COVID-19 pandemic sparked rise in suicide rate, local doctors say

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The COVID-19 pandemic could threaten the lives of thousands of young people who don't even have the virus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 201921, there has been an increase in the number of suicide attempts by teenagers. Dr. Brit Anderson, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Norton Children's Hospital, said it is a crisis they're seeing and treating weekly.

”The second-leading cause of death for children and young people ages 10 to 24 is suicide. So, it has reached a very significant crisis state," she said. "It’s absolutely heartbreaking, and nobody is immune from it. We have seen — across the board — more complaints related to mental health and self-harm.”

Ami Stephens, a licensed professional clinical counselor at Freedom Counseling Services in Louisville, said the pandemic has fueled a lot of the problems for young people.

"We are seeing kids even at the ages of 6 coming in here and expressing a lot of anxiety," Stephens said. "From the pandemic but also just with taking into account the isolation from being out of school and what that's looked like for kids right now."

Mental health professionals said in some cases, your children could also be taking their cues from home.

"Some of those red flags are just excessive energy loss, or they're either sleeping a lot — or not sleeping at all with those younger kids — to temper tantrums," she said.

”Children are aware of what’s going on in their family," Anderson said. ”We like to think as childhood as something that is a really happy, carefree time, and I hope that it sometimes is for children. But I know from my experience, through work, that it is not always the case. In fact, it’s often not the case. Sometimes, family stress, financial strain — all these different factors — kids absorb that and it becomes really hard for them.”

If you are suffering from anxiety or depression or know someone else who is, there is help available. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-8255, is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in crisis or distress 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

To text the Crisis Text Line, send "MHA" to 741741, and you'll be connected to a trained crisis counselor. The line provides free, text-based support 24-7.

Here's a list of local resources: