In retrospect, having known someone very close who took their life, the only thing I can say is to be there for support, and listen. Love them as much as you can. If they decide to do it, it must be their choice.
In Don's case it is difficult to say. As far as I can tell, intervening did not help.
I have actually worked with teenagers who were mentally unstable—teaching art—when I was in my 20s. I will say that again, listening, so they feel seen and heard, is helpful. And the other thing was that I let them express themselves freely with art. I never set projects or expectations. I didn't give out grades. I just put out the materials and let them have at it. They worked out a lot of aggression and expressed a lot of feelings that way.
If there is severe mental illness, that would be beyond my scope to say.
In Don's case it is difficult to say. As far as I can tell, intervening did not help.
I have actually worked with teenagers who were mentally unstable—teaching art—when I was in my 20s. I will say that again, listening, so they feel seen and heard, is helpful. And the other thing was that I let them express themselves freely with art. I never set projects or expectations. I didn't give out grades. I just put out the materials and let them have at it. They worked out a lot of aggression and expressed a lot of feelings that way.
If there is severe mental illness, that would be beyond my scope to say.
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