Adolescence is a period characterized by hormonal changes and instabilities in mood and behavior. Teenagers experience strong emotions and become emotionally distraught more easily than adults. According to Suicide.org, this makes them more vulnerable to suicidal thoughts than adults. In fact, suicide is the third-leading cause of death among adolescents, as of 2010.
Depression
Depression is the most common cause of suicide among adolescents. The isolation and self-loathing associated with depression is particularly harmful during adolescence, when self-discovery and affiliation with others are focus points. Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness that lead to suicidal thoughts can become prominent if depression is left untreated. In fact, according to the U.S. surgeon general, more than 90 percent of teens who commit suicide have mental disorders.
Family Problems
Although teenagers yearn for independence and freedom from their parents, they are greatly affected by problems within their families. Witnessing or experiencing domestic violence can be traumatic. Verbal abuse also is damaging to an adolescent's sense of self and could result in feelings of worthlessness. Teenagers who believe their family members don't care about them might question their reason for living.
Rejection
Teenagers constantly struggle to fit in with their peers. They often mimic how their friends talk or dress, and they hold their opinions in high regard, so disagreements with friends can be considerably distressing. In addition to friends, teenagers seek the approval and acceptance of the people they date. Intimate relationships make teenagers vulnerable to rejection, and break-ups might seem like the end of the world to them.
Other Deaths
Losing a loved one at any age is difficult to accept, but teenagers typically are ill-equipped to handle the loss of a parent, a sibling or a close friend because they depend on these people to be in their lives. When someone in their age group commits suicide, teenagers sometimes consider it as a more viable alternative to living. Also, suicides reported by the media can lead to copycat, or cluster, suicides.
Failure
Teenagers are under significant pressure to succeed in high school and advance to college. Poor performance in school can be a major source of stress. Also, the importance of extracurricular activities is problematic for teenagers who fail to make sports teams or lack social skills to join other types of groups. Applying to college is stressful. Failing to get into one's school of choice can be a major disappointment.
Bullying
Bullying, a prevalent form of violence among young people, also leads to teenage suicides. Repeated harassment and humiliation by other teenagers via text messages, email, the Internet or face-to-face is psychological damaging. It can cause significant decreases in self-esteem and self-worth. Victims of bullying might view suicide as the only way to end it.
