Ask a Question,
Save a Life

Click the QPR logo to view a promotional video for QPR

Request QPR Training for your school or organization.

"Are you thinking about suicide?"

There is HOPE, call:

Stongest Predictors for Youth Suicide

• Previous suicide attempt
• Current talk of suicide/making a plan
• Strong wish to die or preoccupied with death (thoughts, music, reading)
• Depression, hopelessness, withdrawal
• Substance use
• Recent suicide attempt by friend or family member or family history of suicide
• Loss/separations

Suicide among young people is a serious problem. Each year in the U.S., thousands of teenagers commit suicide.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suicide is surpassed only by accidents and homicide as the leading cause of death for adolescence 15 - to 24- years only.

Many teenagers have thoughts of death. These can stem from a variety of causes, such as stress, confusion, self-doubt, depression, or fear. It is important to take a suicide attempt, or talk of suicide, seriously. While there is no way to reliably figure the exact ratio of attempted suicides to completed suicides, the National Institute of Mental Health believes that as many as 25 suicides are attempted for each one that is completed. That means that for every teen suicide that you hear of, there are probably at least 25 suicide attempts made. And this does not even cover the teenage suicide attempts and completed suicides that are never heard about. Understanding that a teen suicide attempt is a call for help is essential in preventing a completed attempt later.

Parents should be aware of the following signs of adolescents who may try to kill themselves:

• change in eating and sleeping habits
• withdrawal from friends, family, and regular activities
• violent actions, rebellious behavior, or running away
• drug and alcohol use
• unusual neglect of personal appearance
• marked personality change
• persistent boredom, difficulty concentrating, or a decline in the quality of schoolwork
• frequent complaints about physical symptoms, often related to emotions, such as stomachaches, headaches, fatigue, etc.
• loss of interest in pleasurable activities
• not tolerating praise or rewards

A teenager who is planning to commit suicide may also:

• complain of being a bad person or feeling rotten inside
• give verbal hints with statements such as: I won't be a problem for you much longer, Nothing matters, It's no use, and I won't see you again
• put his or her affairs in order, for example, give away favorite possessions, clean his or her room, throw away important belongings, etc.
• become suddenly cheerful after a period of depression
• have signs of psychosis (hallucinations or bizarre thoughts)

If one or more of these signs occurs, or if a child or adolescent says, I want to kill myself, or I'm going to commit suicide, always take the statement seriously and immediately seek assistance from a qualified mental health professional.

Source: American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Teen Suicide, July 2004 (Online) and Teen Suicide (www.teensuicide.us)

Here is an easy mnemonic to remember the warning signs:

IS PATH WARM?

Ideation
Substance Abuse
Purposelessness
Anxiety
Trapped
Hopelessness
Withdrawal
Anger
Recklessness
Mood Changes

A key component to suicide prevention for young people is the training all of the adults that come in contact with them to be "gate keepers".  A gatekeeper is someone in the position to recognize a crisis and the warning signs that someone may be contemplating suicide. Gatekeepers include parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, counselors, caseworkers, ministers, doctors, nurses, police officers, and many others who are strategically positioned to recognize and refer someone at risk of suicide. Three simple steps that can save a life are Question, Persuade, and Refer. People trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, to offer hope and to refer someone to help, often saving their life.  QPR Gatekeeper training can be learned in little as an hour. The QPR institute is one of the recognized effective gate keeper training programs in the country.  Click here to learn more about the gate keeper techniques of QPR.

Suicide is one of the most preventable deaths. You can save a life by learning to recognize the warning signs and risks of suicide.

Visit our Upcoming Events page for the next
QPR: Gatekeeper Suicide Prevention Training.