U.S. suicides have risen over 30% in most of the states over the past two decades, according to a story released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2018.
There is no known reason for the rise, but experts including Deborah Stone, the main investigator of the study, believe that financial problems have been determined for this increase in the country.
“It is known that economic difficulties contribute to worse mental health. Studies have shown an increase in suicide as a result of job-related concerns, specifically among men,” Cristopher Battles, an Oswego psychologist and mood disorder specialist said. “I believe American culture plays an important role on this rise, as for most U.S. male citizens work and having a good position determines meaning.”
Among the findings from the CDC, the average increase across the country is around 25%. This means that about 16 out of every 100,000 Americans will take their lives. It was also found that suicide increased among people of any gender, age, race or ethnic group. 54% of victims of suicide in the U.S. were not previously diagnosed with mental illness.
The findings suggest that even if there is an actual relationship that links suicidal behavior to mental illness, suicidal thoughts are not only a challenge for mental health. Almost all of the states with a significant increase in suicide rates are in the western and midwestern regions of the United States. Western states have historically one of the highest suicide rates, which could be related to the fact that they tend to be more rural in nature. People tend to be more isolated in rural states, as it is more difficult to access adequate care. These states have also been strongly impacted by the opioid epidemic.
In addition, even if suicide rates increased among people of all ages, genders, races or ethnicities, there is an alarming increase in the past years between young adults and teenagers. Teens have become more depressed and suffered higher levels of anxiety problems during the last decade. Researchers have found evidence that suggests digitalization and social media interaction has played a major role in this increase. However, suicide rates among teenagers and young adults reached its peak in 2017. In that year, suicide claimed the lives of 5,016 men and 1,225 women between the ages of 15 and 24 in the United States, researchers reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. As a result, over the past three years, Netflix was responsible for it too, as they included a graphic three-minute suicide scene of a teenage in the viral show “13 Reasons Why.” Studies found that explicit suicide images may lead to a suicide contagion effect among young people who sometimes have difficulty separating fiction from reality.
Experts agree that teaching people how to process loss and how to deal with difficult emotions is essential to prevent suicide.
“Talking face to face with the person about what they are feeling, what leads them to think about suicide, what they can focus on to continue living, that relieves suffering and lowers the risk,” Battles said. “When we are children, we are taught how to interact, read, write, speak … In the same way we also have to teach people how to get along and overcome problems, we cannot suppose everyone can do this alone.”
Suicide is the second major cause of death among university students. Recent research has shown that changing the culture and responses in a university community around the topics of suicide can save lives, as students feel more comfortable, secure and willing to look for help when they are stressed or overwhelmed. In this way, some universities, such as Oswego State, have programs and strategies to handle these situations, such as “Let’s Talk!,” an informal consultation program run by the Counseling Service Center in order to engage people to seek individual support every time they need it.
Evelyn Zevallos, a mental health counselor that works on campus says that they have reached diverse strategies to confront suicidal cases between scholars, such as cuddling puppies and kittens.
“It can seem insignificant but spending time with animals can calm people and provide a way to de-stress themselves and leave all those harmful thoughts apart for a moment,’’ Zevallos said. “This cannot directly save a life but it is definitely a start for a future therapeutic coping strategies. Zevallos also emphasized that the ultimate goal is to encourage people to go to therapy and have mental health professionals to help “change dysfunctional thinking.”
Photo by Nicole Hube | The Oswegonian
