Call it the nurturing instinct that immediately sticks to us when our parenting journey starts, but we never foresee anything bad for the kids. We may become paranoid with the choices we offer and strive to give our kids the best, yes. But very very rarely will we foresee a dark and gloomy turn of events like death and suicide for our children. The truth is no body does. Not one parent in our circle.
But at times, fate takes a cruel turn that ends up in young adults taking their own lives, it leaves the parents and their circle devastated. How did they not see this coming, quips an odd acquaintance? The answer is “you never expect the worst”. Our minds are trained not to imagine the “wrong” things and negative outcomes for what we do with and for our children. Yes, you can say no to a constant flurry of morbid thoughts but IF you had the power to change, wouldn’t you give everything you can to change it to happy ending? I can see you nodding.
As per the National Crime Records Bureau’s (NCRB) Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India (ADSI) report, over 13,000 students died in 2021 in India which comes to 35 deaths every day. This is a 4.5 % rise from the 12,526 deaths in 2020! Out of these 864 out of 10,732 suicides were due to “failure in examination.”
And as per a report in The Hindu, the state of Maharashtra has recorded the highest number of student suicides. How is it that one of the most vibrant states, that has a high rate of literacy, ends up topping the charts in this staggering statistic?
And it is not just restricted to one city. We hear shocking reports of children ending their lives because “mom said no to video games”; because “dad was angry with the exam marks”, and because “siblings didn’t share the TV remote” and so on and so forth. When we see these headlines every single day, we raise our eyebrows, shake our heads in disbelief and mutter to ourselves “ye mere saat kabhi nahi hota!”
But do we really understand today’s teens?
- Do we know what runs in that minds that is constantly driven to competition, criticisms and comparison?
- Do we ever sit and wonder what it takes to “BE A CHILD” in today’s times?
- When you don’t hear about “Sharma ji ka beta” just once in a year but every single day with social media posts and WhatsApp groups?
- When screen time is a lot more tempting that a set of parents who are busy at work or glued to their screens?
- When you are not just alone. but end up feeling lonely most days?
I know. Your child won’t be part of this number. Nor will mine. But does that mean as their parents and guardians, it is not our responsibility to educate ourselves about it? Is this not a concerning topic to you?
We need to eradicate this taboo around this subject. It concerns the well-being of children and we shouldn’t be ashamed for talking about it or learning the preventions and first-aids to suicide. Like I learnt along the process that anybody doesn’t “commit” a suicide. It isn’t a murder or an execution that one commits. They “die by suicide” or “end their life by suicide”.
Let’s not just change the narration but the mindset too.
At Kidsstoppress am proud about this and at the same time also feel duty bound to conduct a workshop on this pertinent issue that parents need more knowledge about. Mental health and suicide is a long process and one that is often unseen, unknown and unaddressed unless you are aware of how and why and what to do when you notice something off with your child. Are you aware?
Let’s be safe than sorry.
Register for the Teen Suicide Prevention workshop that we are conducting in association with Safe Space India in Mumbai on 1st September so you can help and educate other parents too.Here is the registration link. And even if you are reading this mail and based outside of Mumbai, help spread the awareness with your circle of parents. Am sure somebody somewhere will find this useful.
Let’s change the way we bond with our teens. They need us now more than ever before.
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