With all the emphasis that's been put on bullying and bullycide, it's easy to lose track of the reality that those aren't the only reasons for teen suicides. In many cases, whereas bullying may have played a role, depression was the driving force. Depression claimed Jamie's life even though there had been some bullying.
While educating both students and school faculty about bullying, its effects, and how to prevent it is essential, it is equally crucial for both groups to understand the effects and symptoms of depression. Education in both areas will definitely save lives.
My friend, Barb Hildebrand, creator of the facebook page Suicide Shatters, shared this on her site. I think it would be a very effective tool for educating about depression. In agreement with Barb, I believe this program should be implemented in every school across the country, and around the world. There's no way to have enough tools available to fight this plague of teen suicides. That said, I strongly encourage every one to push to get this program implemented in your local schools. If you're parents, if you have younger siblings, if you have friends who could be at risk, wouldn't you feel better knowing that everyone in their school is being educated about depression and how to deal with it? I know it would certainly give me a little peace of mind.
Experts believe that approximately 1 in 8 teens suffer from depression. That's an alarming number! Educating yourselves is not important: it's imperative. Then, having the school's faculty and, certainly, the teens themselves educated as well will go a very long way towards our goal of eliminating teen suicides.
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