Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says • Hacker News Board

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#321

Post by ungamedplayer » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 9:52 AM UTC

janeroe wrote: post #265

xyzzy_plugh wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do you assume I am referring to the US? Maybe for you it's normal for there to be looting and rampant crime in the face of crisis or emergency scenarios but I don't think that speaks for the rest of the world. > Many countries do not have the health infrastructure the US has and have not undergone societal collapse. What does this mean? We have universal healthcare and in my city emergency services are so overwhe…

> We have universal healthcare and in my city emergency services are so overwhelmed and overworked the wait time for the past day is over an hour. That tells more about your healthcare system than about anything else. My city had virtually no lockdowns (but 2 weeks at the beginning until the measure became really unpopular), nobody ever cared about distancing or masking, the vaccination rates are low as hell, schools…

What city is this ?

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#322

Post by astrange » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 9:54 AM UTC

janeroe wrote: post #272

usrusr wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, inflation tends do that. The pandemic has been good fuel for inflation and continues to do so, but the fire would have burnt anyways. The fire is monetary policy trying to force growth no matter what. And why is growth forced? Because it's the only way to allow the poor to slightly improve without questioning the endless accumulation of the wealthy.

> The pandemic has been good fuel for inflation and continues to do so Not just some abstract "pandemic" but specific policies adopted by specific people. Don't turn it into a Hegelian providence as if no one is responsible and it's a self propagating process that would happen regardless.

It's because

- people couldn't go on vacation so they all switched to buying durable goods at the same time. (that's why supply chains don't hold up, it's a crisis of abundance not deprivation.)

- workers in some industries died (like meatpacking) or quit (like restaurants).

- we haven't built enough houses since 1970 and everyone decided to buy a house at once.

It's not because of stimulus though; making people poorer so they can't buy cars is not a good solution to cars being too expensive.

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#323

Post by akiselev » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 9:55 AM UTC

pdimitar wrote: post #223

evocatus wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More pontification and intellectualization of matters that people have no first-hand experience of, as is HN's wont. As someone with over 20 years of mental health issues who refused medication for exactly the same reasons - "sucking it up," trying to address root causes, meditation, spirituality, exercise... ... none of it worked. You could easily spend a lifetime trying to "root cause" the source of your malady and…

Quoted post unavailable.

> I'll join the chorus of the other sibling commenters here by expressing skepticism that any medication will at all help with anything. (emphasis mine)

Right there in the first line. "Any medication", "at all", and "with anything." Come on :)

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#324

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 9:58 AM UTC

echelon wrote: post #300

watwut wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might just be different for different people. Like, my lifestyle and mental health got better and people like me can offset people like you (and I do have relative that had issues too).

I'm also curious about non-pandemic factors, such as social media. Instagram grows in usage during the pandemic. And there's also TikTok. Both of these can highlight how much fun others are having while you're "stuck".

[deleted]

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#325

Post by texasbigdata » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 9:59 AM UTC

ramblerman wrote: post #247

rtpg wrote: post #224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can't claim to be pro-science and then false-ly claim that psychiatric medication does nothing. Depression and ADHD are _extremely_ treatable through medication, just as examples. There are many studies around this topic, it is way more treatable than certain physical conditions. "Knocks off your normal brain chemicals" have you considered that some people's normal brain chemicals are not set up normally? Would y…

What a farce to reduce any criticism of psychiatry to being anti-science. OP didn't even mention ADHD. Depression is pretty wide and not fully understood. You can't just take the meaning of life and reduce it to a scientific problem. Yet that's what most of these kids are struggling with. It's hopeful that the field of psychiatry is also experimenting with psycobylin as that at least will allow for people to come to…

Ok let's back up and simplify.

If there's a 25% chance you're going to kill yourself in 90 days, medication helps.

If you have a milder case and/or a very long time horizon, completely agree doing "root cause" work throughout your preferred method makes sense.

But it's not fair to the people suffering to say "I know you're bed bound but how about some cardio? Nah you don't need medicine that just numbs it". Why can't they get a little help when they're in a desperate place? Starting medicine doesn't imply a death sentence where it's force fed down your throat every day for the rest of your life. Take it for 6 months and stop when everything is going better and you have some reps of [your preferred recovery technique] under your belt.

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#326

Post by cma » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 10:00 AM UTC

version_five wrote: post #54

bushbaba wrote: post #4

Covid was a wealth transfer from the youth to the elderly

I'd say a wealth transfer from the poor to the wealthy. Inflation + restrictions has dramatically exacerbated inequality, as have the expectations we put on the working poor - leave home to deliver my food etc but don't you dare enjoy yourself. It's a coincidence that this also corresponds to transferring from young to old people. Overall, if you have a big house, country cottages, and lots of investments, you got a…

Stimulus and unemployment increases raised overall take-home pay during the year for many lower middle class and poor. For the very poor, increases in SNAP benefits as part of the stimulus outpaced food price inflation, but almost no articles about food inflation mention it. Unemployment is as low as it has been since 1999.

There are legit shortages driving inflation in big categories, but wages are up too. Average wages in non-supervisory roles are up over 10% compared to two years ago, restaurant roles nearly 14%.

Inflation directly hurts people with lots of savings in low yield accounts, not the working poor. That's not to say they did well compared to the rich in the pandemic, just that inflation taken as a single factor doesn't single them out.

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#327

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 10:02 AM UTC

pdimitar wrote: post #237

rtpg wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are claiming that medication cannot help with issues (expressing skepticism). I'm sympathetic to what you are saying that external factors are definitely at play (of course they are, in a sense. Mental illness characterised by social interaction will depend on factors of those social interactions). But you're dismissing internal factors! For many mental illnesses, people are able to function on a day-to-day basis…

Dude, I'm not dismissing anything. I just didn't want to write a book. :) But I can see that many misunderstood my intent, so likely my fault. All I was saying is that medication is over-represented. That was all really. I myself have been on CBD and it helped me. I know pills can be good temporary crutches. But IMO they are given away too quickly (anecdotal evidence) without much regard to what the person is actuall…

[deleted]

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#328

Post by texasbigdata » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 10:03 AM UTC

pdimitar wrote: post #237

rtpg wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are claiming that medication cannot help with issues (expressing skepticism). I'm sympathetic to what you are saying that external factors are definitely at play (of course they are, in a sense. Mental illness characterised by social interaction will depend on factors of those social interactions). But you're dismissing internal factors! For many mental illnesses, people are able to function on a day-to-day basis…

Dude, I'm not dismissing anything. I just didn't want to write a book. :) But I can see that many misunderstood my intent, so likely my fault. All I was saying is that medication is over-represented. That was all really. I myself have been on CBD and it helped me. I know pills can be good temporary crutches. But IMO they are given away too quickly (anecdotal evidence) without much regard to what the person is actuall…

"given away too quickly"

Generally agree with your comment but .... You're an adult. Decide what you need and take agency. The doc isn't forcing you to gobble pills and not do CBT.

The fact that they're available, and with low friction if it appears that you need them is great.

Here's a stupid analogy. To become a bodybuilder you need to lift heavy compound movements probably under a barbell over a long period of time. You have a scrawny kid come into your gym and he says he likes doing push-ups. Why not let him do pushups? Just because they're "too easy to access" and not the stack ranked force prioritized #1 option for hypertrophy?

In general were super prescriptive on what others should do, but most Americans don't exercise, etc.

More availability of a broader array of treatment modalities is a feature not a big IMHO.

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#329

Post by zx76 » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 10:04 AM UTC

wruza wrote: post #286

asxd wrote: post #276

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I went to the emergency room after working from home for ~6 months when the pandemic hit. I was having severe chest pain, shaking uncontrollably, and feeling very uneasy. I thought something was really wrong, and ended up going to the emergency room, where they told me it was a panic attack, and everything was okay physically. Like you, it was also the first time I had experienced a panic attack and learned what it f…

I thought something was really wrong Yeah, the fear of death as they call it. I really didn't understand this phrase before, thinking it was something abstract. It's unlike any other feeling I've had, just off the charts. And I'm (was) not particularly the guy who is scared to watch a horror movie alone in the night.

I've experienced exactly the same as you both except all the way back in 2015 and so I'm going to offer some unsolicited advice in case it's helpful. I had never heard of panic attacks before I got one, had never worried once about my mental health etc. and so I also ended up at the emergency room convinced my death was imminent.

Considering my healthy history my doctor and I agreed to try deal with it on a lifestyle level. I did meditation, yoga and revised my diet. I became more healthy but still had the panic attacks. We then stepped this up to therapy which I did for a year but still had the panic attacks. They were totally random and incredibly draining. My life & work were seriously affected and so I eventually followed the doctors advice to consider medication. Saw a psychiatrist and started the most basic SSRI at the minimum dose for panic disorder. I had a few attacks during the first two weeks and then they just stopped entirely. 100% completely. Haven't had one since.

So - my advice. If you are seriously struggling with panic attacks on a continuing basis despite a reasonable level of lifestyle interventions please don't do what I did and basically resist trying psychiatric medicine because you're healthy, successful and happy in your life and can't see a "legit" reason to be on meds. It felt like a much bigger intervention to me than it really is. I know for some people dealing with this sort of thing isn't this easy but for a lot it seems it can be.

(Also I don't blame my doctors at all, I always felt well informed about the options available to me. Obviously in retrospect with the way my life was affected meant I should have seen a reason to try meds sooner. At least the year of therapy was good for me even though it didn't stop the panic disorder!)

Re: Youth suicide attempts soared during pandemic, CDC report says

#330

Post by amznbyebyebye » Sun, Jan 09, 2022, 10:11 AM UTC

Youth suicide is a very scary thing. I can’t imagine the grief it brings on the parents who are already suffering so much at the hands of this terrible situation. And let’s not forget about those who are single and the social isolation issues among other things.

This thing has wrought havoc on so many of our lives. So much of the world is suffering.

We thought there was light of the end of the tunnel, then omicron. It’s possible omicron won’t even be the last.

Please take an extra moment to show a little bit extra patience, understanding, compassion, empathy, for everyone, as many of us are suffering, actively or passively, in some way, as a result of the collective trauma on our society.