A new year, new hope in battle against teen suicide

For many people, the beginning of a new year represents a period of evolution. It is a time of reflection on the past and an opportunity to look ahead to what the future may hold.

The past few years have been difficult, in particular with the pandemic, unprecedented social arrest, and an increase in suicides. Celebrating 2024’s arrival carries even more significance for an entity such as Hope Means Nevada.

Hope Means Nevada

Founded in April 2020 by Julie Murray and Eric Hilton, HMN is a campaign organized by the Nevada Medical Center, a local nonprofit.

“The mission of HMN is to eliminate teen suicide and empower Nevada’s youth to live hopeful lives,” according to its website.

HMN is front and center when it comes to hosting awareness events in the community or on social media, where its presence continues to grow.

What makes HMN unique is its ability to partner with other community organizations and to create resources that align with the overall mission.

One such example occurs on the last Wednesday of each month, when HMN hosts a virtual “community exchange” that brings key partners and stakeholders together to discuss youth mental health.

The other element that makes HMN stand out is its teen committee, with its motto of “teens empowering teens.”

Common issues facing teens

HMN’s teen committee comprises three co-chairs, Ella King, Grace Netski and Cooper Cunningham. All three are enthusiastic about mental health, and they care deeply about the issues their peers are experiencing.

King, a senior at Coronado High School, identified self-image as a primary issue affecting teens today.

“I think teens have a huge tendency to compare themselves to other people, and to uphold themselves to a standard that really is not attainable, which is one of the pitfalls of social media,” she shared. “Social media introduces you to standards that are not real, and it makes you frustrated, gives you anxiety and has you wondering, ‘why not me?’ ”

All three co-chairs agreed that no teen is all that different.

Cunningham, a senior at Bishop Gorman, pointed out a big reason why self-image is such a problem: “There is such a stigma around mental health — and a lot of teens feel like they have nobody to share their struggles — it develops and festers within one’s own mind,” he said.

Cunningham’s solution would be to deconstruct that stigma by “talking to people about mental health, recognizing that I am not so different from others, and tearing down those boundaries.”

Netski, a junior at Faith Lutheran, shared how the day-to-day pressures many teens experience can become cumbersome.

“There are a lot of different pressures on (teens) to be helpful members of our family, to be popular members of our friend group, to be academic scholars and so forth,” she said.

“It is important for teens to understand what mental health is,” King added, “because many of them do not associate stress or self-care with mental health, only things such as suicide. Mental health delves into so many different topics that relate to so many different people.”

Goals for 2024

Eradicating teen suicide by normalizing the mental health conversation across Nevada is the overarching goal for the teen committee co-chairs. The conversation is the first step to suicide prevention.

However, all three co-chairs agreed that conversations cannot occur without opening up and having that sense of vulnerability with peers, teachers and trusted adults.

“Connecting youth with resources and providing education on what a mental health crisis looks like is important,” Netski said. “We all know what to do if we were to have a heart attack — and we want teens to know how to manage a mental health crisis.”

Now that 2024 is here, there is plenty for HMN to look forward to. Nationwide, suicide rates among youth decreased in 2022, according to figures released last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and those statistics mirror some of the trends seen across Nevada.

The data is a testament to the momentum that HMN has helped create.

For more information, visit hopemeansnevada.org.

Dr. Sheldon A. Jacobs, Psy.D., LMFT, is a licensed mental health professional based in Las Vegas. Contact him at drjacobs10@hotmail.com. Follow @drjacobs33 on X and Instagram.