Credit: livemint.com
The number of young people attempting suicide has drastically increased over the past two years making suicide one of the leading causes of death in the world today. Recent data from the National Institute of Mental health indicates that there’s a higher percentage of people aged between 18-25 that have suicidal thoughts compared to older people.
Studies have shown that there’s a close link between suicide, addiction, and depression. Most people who end up committing suicide have either a case of addiction or an untreated mental health disorder. When a person addicted to a drug gets depression, the chances of committing suicide are higher because addiction significantly prolongs depressive episodes. Mind-altering substances like alcohol can give a victim the perception of temporary relief, but when the effect is over, suicidal thoughts come flooding back.
Depression seems to be at the heart of suicide in young adults which begs the question, Why are so many young people depressed? A recent study has linked spending a lot of time on social media with lower well being. Could this be the problem? Today, we live in a world where communication doesn’t require in-person social interaction. It is important to note that depression has increased among young people with the increase of social media use, and so far, no one has disputed the fact that more in-person social interaction is linked to better mental health. In fact, therapy, which is a recognized mental health treatment intervention involves this kind of communication. Although technology has allowed easier and faster communication, it is unwise to ignore such facts. Perhaps this issue can be resolved by encouraging young people to interact more on a one-on-one basis
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