SUICIDE PREVENTION

 
Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for 10- to 24- year-olds. Parents can protect their children by being aware of risk factors and warning signs and talking with their child. The best way to find out whether a child or an adolescent is thinking of suicide is to ask. However, this can be a difficult topic. Your child’s doctor may be able to suggest ways to start up a conversation.
 
Signs That Your Child May Be Thinking About Suicide
If your child or teen feels depressed, you should watch for signs that they are considering suicide, including:

• Talking about dying or a wish to die
• Talking about how they would or the world would be better off if they were dead
• Talking about feeling hopeless or about having no reason to live
• Withdrawing from activities they used to enjoy
• Isolating from family and friends
• Sleeping too much or too little
• Eating too much or too little
• Consuming media that focuses on death
• For young children, using death as a topic during playacting or drawing
• Searching online for suicide-related topics
• Giving away possessions
• Excessive use of drugs or alcohol

Safety Planning
If your child is feeling depressed and having suicidal thoughts, help your child create a safety plan. This plan includes the following information:

• Identifying warning signs and triggers. Your child should write down the thoughts or situations that generally lead to having thoughts of suicide.
• Using coping strategies. You and your child should list things that they can do, when they are feeling depressed or thinking about suicide, to help them feel better.
• Socializing- List people and activities that can help your child take their mind off of difficult thoughts and feelings.
• Contact family members or friends. Make a list of people, and their phone numbers, who can help when your child is under stress or is experiencing the warning signs in step 1.
• Professional help. Write down the names and numbers of your child’s therapist or doctor. Also, add the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK(8255) and the Crisis Text Line (text HOME to 741741 to connect with a trained counselor).
• Make the environment safe. Eliminate things around the house that might be used in a suicide attempt, such as firearms, ammunition, sharp objects, or medicines. If you have a gun in your home, make sure it is stored unloaded and locked in a safe or with a trigger lock and the bullets are locked in another place. Secure all medicines up and out of reach of children and teens, and safely dispose of all old or unused medicines.

Resources

• American Academy of Pediatrics: www.aap.org and www.healthychildren.org
• American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: www.aacap.org/AACAP/Families_and_Youth/Family_Resources/Home.aspx
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention: www.afsp.org
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“Suicide Prevention”): www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/suicide/index.html
• Crisis Text Line: www.crisistextline.org OR Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a trained counselor
• National Alliance on Mental Illness: www.nami.org
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org OR 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: www.samhsa.gov

 
Adapted from the patient education brochure “Suicide Prevention: What Parents Need to Know.”
 

AAP Feed run on: 9/8/2024 Article information last modified on: 9/8/2024