Every day, there is an average of 3,470 suicide attempts by teenagers in grades 9-12 in the United States. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for kids ages 12-18 and with every suicide, there are an average of 25 attempts that have not succeeded. Teen suicide rates have continued to increase for the past ten years and for girls, the rate has doubled. It is critical that we come together as a whole in our school community to spread awareness and educate others about the importance of mental health. Every person deserves love and acceptance no matter what.

Last year at school, someone in my class ran up to me and a few of my friends asking if she could borrow one of our phones for an emergency. My friend reluctantly handed over her the phone and asked if everything was okay. Tears started trickling down her face as she explained to us that her best friend was in the school bathroom right now and had just taken an entire bottle of pills in attempt to kill herself. My friend rushed to the bathroom to see if she could help, but the girl who swallowed the pills was not there.

“In that moment, all that mattered to me was helping her. My heart was racing as I ran to every bathroom in the school, that is I could think of. It hurts my heart to know that so many teenagers are struggling with their mental health. This issue seems to just keep growing and something needs to change,” Myranda Gardner said.

I then heard the ambulance pulling up to school and very quickly drive away with her in the back. I had never talked to that girl before, but she always seemed ‘okay.’ She seemed fine. She seemed happy. No one in the entire school knew what had just happened except me and a couple friends. I experienced someone try to end their life. Within ten minutes, the bell rang, halls were filled with students again and the ambulance drove away leaving no evidence of the incident. Everyone carried on like each normal day. The next day my brother’s best friend tried to commit suicide as well. In just two days, two people I knew tried to commit suicide. These are just the people I knew, and thought were “ok.”How many other people are struggling that I didn’t know about?

Anxiety, depression, sexuality and suicide are all normal things that teenagers struggle with daily.  Society has people convinced that if they don’t meet or exceed the standards of “normal” that they need to change ourselves. Each day kids come to school and hide their struggles because we all must be “ok.” Thousands of personalities and stories enter the building each day. From your best friend to the acquaintance that you hardly talk to, we all have our own struggles that we try to hide, even someone you think you know well.

One small way to combat loneliness is to invite a person who is alone to join your or your group. Next time you see someone sitting at lunch by themself, invite them to sit with you. Regardless if it’s someone you know or have ‘heard about’, you don’t know what they are going through. One small act of kindness can change someone’s life or even save their life. You can light up the community with compassion and spread the message of acceptance. This is a tough subject that is often not talked about, but this message needs to be heard. Be kind and spread love. Mental health is a prominent issue that teens deal with every day. By coming together, we can spread positive awareness about suicide and mental health.

If you know anyone that you think is in danger of harming themselves, please call the24-hour suicide hotline number, 1-800-273-8255.