Do you remember middle school and high school? For most people, these were not the best years of their lives. Maybe you are one of the few who would say that your teenage years were amazing. Or, maybe you were more like the rest of the people I know who wouldn’t go back to that time if you paid them.
Over the weekend, I watched all 13 episodes of 13 Reasons Why. For those of you who haven’t seen it, this is a Netflix series based on a book by Jay Asher. It is sad and life-changing. 13 Reasons Why should be required viewing for anyone who works with youth from middle school through college.
After watching this series, I will never dismiss any child’s warning signs again, no matter how trivial they might seem to my adult mind.
If you know me, you’ve probably heard me say that I live in my happy bubble. I don’t watch the news very much or get caught up in politics. I would much prefer to fill my mind with positive, uplifting information.
In my happy bubble, I like to think that small, close-knit communities are immune to these issues, but we’re not. This is a huge problem in Georgia, especially rural Georgia.
Did you know that death by suicide is on the rise in Georgia? In 2015, approximately 13% of the deaths of young people from ages 5-19 were attributed to suicide. That is up drastically from 5% in 2007.
In all honesty, that percentage is most likely an underestimate. Death by suicide is commonly covered up or blamed on something else in order to avoid the guilt and shame that typically accompanies this type of death.
To make it worse, on the most recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 18% of GA middle school students reported that they had seriously considered suicide. Whether we want to admit it or not, our young people are hurting.
It is up to all of us to watch out for signs of distress. If you know a young person who is exhibiting symptoms of depression, decreases in grades, increases in discipline problems, or simply withdrawing from the world, please get them some help.
We have to make ourselves available to our young people and be open to hearing what they have to say. We can listen to their experiences, help them think through their options, and show them that they are not alone. Even if they can’t explain what they are “feeling,” we can still walk along side them when life gets hard.
Knowledge is power, especially when we can use it to improve the lives of our young people. For more data, check out the GA Department of Public Health. It takes a little digging, but there is a wealth of data that has been collected over the past 20+ years.
