Telltale Signs of Teenage Suicide

Are you aware that 6 students from Cornell University committed suicide last year by jumping off a bridge to their death?

Or, did you know that suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death among American teenagers?

Though stress or breakups appear--on the surface--to be the cause, a closer look reveals that telltale signs usually appear while students are still in high school. And most often, the adults around those struggling adolescents are unable to decipher if they are just exhibiting typical teenage moodiness or signs of mental illness, such as depression or bipolar disorders.

In a recent CBS News report, citing that 14% of US High School students seriously consider suicide, President David Scorton of Cornell and President Richard McCormick of Rutgers discussed how important it is for adults and teenagers to remove the stigma against mental health issues, as well as restrict the means by which students use to commit suicide.

But the most preventative measure that could immediately be implemented by parents, faculty, administration, or fellow students is to just talk to students who seem to be struggling, simply asking, “Is something wrong?” By listening to the concerns of struggling students, especially acknowledging that their feelings of loneliness or insecurity are not uncommon can curb the impulse he or she might have to end his or her life.

As a troubled young woman, who almost committed suicide before I was 21-years old, this story reminded me of how I too considered suicide as a way out of my struggles. But because a stranger offered to talk to me and listen to me (after a court hearing, when I was very vulnerable), I’m alive today. He listened long enough for the impulse to leave me.

I’d love to think that today’s blog and CBS News story have created significant awareness in your life to the struggles of today’s teenagers. One little change in the way you react to mental illness, give permission to talk about uncomfortable feelings, empathize with loneliness, redirect a conversation, offer to meet up again or suggest a mental health check-up could save a young person’s life—literally—and that would be a BIG result.

Be encouraged to make a difference in a young person's life!

Becky