Woodstock teen suicides: students talk of depression, alienation

The crisis of youth suicide among First Nations youth and among students in Woodstock, Ont. in the past months has helped focus attention on issues ranging from depression and bullying to access to mental health services in less-urban centres.

CBC news has been following the stories:

• Attawapiskat declares a suicide emergency
• Attawapiskat youth urge Canadians to open their eyes to First Nations crisis
• Spiralling suicide situation among Attawapiskat youth

Woodstock crisis and protest

Hundreds of students walked out of class on Tuesday morning in Woodstock, Ont. to demand more help amid a crisis the entire city is talking about. Five young people took their own lives here in the last four months. Officials say about three dozen others may have considered suicide this year.

Struggles against depression and alienation have fuelled the crisis, some students say. 

• Read John Rieti's report: Suicide crisis driven by depression, disconnection, students say

Wanting a voice

Is it a failure at the school board level to recognize the despair and depth of the problem? 

Students showed up for school at 9:00 a.m. and then marched to the Woodstock Museum National Historic Site. Grade 11 student Mackenzie Gall, 16, said the walkout was designed to raise awareness about teen suicide and prompt school boards to show more support for students.

"I just feel like students don't really have a say, which is why we planned the walkout." 

• Read the CBC story: High school students hold walkout following teen suicides

Families, friends

Who are the families and friends of the young people who killed themselves? Here are people living with the loss after the death of a teen:

• Jada Downing lost her sister to suicide in May, 2016
• Ron Bailey's daughter Mandy took her own life in February, 2016

Access unavailable

Lack of access to youth mental health services is a problem in Ontario. A special report in Sept., 2015 from CBC in Kitchener illustrated the problems faced by young people seeking mental health care:

• 'Is it even worth going day-to-day?' asks young adult in mental health care void
• Mental health services for people 18-25 falls short in Waterloo Region
• Mental health pilot project planned for Waterloo Region youth

Going forward

What needs to happen next, now that the crisis of youth suicide in Woodstock has become national news? 

• Listen to CBC Radio Kitchener-Waterloo's interview with Mike McMahon of the Canadian Mental Health Association in Oxford county, who explains how social media plays a role
• Read Nicole Ireland's report: What needs to happen next to deal with Woodstock, Ont., suicide crisis?

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