Bad news: As many as one in five teens suffers from clinical depression, according to Mental Health America.

Worse news: The youth suicide rate has tripled in the United States over the past 35 years, reports the National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children.

The good news? There are organizations like Kids Under Twenty-One (KUTO) that help teens cope with depression. Since 1987, KUTO, based in St. Louis, Missouri, has been working to prevent suicide through education and training. KUTO’s philosophy is simple: teens helping teens help themselves.

Michael, 16
Photography by Scott Houston

I spoke with a young woman, Christy Callahan, who is a volunteer worker at KUTO. Her job as a helpline facilitator is to supervise the hotline volunteers and handle calls herself. Callahan, 22, says that “teens are facing extremely difficult situations in life, and the important thing to keep in mind about teens is that they are far more likely to open up and share with another teen [than an adult].”

Callahan realized the massive impact depression can have on teens when her younger brother attempted suicide seven years ago.

“I wanted to do something proactive to help people, like my brother, struggling with life daily, and to help family members who don’t fully understand why their loved ones are so depressed,” says Callahan of her decision to work with KUTO.

“Teens call to talk about problems they are having with their boyfriends and girlfriends, parents, classmates and friends. Recently, calls have increased regarding self-injury,” Callahan says.

KUTO staffers are taught to distinguish between normal teen angst and dangerous depression and are able to notice when a teen is depressed enough to want to end his or her life.

The hotline volunteers help teens work through their feelings of anxiety, loneliness, depression, or thoughts of suicide, and help them construct a plan-of-action to resolve conflicts and despair.

“When you are deeply depressed and suicidal, the world seems smaller to you than it really is,” Callahan says.

The workers are trained to know when there is a need for medical help. If a caller is in immediate danger, the staff works with the police and telephone companies to send help quickly to the caller. The St. Louis police are aware of KUTO, and can send an ambulance or a police officer to a caller’s home if needed.

Unfortunately, it just isn’t enough to have a hotline. You’ve got to get the word out. A large part of Callahan’s job is promoting KUTO and spreading the word about suicide prevention. She and coworkers send information to schools in their area and speak in classrooms about suicide prevention. 

Each year, KUTO also sponsors events, like Yellow Ribbon Week. More than 35,000 yellow ribbons and KUTO Helpline wallet cards are distributed to students through KUTO’s community outreach volunteers.

The organization also partners with mental health organizations to reduce the social stigma associated with depression and other psychiatric illnesses. The negative view the public has about mental disorders often leads teens to hide and deny their sadness and feelings of helplessness. KUTO helps educate young people that depression is an illness, not a weakness. 

KUTO also runs a program called SurvivAbility that matches up young people who have lost a loved one to suicide with teens who have experienced a similar loss.

In talking to Callahan and learning more about KUTO, I have become interested in the fight for youth suicide prevention. We, as teens, can make a difference, and there is hope for teens struggling with depression.

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide:

1. Think about what you’re upset over. Is it as serious as you think? Teens are often unaware that depression, not the situation, is influencing the way they see things.

2. Don’t keep suicidal thoughts a secret. Talk to someone you trust—a parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle, teacher or coach.

3. Think about the people who would be affected if you were to kill yourself. Would things really be better without you?

4. Call a crisis hotline. If you live in St. Louis, MO, KUTO’s number is 1-888-644-KUTO (5886). Youth crisis workers are available Sunday to Thursday from 4 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Central time and Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m. to midnight Central time. Or, call the toll-free, 24-hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Editors' Note:
Remember: Feelings of helplessness, hopelessness and/or worthlessness—all symptoms of depression—aren’t permanent. The majority of people with depression get better once they receive appropriate treatment.

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