What is driving teens to commit suicide?

SP: What is driving teens to commit suicide?
Teen suicide has become epidemic. A friend of mine recently lost her 16 year old some to suicide. What is driving teens today to this? I would especially appreciate answers from teens.

Thank you.

Answers and Views:

Answer by Ali
most of the time i know it is because they are being picked on at school, are stressed, or just hate life. my best friend just killed himself, because he just did not like life and i moved that is what caused his. that and could be because they have lost a loved one, there are so many reasons. i have not tried to commit suicide but i know many ppl have and they still are.

Answer by Cran Juice
I think there are 2 major factors: Nowadays teens are pressured, forced, or just want to become adults earlier than they should. A lot of that comes from the media; the other from their parents.

From kids, teens are attracted to “role models” such as Paris, Lindsey, Nicole… so they want to act like them, be them. They start dressing provocatively, becoming sexual (and irresponsible) at early ages, not thinking of the consequences.

Their parents spoil them and aren’t punished for their actions, therefore don’t learn manners or how to treat people decently. Which causes insecure and vulnerable teens to be bullied and picked on. Think about that 13 year old girl who killed herself because of a “boy” on Myspace who told her life would be better without her. The “boy” ended up really being the MOTHER of one of her classmates!

At the same time, teens may also feel pressure from their parents to be perfect, with school, sports, social life, etc… Their parents might tell them to ignore everything and move on and that so & so isn’t worth the pain. But we know that life is way different now than it was 30, 40 years ago. People are much more cruel, and if parents knew what was really going on, they would think twice telling their kids to “ignore” the bullying.

I’m 20, but I remember having to deal with peer pressure and the horrors of cyber bullying when I was a teen to the point where it moved from just the internet into actual rumors being spread at school, and I almost transferred schools and change phone numbers. And I’ll be honest, it almost drove me to suicide a few times.

Answer by Annerszz

pressure.

not even necessarily pressure to do anything it’s the pressure to want to fit in. i’m almost 16 and i see my friends being pressured by themselves or their parents to want to fit in. it’s crazy.

a bunch of friends i had, they were my close friends, felt like they needed to fit in so bad they got involved in drugs and drinking.

i suffer from depression, but i have good coping mechanisms, most teenagers don’t have the maturity too. they blame their parents for all of their problems, which is no way to go.

hope i helped.
:]

Answer by Erica R
Well, I am not a teenager but had those thoughts when I was was. Some of the problems driving me to suicide was:
1) Looks- People were always calling me fat and ugly
2) Family- My mother got extremely sick and I had no one else to relate to
3) Friends either abandoned or betrayed you- My friends thought it was a good idea to set my boyfriend up with my best friend and then show up to the dance with her as I sat at the dance and waited for him.
4) Grades are inferior- Everybody seems to have a direction but I could not figure out the smallest answers.
5) Moving to a new atmosphere- I moved to a new school where I knew no one and no one cared to know me.

I do know that the movie “Odd Girl Out” featured on the Life Channel is a terrific depiction of the torment (really, silent torment) that can plague teens if the parents are not watching for the signs or choosing to ignore them. You can also purchase this movie from Amazon.com. I know I am not a teenager but I hope my answer helped.

Answer by Pink Panther
There is extreme pressure these days, to be beautiful, stick thin/mascular, to do well in school. School is extremely stressful. It is very difficult to make friends and fit in. For me, I was extremely lonely, had no friends, a verbally abusive boyfriend, uninvolved parents, was under extreme amounts of pressure, and could not bear to live a life like that. I tried to commit suicide, and obviously, I failed. I had no one to support me, felt like no one loved me, and felt like I had run out of options.

Answer by Hannah
Teenagers these days have it rough. With peer pressure about drugs and alcohol, parents that don’t care and some who even care to much, teachers that don’t honestly care about their students, pressure to have sex, and cruel teens that pick on others about their styles and looks. With growing up with all these struggles, and then having parents telling you that your wrong or lying, teens are bound to be depressed some time or another. Some parents make it even worse by punishing them for acting different. Now, I’m not blaming parents at all, just some teens few parents as the bad people.

After all these problems, and raging hormones, teens first thought is suicide.

Answer by Sapphire
Feeling like they are trapped in a hopeless situation to which there is no way out, and that is the only way to get relief or a perceived way to bring those they love relief if they have no self worth.

Answer by icesk8er
For me what made me want to try to kill myself was overwhelming school circumstances, severe anxiety, having now friends, being teased in school over a medical condition that I have, but most of all severe mood swings have sent me over the edge and into trying to kill myself. Being 16 and dealing with so much has been very hard for me, and I have a long, rough road to recovery.

Answer by complicated
im 16 and ive treid suicide a number of times. personally i feel that everyone would be better of without me my parents would have more money and other people would benefit more from my organs than i would. and i feel like im being selfcentred when i say “people need me” so i tell my self they dont and make excuses and reasons why they wont. i also dont trust anyone and believe everyone is out to get me and they all want me dead. and all that plus more pushes us over the edge.

i hope this has answered youre question like you wanted it to be.

Answer by XxBlood.AddictxX
Um… maybe because life sucks, and there is nothing worth living for?

Or maybe because we’re all gonna die anyway, so why put up with the pain longer than you have to?