Adolescents, Young Adults and Suicide in the United States Essay

Suicides are a major cause of death in the world, for the United States it is rated as a third leading cause of death among children in middle and late adolescents. For children between ages five and fourteen, suicides were categorized as a firth leading cause of death, a rather surprising statistic. Basing on historic patterns, the United States has depicted a rather diverse variability primarily due to the events and interventions at state and national levels. This particular write-up focuses on the prevalence, manifestation, cause and possible solutions to suicides among youth and children living in the United States (Miller, 43). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide rates tend to increase with age, and that they are predominantly higher in male adolescents as compared to female adolescents. A unique racial pattern has also been noted within suicide rates among children and youth in the United States.

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Historical data indicates that the Native Americans are the most susceptible to suicide ideation, followed by the whites, and finally the non-white minorities. However over the last two decades, major shifts have been noted, with the most conspicuous one being that of an increased suicide rate among African-American male youth. According to Benedek, Peter and Charles (436), increasing socio-economic class was a major causative factor for the increasing suicide rates among African-American youth. The most plausible explanation that is offered is that with a rise in socio-economic standings, African-American youth experience increased assimilation that results in the loss of traditional protective factors. For the Hispanic youth on the other hand, suicides are limited to thoughts with far much lower completion rates being noted.

Benedek, Peter and Charles (436) cite information from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System which asserts that up to 18% of high school students had contemplated committing suicide over the course of twelve months in the year 2005. A complete snapshot of the suicide epidemic among the youth has to delve into the causative factors as well as the most preferred methods of suicide completion. In the United States, three modes of suicide ideation have been singled out, they include: poisoning, hanging as well as death by a firearm. While many other approaches have been noted including overdoses and vehicular exhausts, hanging, firearms and poisoning have stood out as the most dominant.

For stakeholders and interested parties, solving suicide occurrences among the youth has been one of the greatest challenges. This is because dealing with youth and children is far more complex as compared to dealing with adults who have a good grasp of what is going on. Psychological autopsies have been instrumental in helping determine the cause of pediatric and childhood suicide cases. Dube, et al. (56) point out the fact that in 90% of the reported cases of attempted and completed suicides are as a result of mental illnesses. In other words, most of the individuals involved in suicide exhibited DSM-III factors indicating mental disorders. For instance, mood swings, disruptiveness and substance abuse was common among teenage suicides. In essence, depressive factors and conditions were singled out as a subliminal factor in all suicide contemplation as well as completion. Further causative factors were noted within various environments, including family history, access to weaponry, instances of physical abuse, adoption as well as peer suicidal behavior.

In recent studies, more interesting causative factors have been identified, a good example being that of the correlation between social media and mental illnesses. A study conducted by (Mann et al. 34) found that the use of social media among youth and children resulted in tremendous increases in the prevalence of anxiety and depression. It is this correlation that is linked to the suicide ideation and completion among the youth. Such information comes in handy in helping develop appropriate and effective approaches to prevention and management of suicides. While numerous approaches and solutions have been proposed in relation to combating suicides among the youth, the greatest challenge has been that of dealing with the psychological dynamics associated with the condition. Besides the shame and stigma associated with mental illnesses, there is a general misinformation and unawareness of the of the suicide problem.

Conclusion

Education and suicide awareness has been singled out as one of the most effective and appropriate ways of combating the condition. This particular solution entails the creation of awareness among the public regarding the occurrence, causation, manifestation ad management of issues and symptoms linked to suicide ideation and completion among children and the youth. This ensures public vigilance at all times, an element that goes a long way in minimizing the prevalence of the suicide. Medical treatment approaches are also available in helping deal with the suicide epidemic. A combination of drug-based treatments can be used to help manage the condition. Imipramine and fluoxetine are examples of the medication, often provided alongside the talking-based therapies.

Works cited

Benedek, Elissa P, Peter Ash, and Charles L. Scott. Principles and Practice of Child and Adolescent Forensic Mental Health. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Pub, 2010. Internet resource.

Dube, Shanta R., et al. "Childhood abuse, household dysfunction, and the risk of attempted suicide throughout the life span: findings from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study." Jama 286.24 (2001): 3089-3096.

Mann, J. John, et al. "Suicide prevention strategies: a systematic review." Jama 294.16 (2005): 2064-2074.

Miller, David N. Child and Adolescent Suicidal Behavior: School-based Prevention, Assessment, and Intervention. New York: Guilford Press, 2011. Print.