Relationships May 5, 2017
Suicides have tripled in girls ages 10-14 from 1999 to 2014.
More teen girls are getting admitted to hospitals due to suicidality and serious self-harm than ever.
The news comes as especially jarring after the success of recent Netflix hit “13 Reasons Why,” which saw the death of protagonist Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford).
Dr. Gregory Plemmons says that over the last few years he noticed that an increasing number of beds at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt were filling up not for children with pneumonia or diabetes, but with kids who were suicidal.
So he and his colleagues conducted the study, which confirmed that suicide rates in young teens and children have doubled over the last decade. The number of children admitted to hospitals for suicidality has jumped to 1.79 percent from .67 percent in 2008. And of those children, 66 percent of them were girls.
And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that suicides had tripled in girls ages 10 through 14 between 1999 to 2014. However, while girls are “far more likely to attempt, males in general are more likely to succeed” with suicide, Plemmons said.
The study also found the summer – particularly July – to be the lower risk for suicidal thoughts for children, perhaps because they are away from potential triggers, such as bullies at school. This is illustrated well in “My Mad Fat Diary” by lead character Rae Earl (Sharon Rooney), who battles her demons to enjoy her summer with her friends, but crumbles to pieces when it comes time to face school again.
“We see those numbers creep back up right when school starts,” Plemmons said. “We know that school’s a stress just like a job is a stress, so it may just be that removal of that situation allows some kids to cope a little bit better.”
He also cites the burdens of social media and cyberbullying as contributors to the rising rates of suicide. But one of the scariest revelations was just how young the children were. It was previously presumed that children under 12 wouldn’t even think about attempting suicide – but they are.
“If anything, parents have to get better at recognizing the symptoms of depression, the lack of joy, the concentration problems, the isolating behaviors that occur,” David Palmiter, a professor of psychology at Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania advised.
If “13 Reasons Why” taught us anything, it’s the importance of just being there. Listen. Don’t just cut someone out if they’re acting strangely. And never think someone is too pretty, too cool, too young or too anything to be considering suicide.
If you or someone you know is in crisis – you can get help. Call 1-800-273-8255 or visit this website for more information.
