Imagine yourself walking in and finding a friend or a loved one hanging from a rope or seeing them dead, lying next to an empty bottle of pills or in a pool of blood, with a razor in their hand. Suicide is not rare to society today. Every 14.2 minutes someone in the United States dies by suicide. Suicide has become a neglected subject, in my opinion, because it is not an easy subject to talk about. Many people fear losing a loved one, especially if they feel that they could’ve done helped that person in one way or another.
For many teenagers, dealing with reality does not come easily. They are faced with stress from school, peers, and sometimes even their family members. Although people find healthy ways to cope with the pressures of life, some teenagers turn to self-harm, drugs and alcohol, sometimes that is not even enough.
Ashton Staner, a best friend of mine used to feel this way. She did not use drugs or alcohol, but she lived in a world where she believed she wasn’t good enough, she felt worthless and tired of being the same. So she turned to what she believed was her only other way out of the struggle: Suicide.
Suicide is responsible for about 12-18% of all death among adolescents. It is the third leading cause of death for 15-24 year olds. There are many factors that can trigger suicide in young people: depression, being the most closely linked to suicide, and also use of alcohol and drugs, family problems, stressful life events, sexual orientation, or a family history of suicide. Depression is one of the greater factors that generate a want to commit suicide.
Stressful life events can also trigger suicide in adolescents. A stressful life event can be breaking up with a boyfriend of girlfriend, death or loss of a significant person or thing. As a result, stressful situations cause the individuals to feel hopeless and they see suicide as their only answer.
Ashton had been having problems with her family, as they did not appreciate or accept her boyfriend. I believe she felt so overwhelmed because her parents weren’t giving her a chance to talk; she felt the need to do something to get their attention. This isn’t any different to any other suicide story. Sometimes, teenagers let their parents know how they’re feeling and for some reason parents just shake it off and give their teenagers reasonable advice. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Life gets better and it’s important to learn to swerve when you hit a bump on the road.
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