{"id":230378,"date":"2020-09-08T14:48:38","date_gmt":"2020-09-08T19:48:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=230378"},"modified":"2020-09-07T23:46:54","modified_gmt":"2020-09-08T04:46:54","slug":"teen-suicide-rises-pandemic-media-glorifies-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/teen-suicide-rises-pandemic-media-glorifies-death\/","title":{"rendered":"Teen suicide on the rise during pandemic, as media glorifies death"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

The world continues to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic<\/a>. One effect not often discussed, however, has been the increase in suicides and suicidal behavior. QJM, a peer-reviewed medical journal, notes<\/a> that “[s]ocial isolation, anxiety, fear of contagion, uncertainty, chronic stress and economic difficulties” could make mental health issues worse, potentially leading to an increase in suicides. But a new article<\/a> in Psychology Today warns that an epidemic of suicide is already taking place — and it is affecting children.<\/p>\n

Dr. Sandra Chafouleas, a professor at the University of Connecticut, authored the article, pointing out that while the world focuses on the COVID-19 pandemic, our children are already dying by their own hands more and more each year. “In the United States, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death\u2014with more than 2,000 14- to 18-year-olds dying every year by suicide, and accounting for about one of every three injury-related deaths,” she wrote. “That\u2019s the equivalent of losing a large high school\u2019s worth of teenagers to suicide, year after year. These numbers demand our attention.”<\/p>\n

Chafouleas pointed to a CDC study<\/a>, which found that 1 in 5 teenagers have seriously considered committing suicide; data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System<\/a> found that 1 in 10 have actually attempted suicide, and that these numbers are even higher for female, Black, or LGBT students.<\/p>\n

“These numbers are scary\u2014and become even more alarming when we look at the data over time; trends suggest that we are facing a teen suicide pandemic,” Chafouleas said. “Over the past 20 years, suicide rates have skyrocketed by over 60 percent, with almost every suicide indicator and student population showing increasing trends.”<\/p>\n

READ:\u00a0Grieving mother pushes for law to prosecute online predators who encourage suicide<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

While suicide among teens in particular is a complex issue, there is no denying that it has been increasingly glorified in the media. TV shows like “Mary Kills People”<\/a> and movies like “Me Before You”<\/a> portray it in a positive manner for adults, but there are some that are specifically marketed towards teenagers. Hulu’s adaptation of the book “Looking For Alaska”<\/a> portrays a character’s potential suicide as an intriguing mystery to be solved, while giving other characters the ability to grow and mature after her death. Romanticized images and videos of self-inflicted death can be found easily on social media<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Most notorious, however, is the Netflix show “13 Reasons Why,” which actually did lead to a\u00a0spike in teen suicides<\/a> after the show premiered. It’s not difficult to see why: the show portrayed it as the perfect way to take revenge upon others, understandably causing controversy<\/a> for making it look like something positive. Numerous mental health professionals told the Washington Post<\/a> that numerous patients spoke to them about wanting to kill themselves the way the character on the show did.<\/p>\n

It can be dangerous for someone who is in the midst of a mental health crisis to see suicide portrayed positively in the media. The pictures, video, and descriptions of how other people killed themselves can give an already suicidal person encouragement and a possible blueprint on how to take their own lives. As long as our culture continues to portray suicide as a fun mystery that causes postmortem love, regret, and adulation, teenagers will continue to see taking their own lives as something acceptable to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike\u201d Live Action News on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0for more pro-life news and commentary!<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The world continues to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. One effect not often discussed, however, has been the increase in suicides and suicidal behavior. QJM, a peer-reviewed medical journal, notes that “[s]ocial isolation, anxiety, fear of contagion, uncertainty, chronic stress and economic difficulties” could make mental health issues worse, potentially leading to an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":230379,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[15,3473],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nTeen suicide on the rise during pandemic, as media glorifies death<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The world continues to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. 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