It is a known fact that teens who are at risk for suicide usually tend to have depression. Along with that, they usually have more than the average amount of stress. There are several profiles that a teen may fit that put them at risk for suicide. These profiles include:
-teens who have attempted suicide
-teens with a family history of suicide
-teens with mental illness
-teens who lack self-esteem
-teens who abuse alcohol and other drugs
-gay and lesbian teens
-teens who experience extreme stress
-teens from unstable families
-gifted teens
(Teen Suicide, pg. 16)
It is a fact that between 20 and 50 percent of teens who have successfully completed suicide had attempted it at least once before. According to Judith Peacock, an attempted suicide is like a rehearsal, "it takes away some of the fear of suicide" (pg. 16).
Teens who have had family members that have commited suicide are also at a high risk for committing suicide themselves. When a family member has done so already, it plants the thought in the teen's mind that suicide is an appropriate or "acceptable" solution to their problems. More than 60 percent of teens that kill themselves were diagnosed with depression, however they were not treated for it. Mental illnesses that increase the chance for suicide are bipolar disorder, panic attacks, schizophrenia, and anxiety.
The rates for suicide in the gay and lesbian community are two to six times higher than that for the heterosexual teenage community. According to the American Psychiatric Association more than one-third of teen suicides are committed by homosexual teens.
Judith Peacock says, "People having a number of potential triggers and a previous suicide attempt are at greater risk for completing suicide. Teens with depression are most likely to attempt and complete suicide. Risk factors include lack of self-esteem, subastance abuse, an unstable family, problems with sexual identity, pregnancy, or pressures to succeed" (Teen Suicide, pg. 16).