When Your College Student Loses a Friend to Suicide

""My ex-boyfriend killed himself. My friend who goes to the same college called to tell me. I knew he was feeling depressed when I broke up with him last month, but he never mentioned wanting to kill himself. He was seeing a psychiatrist and said he was starting to feel better. What if the breakup triggered this? I feel like it's my fault.""

"Unfortunately, suicide rates for young adults have increased in the last two decades. As of 2023, the suicide rate for people aged 15-24 was 13.5/100,000 per year. On average, 135 people are emotionally impacted by a person's suicide. These 135 may include family, close friends, the immediate community, and people who have met this person at some point. The level of impact depends on your closeness to the person."

Losing a friend to suicide during college often causes profound sadness, shock, and complicated grief, with survivors commonly experiencing guilt and sometimes onset of depression or anxiety. Breakups or recent interpersonal stressors can intensify self-blame, even when the deceased had treatment or appeared to be improving. Suicide rates among young adults have risen, and each suicide emotionally affects many people beyond immediate family. College campuses typically increase outreach and provide crisis and mental health services after a campus suicide. Parents and other trusted adults can serve as essential sources of emotional support and help students access urgent care when needed.

Read at Psychology Today