CDC: Number of youth committing suicide on the rise

MONTGOMERY, AL (CNN) - The number of children and teens who tried to take their own lives is on the rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

The numbers are chilling. A new study shows, in 2007 more than a half a million kids between the age of 5-years-old through 18 went to an emergency room for a suicide attempt or suicidal thoughts. The CDC those numbers doubled to over a million cases by the year 2015.

"Unfortunately, the results from this study are no surprise to me, said Dr. Nadine J. Kaslow with Emory University School of Medicine. “There’s tremendous pressure on young people now to be popular. How many friends do you have on Snapchat and Facebook. There’s increase of cyberbullying.”

There’s pressure everywhere. Parents feel the heat when they are trying to get their kids into competitive schools and the kids are watching to how their mom and dads react.

"Look at how they're modeling and how they deal with stress,” said psychologist Sheryl Ziegler.

For children who are struggling there may be a need for more resources. Data from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry shows the majority of the country faces a severe shortage of providers, fewer than 17 for every 100,000 children.

There are some things you can do at home.

"Let your child fail,” said Ziegler. “Let them take risks so that way they learn how to deal with it and they learn how to be successful on their own."

Some other things you can try at home are limiting social media and build in quality time with the family.

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