Teenage Suicide Cases Increase: Pay Attention To Young People's Mental Health For The Target Of Indonesia Gold 2045

Illustration - Awareness of mental health in Indonesia is still often ignored and gets a negative stigma from the public. (Freepic)

The news of the death of a student at the University of Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) on Monday (2/10/2023) shocked the public. The reason is, the student with the initials SMQF committed suicide by jumping from the 4th floor of the University Residence (Univers) UMY dormitory Y Building.

The 18-year-old student is suspected of having depression. The victim is known to have been desperate to do the action while her dormitory roommate was still sleeping. The night before, the victim had drunk up to 20 headaches and was taken to a nearby hospital. He was rescued, but the second attempted suicide was inevitable.

It is not known for certain the motive that prompted the victim to commit suicide. However, it is strongly suspected that he was depressed and desperate to end his life by jumping from the 4th floor of the dormitory where he lived.

Quoted from Ai Care, depression is a mood disorder defined as feelings of sadness, anxiety or loss of passion that can interfere with daily activities. Depression is one of the mental disorders and at a severe level, depression can encourage a person to commit suicide.

According to clinical psychologist Kasandra Putranto, adolescence is a time when there are many changes in individuals, ranging from physical and psychological changes. The magnitude of this change makes teenagers become a population that is prone to mental health problems.

"Grema is a very tough period and prone to depression because this time is a phase full of change, both anatomy, physical, emotional, intelligence and social relations," Kasandra told VOI.

"Especially for most people, being a student is the first period in their life that they have to be away from people and an environment that is familiar to them so that these changes are more felt which makes life feel heavier," said Kasandra again.

More and more suicide cases have occurred in Indonesia in recent years. According to data from the Indonesian National Police (Polri) there were 663 suicides in Indonesia during the period January to July 2023. This figure is up 36.4 percent compared to the same period in 2021, which was 486 cases.

Unfortunately, mental health problems in Indonesia are often ignored. There are still many people who think mental health is not as important as physical health. Quoting from Unicef's data, 2021, one of the risk factors that arise in teenagers in Indonesia is the issue of mental health, anxiety and behavioral disorders.

However, social stigma related to mental health problems often makes people reluctant to seek help or speak openly about their problems. Moreover, people who claim to have mental problems are often labeled less faith and less grateful.

This stigma can make a person feel ashamed, weak, or feel something is wrong with them if they admit they have mental health problems. As a result, people may be reluctant to seek treatment.

"To overcome this problem, it is important to continue to raise awareness about mental health, reduce stigma, and provide better access to quality mental health services," said Asandra.

According to a study in 2022, the suicide rate in Indonesia may be four times greater than official data. According to experts, the lack of original data has hidden the true scale of the suicide problem in Indonesia.

In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) says suicide is the fourth largest cause of death among people aged 15-29 years worldwide in 2019.

The Coordinator of the National Secretariat Expert Team for SDGs of the Ministry of National Development Planning (PPN)/National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) Yanuar Nugroho said that the mental health condition of young people is now relatively concerning.

This is definitely not a fun fact, considering that Indonesia is targeting to become a developed country by 2045. If the health of young people is not addressed, it is not impossible that this will hinder Indonesia's golden target when celebrating its 100th independence anniversary.

The 'young generation is considered as the future of a nation. For this reason, the mental health condition of the younger generation needs to be a concern. With good mental health, individuals will be able to be more committed to their work. On the other hand, the existence of mental health problems will cause a decline in individual productivity which will ultimately affect the economy," said Kasandra.

Thus, preventive efforts to maintain individual mental health need to be carried out. However, not only at the individual level, but work agencies also need to play a role in this. Agencies that are concerned with mental health and provide assistance to individuals who have mental health problems will have more frequent employees so that their productivity is high," concluded this senior psychologist.

Given the huge influence of youth mental health on life, including the nation's future, it is time for all people to care and take part in a more aware way of mental health. One of the most likely assistance is done when someone finds friends or relatives have a tendency to mental problems by being present on the individual side and providing support, either directly (face-to-face) or indirectly (phone calls).

"Show that you care about him. Ask the individual's condition, for example, 'What is going on with you?' Or you can also listen to the story actively. Show that you are focused on listening to the individual's story and don't judge it, don't cut the conversation, and try to understand the individual's point of view," Kasandra concluded.