The suicidal person feels a tremendous sense of loneliness, isolation, helplessness and hopelessness. For the young person, these feelings may be caused by family conflicts, a divorce or separation, the death of a parent, the breakup of a romance, confusion over sexual orientation, unexpected or unwanted pregnancy, loss of social or financial status, the move to a new school or pressure to succeed at school. Typically suicide is the result of an accumulation of stressors. Do not judge the impact of these crises by adult standards; rather, consider them in reference to the adolescent.

Suicidal people feel that they can no longer cope with their problems and that suicide may be the only way out. Most people think about suicide at some point in their life. Most people find that these thoughts are temporary and that things do get better. Suicide is a needless and permanent solution to short-term problems.