It is important to understand and identify signs that show whether or not a teenager is facing mental health challenges. That is why this Teenage Suicide Prevention Week (11-18 February 2024), the South African Anxiety and Depression Group (SADAG) is spreading awareness through open conversations.
SADAG has been educating parents and teenagers on how to see if there are mental conditions developing and how to treat them. Psychiatrist Dr Terri Henderson said suicide cases that are common are caused by the transitioning that teenagers undergo. She said that the process of becoming your own person and feeling different and not accepted by your peers is the most common cause of teenage suicide that she has encountered.
“Unfortunately, the generation that is pulled out of Covid-19 has put kindness completely behind them. The concept of kindness is not there, it does not exist. What has come to the fore is that they are fighting amongst themselves and hierarchy. Who is on top, who is in the group and who is not. I think it is a lot more ruthless than it has ever been,” Henderson said.
According to Henderson the level of psychological bullying has gone up including cyberbullying from the time of the Covid-19 pandemic. She said that there are numerous ways in which negativity can be inflicted and encourage the feeling of hopelessness.
“It is a little bit harder to see a depressed teenager than with adults. Adults who are sitting in their severe heavy depression, look very depressed and that is their constant mood. For a teen, it fluctuates all the time, but usually when they are on their own at home, they isolate and you can see their mood. The other distinct difference is that the quality of their depression is not sadness, they struggle to say that they are depressed. A down teen who is withdrawing from life because they can’t face it anymore does start to look a little bit similar to what adults look like,” Henderson said.
Henderson said that most teenagers struggle to express their feelings. She advised parents to not use the word depressed when trying to open up to their teenagers. She suggests that asking them if they are feeling happy, or sad about events that happen in their lives will help get a better answer from them. She said that there is a fine line between a moody and depressed teenager.
“A moody teenager will still interact with family, play sports and do school work. When moodiness is now depression, the abilities to interact and engage with the world start to fall away. They can’t keep up with school work and you will see other changes in their lives as well.
Moodiness that keeps going on and on is not normal,” she added.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) suicide rates are estimated at 9% per 100 000 population amongst 15–19-year-olds in South Africa.
Basic Education Psychosocial Support Director, Sibongile Monareng, who is also supporting SADAG in creating awareness, encourages open conversations about suicide and breaking the stigma associated with mental conditions. Monareng said that young people should be empowered to seek help.
‘’It is important to support young people and provide them with information about where they can find support,” Monareng said.
Counsellor Cayley Jorgensen from the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), said that most parents wonder what causes a teen to be depressed when they did not experience any of that during their teenage years. She highlighted that mental conditions have always existed and changes in the teenagers’ lives contribute to it..
“Covid had a huge impact on the mental health of a child. Kids that went through lockdown unfortunately didn’t get the chance to develop certain aspects that they were supposed to develop at certain ages. During lockdown they could not socialise and go on school dances,” she said.
Jorgensen added that technology has created additional pressure on children. She said that there is no appropriate age to introduce your child to social media. However, she highlighted that there has to be a way to guide and introduce your child to social media. She urged parents to monitor what their children are doing on social media and try to understand the things that their children search on the internet.
“Ensure that there is guidance and open communication around social media. Children will come across things that we do not want them to come across on social media. Teenagers experience cyberbullying. They are always online, updated with the latest trends and songs and there is huge pressure around that,” she explained.