Why Do So Many Washington State Teens Kill Themselves?

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When the federal government reported this month that Washington state teenagers were among the most depressed in the nation, it came as no surprise to Kathleen Gilligan.

Her son, Palmerston Burk, should have been among the graduates last month at Vashon Island High School, but he took his life nearly four years ago.

“I suspected he had bouts of depression but was terrified of it,” Gilligan said. “This is why I talk about the subject now, because I think a lot of parents are afraid of it.”

Across the U.S., 1 of every 9 adolescents aged 12 to 17 had at least one major depressive episode in the last year, according to a report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Of the 10 states with the highest rates, four were in the West: Oregon, Arizona, Utah and Washington state. Oregon ranked first, with nearly 15 percent of teens reporting major depressive episodes. Washington state ranked seventh, with 12 percent.

Researchers defined a major episode as a depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure in daily activities that lasted for two weeks or more, accompanied by symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, eating or concentrating.

The issue has long been on the radar for Washington state officials, who note that the Evergreen State has had a suicide rate higher than the national average every year since 1980.

In 2014, Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill that called on the state’s Department of Health to create a suicide prevention plan for people of all ages. The state released the plan in January, when the governor also signed an executive order requiring the department to begin its implementation.

An average of two youths kill themselves every week in Washington state, with another 17 attempting suicide, according to the Youth Suicide Prevention Program in Seattle. And the state’s report found that 20 percent of the state’s 10th-graders had seriously considered suicide in the previous 12 months.