Content Warning: This article focuses on topics of suicide & self-harm. Reader discretion is advised — if you feel overwhelmed, please prioritize your mental health.
According to the National Library of Medicine, suicide is the second-leading cause of death among teens in the United States. It accounts for multiple thousands of adolescent deaths in an average year—and counting.
Second-highest.
I don’t know about you, but every single time I read that statistic—no matter how many times I’ve seen it before, or how deeply I’ve had it trained into my head as a crisis counselor—it always forces me to take a pause. To reflect on just how many lives that number actually represents. On how many stories are cut short on a daily basis by seemingly invisible struggles no one seems to want to talk about.
I don’t think it’s lost on anyone that this is no minor issue. The fact that one in five college students has engaged in self-harm or self-injury is not a small problem. The U.S. is grappling with a nationwide mental health crisis, and has been for years. Dr. Vivek Murthy—who served as the U.S. Surgeon General under both Presidents Obama and Biden—has described it to the Guardian as a mental health “epidemic” that has exacerbated many other national health issues as well, such as addiction and violence.
Murthy cited a 57% jump in suicide rates among youth in the preceding decade before the COVID-19 pandemic during a visit to an Ohio university and children’s hospital. The fact is that teens are not the only ones affected—families, friends and entire communities feel the impact too.
The American Psychological Association says that “by nearly every metric, student mental health is worsening.” In one survey, nearly 75% of all students reported “moderate to severe psychological distress.” Even since before COVID, there has been a “surge in demand for care…far [outpacing] capacity.”
Each year in the U.S., nearly 24 thousand college students attempt to take their own life. Many of us suffer from depression because of academic stress. Others struggle with social anxiety, and untold thousands more with other factors beyond just classes or cliques.
Our generation is already one of the most vulnerable in history. On top of that, we’re also now living through an unprecedented period of chaos in which we have no idea what new challenges will be thrown our way next. The psychological strain that that puts on anyone can be tough to grapple with day-by-day, let alone someone at such a formative point in their life as their late teens.
Discussions around these topics have been stigmatized for far too long. The world as a whole, especially the U.S., has fallen into an incredibly dangerous rut with regards to mental health discussions—one where any sign of struggle becomes something frowned upon; something to hide.
However, as is now reflected in record-high numbers of shamefully preventable deaths, it is simply no longer an option to just ignore the silent distress of an entire generation—that lack of acknowledgment comes with a heavy cost of young human lives, as we’ve been learning the hard way. It is absolutely imperative that we start more openly addressing and discussing our mental health, and dismantling the shame and stigma that once came with it. We must make it a thing of the past to dismiss the warning signs of distress.
Many of us feel powerless in the face of such a widespread and serious issue; and it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge that in the grand scheme of things, it will take more than just discussions alone to stem the constant flow of graves. But even still; you, dear reader, can easily be part of the change, helping to heal your community and deconstruct that stigma. As Murthy says: “everyone has a role to play in addressing the crisis.”
All you need to do is please, address it. Talk about it—it’s that simple. Check in on your friends, your family and the people you care about, along with (and especially) yourself. However you can—even if it’s just by being with them—show them that you’re there and that they matter to you.
Remember: you could help save a life.
Sabr Keres-Siddiqui is a sophomore majoring in sociology and minoring in journalism/journalism advocacy.
Featured image courtesy of KAWL Public Media.
