Family still reeling after teen suicide
Published:Friday | December 24, 2021 | 12:07 AMRasbert Turner/Gleaner Writer
Days after the suspected suicide of a teenage girl, her family and the greater McCooks Pen community in St Catherine are still in shock and disbelief at the tragedy.
The family home has been shrouded in sadness since 14-year-old Rihanna Campbell was found hanging on Friday.
They are still trying to understand what might have been the trigger.
The Spanish Town police are investigating the matter.
“Mi still can’t believe, as she didn’t express any problems to us and we all live here,” Neville Brathwaite, a granduncle, said.
That sense of perplexity was shared by Oral Campbell, cousin to the deceased, who said that Rihanna was very obedient and mannerly.
“She wasn’t a girl that goes on the streets. She just stays home and does her schoolwork. She isn’t a rude child,” Campbell said.
Denise Melvin said that she is still suffering with headaches at the teen’s passing. She, too, described Rihanna as bright and humble, and a bit of a homebody.
A 2014 UNICEF-Ministry of Health report found that more than 60 per cent of people admitted to hospital after attempting suicide were below the age of 25.
According to the Ministry of Health quarterly report, Vitals, published in May 2019, one out of four adolescents had seriously considered suicide between 2010 and 2017.
Suicide expert Donovan Thomas urged families, in a Gleaner interview last year, to be on the alert for warning signs, such as the incidence of cutting, irritability, and feelings of hopelessness.
Other tips for relatives:
1. Listen to children and help them develop problem-solving skills.
2. Don’t leave guns and drugs within easy reach.
3. Get professional help and follow up with treatment.
4. Speak positively to children and respond quickly to allegations of abuse.