Casey Schaefer, Staff Writer
Death is inevitable, yet sometimes is caused by one’s own desire to die. Throughout the nation, the third leading cause of death of 15-24 year olds is suicide, according to the Nation Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
According to the U.S Surgeon General’s Survey in 1999, between 20% and 50% of children and teenagers suffer from depression. Untreated depression is the number one cause of suicide. It also goes hand in hand with anxiety, bipolar disorders, and substance abuse, according to the NIMH.
“The same thing that causes people to smoke and drink and do drugs can also cause people to commit suicide,” said sophomore Joe Averett.
Within our community, both depression and drug use occur, therefore suicide exists, but it might not be as widespread as once thought. “So far this school year, there haven’t been any suicides by students attending Campbell County High School,” said LuAnn Miller, the school nurse. “A lot of credit should be given to students, friends and families for helping those who are at risk.”
Along with the help of families and students, Charlotte Carr, a member of the Campbell County High School staff, runs a program called Connecting With Students. “This is funded by the Healthy Schools grant,” Carr said. “From this program, money is given to students to pay for counseling and evaluations. Administrators, nurses, and teachers can refer students to this program, so they can receive individual help. There have been students who attend Campbell County High School who go through this program.”
There is also help for those who need it outside of our community. 1-800-SUICIDE is the National Hotline, where they help people all around the world by simply answering a call.
Another helpful source outside our community is the organization To Write Love On Her Arms. Located on the Internet at www.twloha.com, this organization sells t-shirts, and donates all proceeds to treatment and recovery programs. They send out the message of hope, and for many people, it has helped. “This organization that my friend introduced me to has helped me through hard times in my life,” said junior Janet Dahlman. “Without knowing about it, things would have been different.”
Neca Warren, a senior, said, “To Write Love On Her Arms is something that people should know about; it helps people who are struggling with depression and drug abuse. I think it’s helpful to anybody struggling with anything because of the message it sends out.”
To help the people at risk, sophomore Joe Toohey suggests that friends, “Just be there for them, help them, and assure them of themselves.”
Junior Kabrina Conaway said, “People commit suicide because they aren’t able to deal with stressful situations in their lives. To help prevent it, they need to feel worthy of themselves.” Connecting With Students, The Suicide Hopeline, and To Write Love On Her Arms all attempt to do this.
Everyday, somewhere in our world, somebody takes his or her own life. By helping one another, and by encouraging people to seek further help, this can one day be changed.
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