Crisis After Crisis, the Latina Suicide Epidemic Rages On

Warning: This article will discusses suicide, suicidal ideation, and poor mental health*

In recent decades, researchers have raised concern that young Latinas have been experiencing suicidal ideation and attempting suicide at alarming rates, with little to no coverage of Latina mental health in the media.

Without question, COVID-19 has amplified conversations about health and along with them has come increasingly regular talk surrounding mental health. On December 14th, 2021 U.S Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy announced that the nation is experiencing a youth mental health crisis. According to Dr. Murphy, “feelings of helplessness, depression, and thoughts of suicide — and rates have increased over the past decade.” Though major strides have been made to destigmatize poor mental health, many marginalized groups continue to suffer through it. One of these groups is young Latinas, who have shown extremely high numbers of attempted suicide over the last two decades.

In 2004, the CDC published their Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) results for the year of 2003. The YRBSS is a statistical report the CDC has released since 1990, detailing information on six health-related categories that contribute to the leading causes of death of young people in the U.S. The 2003 report revealed harrowing results for Latinas. In the categories of “seriously considered a suicide attempt,” “having a plan to commit suicide,” “attempting suicide,” and “suicide attempts requiring hospitalization,” Latinas had the most noteworthy statistics out of any group in each category with 23.4% of Hispanic females seriously considering attempting suicide, 20.7% making a suicide plan, 15% attempting suicide, and 5.7% requiring medical attention. In 2013, the YRBSS results reported an increase in every single category but one.

If the CDC has consistently been reporting such high numbers, why haven’t there been more visible efforts made in terms of prevention?

(Table compiled based on CDC data from corresponding years)

Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) results for Latinas and suicidal ideation for the years 2003-2013.

For one, a massive disconnect seems to exist between how White Americans perceive Latine mental health, most likely in connection to cultural misconceptions. On October 15th, 2018, two articles were published on the Latina suicide epidemic: one appearing on Refinery29, and written by Ludmila Leiva, a Latina writer, the other published on ABC by Charlotte Huff, a white woman. In the ABC article, Huff acknowledges that Latinas are attempting suicide at higher rates, however, she goes on to cite a strong family dynamic that is prevalent in Latine families that helps “shield” Latines from attempting suicide.

The Refinery29 article, however, presents a different view. It contains several interviews with women who have struggled with suicidal ideation and arrived at the answer that much of their struggle to receive help was due to their families’ varying perceptions of their condition. Many struggled with the difference of being raised in a culture completely different from that of their parents and felt as though their problems wouldn’t be taken seriously, in addition to the pre-existing stigma surrounding mental health.

An email exchange with The Jaguardian from July 2021 with Elena Cortes, a mental health support coordinator, supports what the Refinery29 article presents:

“Based on the experience I’ve had while working in the children [sic] mental health field or just in the mental health field in general, I have observed that when Latino/Latina/Latinx students/teenagers speak or attempt to speak or open up about their mental health to their parents or families they are often not being heard or validated, and many times the families are dismissive of the teenagers’ feelings and thoughts regarding their mental health which then can lead these teenagers to not feel comfortable about speaking up when it comes to their mental health or when they are having suicidal ideation…another barrier and probably something that also contributes to the high suicide rates in Latina females is the lack of resources regarding mental health or insurance, therapist, counseling that are not available to them or that they don’t have easy access to.”

In New York, one organization in particular is fighting to combat the lack of resources available to young Latinas struggling with mental health. Life Is Precious (LIP) is a free, suicide prevention program geared directly towards Latinas with locations in Brooklyn, The Bronx, Queens, and Washington Heights. Their services are open after school and on weekends, offering a variety of programs for girls to participate in. From art therapy to music therapy, to cooking classes, LIP aims to have something to help support each girl. “It’s about providing young people with a safe, fun space and then opportunities to learn and grow new skills. Some have become amazing poets and writers, we use journaling a lot. A lot of stuff around self-love and developing a stronger sense of self,” says Julie Lawrence, Senior Assistant Vice President of LIP.

LIP stresses the importance of journaling and coming together as a group to help the girls vent their stress out and cultivate solidarity amongst themselves. In addition, LIP works on involving the families of the girls attending the program. “We also incorporate the whole family. We have a parent support group where parents from all four sites come together. Often we’ll have different topics that we bring up, but it’s really led by them and what they wanna talk about. Some issues have just been understanding adolescent mental health issues, understanding sexual identity and gender expression…different topics that really help support the parents in supporting their young people,” Lawrence said.

Life Is Precious’ approach in helping prevent Latina suicide has already yielded positive results. Since their founding in 2008, more than three hundred girls ages 12-18 have participated in LIP and of that number, none have committed suicide.

Whether or not LIP’s format is able to make the journey across the nation remains to be seen, yet its implementation could yield effective results for at-risk Latina youths.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255