Tag Archives: suicide prevention

Knowledge is Power, Hope is Healing

Knowledge is Power, Hope is Healing:
Empowering Youth to Combat Suicide

The Create Resilience Youth Art Contest for Suicide Prevention is your chance to make a difference! You can submit your creative work—an essay, poem, song, story, or something else—focused on improving youth mental health. Send your entries by August 1st, 2025. Contest winners will be announced on September 10th, which is World Suicide Prevention Day. Cash prizes for the winners! Get creative and share your voice! For more information, click here. (PS: This contest is limited to Oregon youth aged 13 to 21 only). 

By participating, you can help stop the silence, shame, and stigma around mental health. Each one of us is born unique. We are one-of-a-kind and can never be replaced. Think of everyone as a seed—when given the right care and attention, we can grow into something amazing. The gift of life is the most precious gift of all. Yet, there are those who feel so incredibly alone, hurt, without hope, and in so much pain, that they don’t want to live anymore.

Tragically, suicide is a leading cause of death, both in the U.S. and around the world. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the U.S. And, in Oregon, it is the second leading cause of death for people aged 10 to 34. Having access to lethal means (like guns) greatly increases the risk of suicide. That’s why it’s important to always make sure guns are safely secured.

“Time and distance” help prevent suicide. When we are suicidal, we do not think rationally. Our thinking is all distorted. We forget the truth that there is hope and that the pain we feel will not last forever and we can and will feel better again. Reaching out for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.

Giving ourselves “time” means we do not react impulsively or make plans to end our life. Instead, we calm ourselves by doing “box breathing,” engaging in healthy distractions like listening to music, reading, making art, exercising, and more. We reach out for support by calling or texting 988 (the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline number), contacting trustworthy adults or friends, and speaking with our therapist or doctor. We can visit a nearby walk-in crisis center or go to a hospital emergency room.

We need to create “distance” from weapons, dangerous medications, substance use, and alcohol. We also need “distance” from negative and distorted thoughts. That’s why reaching out for help is important. When we are in emotional distress, we may feel like we are a “burden” to others, but that is just not true! By sharing our thoughts and feelings with people who care, we gain the clarity we need to start addressing the actual problems.

Your being alive is not the problem! You very much deserve to be alive—and—to stay alive.

We can all help prevent suicide, and knowing the warning signs that put us at risk is essential. Some of the warning signs to look out for include mood changes such as sadness, depression, irritability, anger, social isolation, change in sleep and/or appetite, loss of interest in activities, lack of pleasure, and thoughts of dying.

Asking someone if they are having thoughts about ending their life or not wanting to wake up again is not going to increase their risk of suicide. In fact, asking directly can be the first step to saving their life. It’s also important to share our concerns with a trusted adult, who can help determine the best course of action.

Resources including the 988 Lifeline, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and National Alliance on Mental Illness provide valuable support and help. Please take the time to check them out! Your life and the life of your loved ones will thank you.

By Diane Kaufman, MD. Diane is a poet, artist, humanism-in-medicine awardee, retired child psychiatrist, and founder/director of the Hold On Campaign for Suicide Prevention that uses the power of art to educate, connect, express, and heal. She can be reached at diane@holdoncampaign.org.

The Talk: Bridging the Gap Between Parents and Teens

By Jacky Chen, h.s. senior, New York

On a hot, cloudless July afternoon in 2017, a 13-year-old Chinese American boy ran away from home and jumped in front of an oncoming subway train at the East Broadway station in New York City. He was pronounced dead at the scene, leaving his elder brother and mother devastated.

To many, this is just another suicide incident on the news, but not for me because he and I were close friends in elementary school. I later learned that tense familial relationships and unbearable expectations were the underlying reasons behind his decision to cut his life short. Even after more than four years, I often find myself coming back to this incident, wondering if there was anything that could’ve been done to prevent it.

Despite a growing number of mental health awareness organizations, poor mental health rates are rising. According to the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey, in 2019, over 36% of high school students in America experienced feelings of depression and hopelessness. More alarmingly, the attempted suicide rate increased by 41% compared to a decade prior, reaching 8.9%. Exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this rate has only continued to climb in the past few months. A CDC report shows that, in 2020, there was a 24% increase in mental health ER visits for children ages 5 through 11, and more than a 30% increase for those between 12 and 17 years old.

Poor mental health plagues today’s youth, and one of the biggest barriers to improving it is teenagers’ reluctance to admit their struggles to family members, friends, and teachers out of embarrassment. While nonprofit organizations and schools must continue to provide their services and resources, parents must take on a more active role in their child’s mental wellness to address this pressing issue and the social stigma that surrounds it.

With significant worsening in mental health rates in the past decade, we need to address an important question. What might be some of the underlying causes? Firstly, in an increasingly digital world, teenagers are exposed to technology and social media more frequently and at a younger age. According to a report from Common Sense Media, kids between 8-12 years old average nearly six hours of screen time a day and up to well over nine hours for teens. This constant exposure establishes a social norm that adolescents are constantly trying to meet, a stressor that induces low self-esteem and feelings of depression and loneliness. The topic of pop culture also has social implications. A study conducted at the Pew Research Center states that around three-in-ten teens feel pressured to look good (29%) and to fit in socially (28%). Twenty-one percent of teens list extracurricular activities and being good at sports as stressors.

Perhaps more significant is academic stress. Sixty-one percent of teens cite obtaining good grades as their top stressor, and those who attend high-achieving, competitive high schools are the most susceptible. As a student at a high-achieving high school, I can attest to this. The competitive peer culture at school takes a toll on not just my mental well-being, but on that of my peers, too.

Being aware of a child’s mental well-being is a parent’s responsibility. There are many ways parents can get involved. It’s important to first establish a respectful and trusting line of communication where teenagers can receive the support they need. Multiple individuals need to be identified as a source of support in case one overlooks signs of depression.

There are also numerous online resources available at any moment like Find Your Words, which both parents and adolescents can use. From de-stressing activities to coping advice, these resources provide great guidance. Parents should educate their children about the suicide prevention hotline (800-273-8255) and encourage them to frequently take mental health self-evaluations. From local school councils to nonprofit organizations like the National Alliance on Mental Illness, fighting mental health is a collective effort. It’s through collaboration and confrontation that we can change the stigma surrounding adolescent mental health, and it’s time for parents to take the lead.

By Jacky Chen, h.s. senior, New York.