Counselors say: Depression causes suicide among youth

CEBU, Philippines - People committing suicide are getting younger due to depression, the Philippine Guidance and Counseling Association Cebu Chapter disclosed.

PGCA president Luzlin Elcullada said those 18 years old and below normally commit suicide because they have low level of coping mechanism when depressed.

With this, she said it is imperative to build up the “emotional resiliency” of students amidst difficulties or minor and major problems.

She added that problems of students should not be ignored regardless of their intensity and volume.

That means it is important for counselors — especially those in schools — to be the first line in identifying students struggling with depression.

“Depression is really the main cause why people will commit suicide. So, the role of counselor is important in healing and building the soft and life skills of the students,” Elcullada said in a press conference yesterday.

She further said counseling should include positive interactions, active listening, restoring hope and doing problem solving for real problems.

She added that family therapy is also useful.

One key indicator of depression among students is a precipitous drop in grades, especially if accompanied by other symptoms of depression: low self-esteem, sleep problems, fatigue, apathy and feelings of worthlessness, changes in appetite, loss of pleasure in life and problems in concentrating.

Experts note that uncharacteristic or excessive irritability is a symptom associated with depressed adolescents and children. They added that children may have temper tantrums, stomachaches or headaches associated with depression, while adolescents may be moody, act out or even injure themselves by cutting or burning their skin.

Often, experts further say, life stressors cause depression. For children and adolescents, those stressors don’t necessarily stem from a serious personal failure or a major event such as the death of a loved one, but rather from common daily hassles or interpersonal problems, such as changes in relationships with peers.

Other checklist of suicidal feelings includes being depressed, hopeless, shameless, helpless, worthless, restless, irritable, negative, and guilty.

Doctor John Reyes, an Endocrinologist and Internist, said suicide is a multi-dimensional disease not referring only to physical, mental, spiritual and emotional but also to nutritional and hormonal imbalance.

“Nutrition is a factor because the stomach has correlation to the brain’s functionality,” he said, adding that more details on this will be tackled during his talk today on “Gut as the Second Brain.”

Based on the data of the World Health Organization, over 800,000 people die by suicide every year and there is one death by suicide in the world every 40 seconds.

WHO also said suicide is the third leading cause of death in the world for those aged 15-44 years while depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide.

Jean Goulbourn, president of Natasha Goulbourn Foundation, said many Filipinos suffer mental health problems and emotional trauma leading to life inflicting and threatening instances, but only few of them seek professional advice.

She attributed this to a stigma that having mental health is in the “state of having mental problems.”  — Kristine B. Quintas/NSA (FREEMAN)