Suicide Among Teenagers

There are tragic deaths among teenagers. Suicide among teenagers happens because of their free will to act this way or due to a severe disorder like anorexia which makes teenagers commit suicide by starving themselves.

The Invisible Girl

A case of a cruel death among teenagers is described in in the book entitled The Invisible Girl, written by Peter Barham. The book depicts a realistic image of a person suffering from anorexia. Debbie Barham, the main character as well as the daughter of the author is suffering from this cruel disease. She dies of heart failure because of anorexia and the entire book follows her trajectory from childhood to her cruel death. The whole account is written in a sensitive manner whereas the reader finds out the story of an innocent life that ends so tragically. Thus, the book starts with her tragic death followed by her father’s instinctive reaction and his plunge into the past recalling his little girl and the old good times. Like Debbie there are numerous girls suffering from this severe disorder caused by multiple risk factors including female gender, severe trauma as well as emotional stress, in addition to an environment culturally defined and centered on ideas of thin and lean bodies, followed by a tendency towards having a perfect body, a low self-esteem and a family history of the anorexia disorder. Therefore, anorexia nervosa can be compared to committing suicide, as teenagers starve themselves, leading to their death.

Teen Suicide

Suicide among the young continues to be a serious issue. Teenagers may experience feelings of stress, low self-esteem, confusion, pressure from their parents in order to succeed, financial uncertainty and some other feelings during their growth process. For some teenagers, a form of disease such as anorexia or the divorce of their parents might make them commit suicide. For them, suicide might be the solution to their real or imaginary problems.

The symptoms of the suicidal feelings resemble very much depression. Parents should be aware of several signs present in adolescents who may want to commit suicide:

• Change in both eating and sleeping habits;
• Avoiding family and friends and some other activities performed regularly;
• Rebellious behavior as well as violent actions;
• Self-starvation;
• Drug as well as alcohol abuse;
• Changes in personality;
• Loss of interest in recreational activities;

Complaints about their physical symptoms, difficulty concentrating, persistent boredom, neglect of personal appearance, lack of tolerance of both praises and rewards.