Adolescent suicide: Our children are not all right - The Mail & Guardian

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A study of adolescents who attempted suicide sheds some light into causes and preventative strategies.

As part of my recent doctoral study at Stellenbosch University, I interviewed adolescents who had attempted suicide, their caregivers and healthcare providers, hoping to better understand the phenomenon of adolescent suicide attempts. At the time of recruitment, all adolescents were attending a psychiatric hospital on the Cape Flats. In addition to being interviewed, the adolescents took photographs illustrating what had led to their suicide attempts and what kept them alive.

Relationships with siblings and peers also featured prominently in the adolescents’ accounts. Some spoke about staying alive to take care of and protect their younger siblings. Talking about a sibling, one adolescent said, “She’s the only one that makes me be who I am, still alive … I don’t want to hurt her.” Their accounts illustrate the parentification taken on by those who are still children themselves. Yet, this responsibility was described as preventing a repeat of the attempt.

None of the participants endorsed a purely psychiatric understanding of the adolescents’ suicide attempts. Research has demonstrated that psychiatric diagnoses, such as major depressive disorder, strongly associate with. Yet, equating suicide attempts with a psychiatric diagnosis is an oversimplification that negates the sociocultural context. Most people with a psychiatric diagnosis do not attempt suicide, while others without a diagnosis may do so.

It appears that at the time of their suicide attempt, the adolescents’ perception of their choices was narrowed, so that suicide was regarded as the singular solution to alleviating their problems and pain.

 

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