When we were little, being unhappy was only something seen in the big kid movies whenever it came to a boy not liking a girl or something like that.  It never quite hit us back then that one day, we would be the ones stressing over those stupid situations.

Now that we’re older and still growing up, every little thing can affect us teenagers and cause our emotions to be shifting more than a roller coaster.  The scary thing is that some people can’t handle being stressed out and become depressed.  Once the depression becomes so deep, suicide, or the taking of your own life, may become an issue.  Some of the warning sides of suicide include substance use or abuse, a feeling of purposelessness, anger, a feeling of being trapped, feeling hopeless, an increase in anxiety, a feeling of being reckless, and mood disturbances. 

When people hear or read about suicide, they usually tend to ignore it unless they knew somebody who passed away from the cause.  Little do they know, suicide is the third leading cause of death in teenagers.   According to SAVE – Suicide Awareness Voices of Education, suicide takes about 300,000 lives a year, and it is said that one person dies due to suicide about every 16 minutes.  For teenagers specifically, there are three female suicide attempts for every male suicide attempt and four male suicides for every female suicide.  With this in mind, there are an estimated 4.5 million suicide survivors in America today.

If you have a friend or family member who may seem suicidal, what do you do?  There are actually many things somebody can do to help the depressed.  First, try talking to them.  There are always doors that will be opened through dialogue.  If the person is truly suicidal, do NOT keep it a secret.  There are doctors and even hotlines for these purposes.  The National Lifeline is 1-800-273-TALK (8255).  Remember, it’s always better to lose a friendship by trying to save a life than ending up at your once close friend’s funeral.