Suicide Awareness Month BY THE CHILDREN’S COALITION FOR NORTHEAST LOUISIANA
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uicide is a “Silent Epidemic” that claims the lives of more teenagers and young adults than cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia and influenza combined. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, in Louisiana, suicide is the second-leading cause of death for ages 10-14 and the third-leading cause of death for ages 15-34,. In total, suicide was responsible for 722 deaths in Louisiana in 2017. This figure puts the suicide rate in Louisiana at 15.26% per 100,000 people, which is above the national average of 13.26% Jan Daniels is the Youth Development Coordinator at the Children’s Coalition. She received her Bachelor of Social Work from Northeast Louisiana. For the past sixteen years, Jan Daniels has been working with middle schools in northeast Louisiana to provide the suicide prevention program Signs of Suicide (SOS). She was trained through Columbia University in this program. Her passion is making sure children in our community are not only physically healthy, they are also mentally healthy. Q: What is the difference between feeling sad and being depressed? A: Feeling sad is often temporary while depression lasts for at least two weeks or
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longer. If you are noticing that your child is having long periods of time that they are feeling sad and it is not just temporary, this is when it is important to start considering getting help. Depression is a serious health condition that affect the whole person, mind and body. In addition to feelings, it can change or affect behavior, physical health and appearance, academic performance, thinking, social activity, and the ability to handle everyday decisions and pressures. Depression can lead someone to isolate themselves from their friends and lose interest in activities they once enjoyed doing. When you notice that your child’s “down” mood, along with other symptoms, lasts for more than a couple of weeks, these may be signs of depression. Q: Why do children/people get depressed? A: There are many possible causes for depression. Depression can happen because of a chemical change in your body. Depression can also run in families. Depression can occur in response to a recent stress or loss, such as problems at school or with the law, the death of a loved one, or relationship troubles. People/children may also experience depression and not know exactly why or what is causing it. It is so important to pay attention to our children now with so many changes happening around them. Between changes
in school, summertime, and family changes, the current situation that our children are experiencing can cause a lot of stress in our children’s lives. Q: How can technology impact our mental health? A: People put their best face forward on social media when this might not be what they are experiencing. When others see that everyone on social media is having fun, it can make people feel bad about themselves or even make someone feel very lonely. It is important to remember that ups and downs are part of everyone’s lives, and no one’s life is perfect, despite what they post on social media. Maintaining human connections in person is important for good mental and emotional health. Q: What are warning signs you might notice on social media? Be on the lookout for social media posts that say such things as, “There’s no point anymore,” “I want the pain to stop,” “I don’t want to try anymore.” You may notice your child used to post all the time and suddenly disappears off all social media with no explanation. You may also notice people posting mean things about your child or a child online.