Over the past decade in the United States suicide rates have been declining. Most of this is credited to increased education and outreach, as well as more people accessing treatments for psychological problems like depression. However, a new report has shown a spike in suicides among people under age 20 between 2003-2004. Specifically, there was an 18% increase during that year. Coverage by the Associated Press focused on the potential role of antidepressant medication and decreased funding for prevention programs on the spike.
Antidepressant use among children decreased during the same time period. Data from Verispan show 3 million antidepressant prescriptions were written for kids through age 12 in 2004, down 6.8 percent from 2003. Among 13- to 19-year-olds, the number dropped less than 1 percent to 8.11 million in 2004. Steeper declines in both age groups occurred in 2005, according to the prescription tracking firm.
Funding cuts for school-based suicide prevention programs might have contributed to the apparent rise noted in the new CDC report, said Emory University psychologist Nadine Kaslow. But the rise might not indicate a nationwide trend and needs to be investigated, she said.
Examining things like national suicide rates and explaining the increase are extremely difficult since there are countless variables that may have an influence. However, the trend is clearly unsettling and highlights the need for individuals to educate themselves and their children about the seriousness of the issue and absolutely access treatment when problems develop.
(5 votes, average: 4.6 out of 5)
Loading ...You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
2 Comments to
“Suicide Rates Rise for Children”
I think what should be considered more than anything else is bullying in schools. Kids are very creul. Because of the kids in my school, I began considering suicide when I was 6 years old, more of a death wish, but by the time i was 8 I would start thinking of ways I could really do it.
Teachers ARE NOT TRAINED the way they should be on how to deal with these issues either. They all assume that the child who is simgled out has the problems. I’m not saying that’s never the issue, I’m saying that often this affects the way the teacher treats the child. This child is whatched more carefully, to see what they’re doing to the other children to make them react. The child who is singled out becomes the problem child. I think any schools that can scrape any fundings together should hold seminars or something to educate teachers about bullying. That would help many kids emotional issues, not all, but it would have saved me dozens of hospitalizations. I have even been in two long term treatment facilities, and the main cuase of my issues is emotional abuse I suffered when I was younger. It shouldn’t be called bullying, that makes it sound inconsequential, like a small problem. It’s not kids being kids. It’s turning into an epidemic of emotional abuse.
Suicide is a problem that should be addressed in the school system. As the government cuts down education funds, the only ones getting affected by this are the children. The schools should implement better programs that help children with any problems they are having. Teachers should also receive training in dealing with serious issues such as suicide. School officials should make the children feel comfortable by showing trust and letting them know that it is ok to talk about any trouble they are having or what not. In some cases children feel safer trusting people outside of their family with their problems because they either have no one they can go to or the problem is found within the family. There are numerous amounts of children who have abusive family members and they feel embarrassed to tell anyone in the family what is occurring because they are afraid this person will not believe them. There needs to be more concern over suicide and more help needs to be available to reassure students that there are bumps in life but they can be conquered.
Join the Conversation! Post a Comment:
Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 10 Feb 2007
