About the Suicide Crisis in Youth and Young Adults

Statistics:

Based on data from 2021, 57% of teenagers had “persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness” — the highest level reported in the past decade—and as many as 30% had seriously considered suicide. The suicide rate is up almost 60% from a decade ago.

A 2019 article in Time magazine, U.S. Suicide Rates Are the Highest They’ve Been Since World War II, contains a graph showing suicide rates in the US from 1907-2017. The highest rates were in 1932, during the Great Depression, and the next spike in suicides was in 1942, during WWII. But now U.S. suicide rates are at their highest since World War II, according to federal data—and the opioid crisis, widespread social media use, and high rates of stress may be among the myriad contributing factors. Another contributing factor, according to Bessel Van Der Kolk, author of the book The Body Keeps the Score is that “the Silent Generation had a distinct sense they could have an impact. That’s an impression Gen Z seems to have lost.” Van Der Kolk, who is 80, explains that “We were extremely hopeful and thought we could change the world and so my generation actually thinks we changed the world. Kids today have much less of a vision of being able to make a significant difference. Climate change is a gigantic issue and kids know it. We are blowing up the world and very little is being done.” 

What is causing the youth mental health crisis? 

Respondents identified three top drivers of mental health issues in kids: social media, social isolation, and external events outside their control — such as financial instability, school shootings, climate change, war, and political instability.

What can you do to help? 

It is important to know the warning signs and risk factors when someone is struggling, to notice if the vulnerable person has access to lethal means like firearms and drugs, to check in with friends and family often and be a compassionate listener who is kind and loving.