Teen Suicide Concern: "Keep Calm and Parent On"
An excellent article on teen suicide from a parent and psychiatrist in Palo Alto, California after the suicide of high school student there. What is notable about Palo Alto is that it is in Silicon Valley and both high schools have experienced a fairly steady rate of suicides over the last several years. It is an area of high expectations and high hopes and that may play a part in why teens kill themselves. The author, Adam Strassberg, gives this advice: There is no single cause of suicide -- the act can arise from any combination of multiple factors -- biological, environmental, psychological and situational. As a community, we agree that whatever can be done to mitigate these factors must be done; where we disagree, however, is where one might expect: What does "whatever can be done" entail? Our public debate continues -- in community meetings, in online forums, in newspaper letters, in school board and city hall meetings. But for me, on line at Starbucks, i...