"Love and pain become one in the same in the eyes of a wounded child.”
~Pat Benatar
Teen suicide is the third leading cause of deaths for the ages of between fifteen years and twenty-four year olds. The ages as early as ten and as late as fourteen, teen suicide is fourth in the leading cause of death. There are many causes, some of the most common are divorce of parents, violence in the home, inability to find success at school, and feelings of worthlessness. Also, rejection by friends or peers, death of someone close to the teenager, and the suicide of a friend or someone he or she "knows" online (Teen Suicide Overview).
I, myself, have once contemplated the idea of committing suicide, to just get away with the stresses of life, and the pain of being alive; thank The Lord I didn't. From personal experience, I wanted someone to talk to about what was going on. But one of main reasons I didn't want to, was thinking of what the person I was telling was going to think about me. I'm generally a bubbly, happy person. No death thoughts in mind in sight! Sadly, they did cross my path that dark and cold night. I thought they might think differently of me, lose the respect they had for me. Most importantly, they would feel like they wouldn't be able to trust me with their troubles. When I did talk to someone, I found the relief, knowing someone cared about me, knowing I have a good family to love me, I'm successful in school, and I know there is more to life than what I could see at the moment. What is even more great was my friend didn't judge me, just cared and wanted me to live and not do anything that wouldn't solve a thing.
When a teenager knows there is someone out there to talk to, who won't judge them, someone they can trust and will just listen and try to help them, they might double check the idea of committing suicide. If only there was a way it could be broad caste that special person out to the teen community, I believe it would make such a difference. Such a difference that a teenager would open up and think twice about giving up their life for a sad way of "solving" a problem...once...and forever...
Unknown. "Teen Suicide Overview." Teen Suicide Statistics and Facts. Unknown. Web.
