About Suicide

Suicide is a major public health concern. There were more than twice as many suicides (47,173) in the United States as there were homicides (19,510). Suicide is among the leading causes of death in the United States.

Across the United States new suicide statistics are climbing at a staggering rate:

  • Suicide rates increased 22% for all ages 1999-2001 to 2011-2013

    • Orange County, CA: increased 45% for all the ages during the same time period. (Orange County ranks #1 in the suicide rate increase among the nations 20 largest counties in the US. Not the top ranking anyone wants.

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  • Suicide rate increased 56% for 10-24 year olds (now the 2nd leading cause of death for 10-24 year olds) from 2007-2017:

    • Suicide rates increased 200% for 10-14 year olds from 2007-2017

    • Suicide rates increased 76% for 15-19 year olds from 2007-2017

    • Suicide rates increased 36% for 20-24 year olds from 2007-2017

  • Suicide rate increased 100% for 15-19 year old GIRLS from 2007-2015 (its highest point in 40 years)

    • Suicide rates increased 30% for 15-19 year old BOYS over the same period

RISK FACTORS AND WARNING SIGNS FOR SUICIDE

health Factors

  • Mental Illness

    • Depression

    • Bipolar Disorder

    • Anxiety

    • Conduct Disorders

    • Substance Abuse

    • Perfectionism

    • Traumatic Brain Injury

Environmental Factors

  • Family Stress/Dysfunction

  • Prolonged Stress, such as harassment or bullying

  • Social Media Driven Perfectionism

Warning signs

  • Suicidal Threats/Talk

    • direct- “I am going to kill myself”

    • indirect- “I wish I can fall asleep and never wake up again”

    • Talk of Feeling Hopeless, Having No Reason to Live, Being a Burden to Others, Unbearable Pain

  • Suicide Notes and plans (including online)

  • Prior Suicidal Behavior

  • Making Final Arrangements

  • Preoccupation with Death

  • Changes in Behavior, Appearance, Thoughts and/or Feelings

    • Withdrawing from Activities

    • Isolating from Family and Friends

    • Sleeping Too Much or Too Little

    • Visiting or Calling People to Say Goodbye

    • Fatigue

PERFECTIONISM AND SOCIAL MEDIA

Perfectionism has become an important risk factor for suicide. It is a dangerous way of thinking, an all-or-nothing mindset, and a strong belief that being perfect is necessary and possible, in order to be successful. However, it is also entails an inability to communicate distress with others, as it’s a sign of unacceptable weakness in the mind of a perfectionist. it was recently reported in a recent 2019 publication (Curran and Hill) that 40% of youth now identify as desiring to be perfect. Unfortunately, these youth are often easily dismissed due to their academic and/or athletic success, their well-planned and self-made goals, their hard work, and their lack of behavioral problems. Today, our vulnerable youth are actually the high-achieving and ultra-talented athletes. The students with 4.5 GPA, and the elite performers and athletes.

Research by Twenge noted a striking correlation of the advent of social media (ie: the release of the first smart phone), with a sharp increase in 2007 in the number of 12-18 year olds that reported not getting enough sleep, reported more likely to feel lonely and not hang out with friends. In other research, a marked rise in teen depression was found in 2010, which correlated directly to the release of the first smart phone a few years prior.

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Lastly, at Nationwide Children’s, Ruch noted a similar trend, beginning in 2007, with a increase in suicide among youth 10-19 years old. These correlations are not only striking, but are being reported in multiple age groups, settings, and locations by independent and unrelated researchers in all areas of the country.

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Social media driven perfectionism is believed to be the driving factor for these upward, alarming trends. Social media creates a FALSE SENSE of perfectionism, by providing instant feedback that accelerates any insecurities, rigid thinking, or negative thought spirals. Social media perfectionism is reported to be the fastest growing type of perfectionism, especially among the 10-24 year old population. This desire to be perfect leads to negative self-evaluations and conditional self-esteem, which results in symptoms of depression and anxiety. Unfortunately, this endless cycle of thinking sometimes tragically and permanently ends.

REFERENCES

Curran, T, & Hill, A.(2019). Perfectionism is Increasing Over Time: A Meta-Analysis of Birth Cohort Differences From 1989 to 2016. Psychological Bulletin, Vol 145, 4, 410-429. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/bul0000138

Fagan, K. (2015, May 7). From The Mag: Penn Runner's Depression Masked on Social Media. Retrieved from http://www.espn.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/12833146/instagram-account-university-pennsylvania-runner-showed-only-part-story

Keyes, Katherine M., et al. “Recent Increases in Depressive Symptoms among US Adolescents: Trends from 1991 to 2018.” Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, vol. 54, no. 8, 30 Mar. 2019, pp. 987–996., doi:10.1007/s00127-019-01697-8

Twenge, Jean M. (2018). Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy-and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood (and What That Means for the Rest of U

Twenge, Jean M., et al. “Age, Period, and Cohort Trends in Mood Disorder Indicators and Suicide-Related Outcomes in a Nationally Representative Dataset, 2005–2017.” Journal of Abnormal Psychology, vol. 128, no. 3, 14 Mar. 2019, pp. 185–199., doi:10.1037/abn0000410

Cooper, Casey. (2018, March). “Student-Athlete Mental Health Fact Sheet.” Health and Wellness Consortium (HAWC), https://hawcline.org/student-athlete-infographic

Whiting, D. (2018, March 21). New pressures for perfection contribute to rise in teen suicide. Retrieved from https://www.ocregister.com/2018/03/16/new-pressures-for-perfection-contribute-to-rise-in-teen-suicide/