths about suicide being “selfish” or an act of “seeking attention” create shame around a person dealing with suicidal ideation, further alienating them from the act of reaching out for help. These myths are rarely taught and debunked at school, which leaves up the barrier between a student and receiving the help they deserve.
And more broadly, systemic changes need to be made in order to decrease the conditions that lead to suicide becoming a “solution” for all people. According to a study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, children living in poverty are more likely to die by suicide. This creates a call for policy to address these socioeconomic concerns that relate to poverty, including better healthcare access for youth.
Image Source: MediFind
Furthermore, we must not forget that the fight for healthcare is deeply connected to the fight for mental healthcare for all. A study done by Mental Health America showed that states with higher rates of uninsurance have higher suicide rates, showing a need for easier access to healthcare for teens to receive medication and therapy without financial fears.
Conversations about policy change cannot be avoided in our discussions of suicide prevention since they have the chance to create a more equitable future for all young people. Suicide prevention is a complex and multifaceted issue that cannot be simply be “checked off” from school districts or labeled as a “priority” simply by virtue signaling and doing the bare minimum for merely a week of September. Suicide prevention needs to become a year-long conversation about preventative and harm reduction strategies, ensuring a safer future for all teens.
This post was made in collaboration between Forever Blooming and Each Mind.