Kids young as 10 seeking mental support over suicidal thoughts as calls to Kids Helpline rises

Children as young as 10 are looking for help over suicidal thoughts, figures show, as the Kids Helpline struggles to keep up with demand.

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Growing numbers of South Australian children, some as young as 10, are seeking mental health support for suicidal thoughts, figures show.

Figures from the Kids Helpline reveal concerns about mental health rose a quarter, and suicide-related contacts are up 31 per cent, over the past three years.

South Australians between the ages of five and 25 contacted the confidential counselling service more than 8600 times in 2018.

Yourtown virtual services manager, Tony FitzGerald, said counsellors were worried about the increase because the Helpline was struggling to meet the growing demand.

“Suicide is a leading cause of death in young people,” he said.

“What we’re also seeing is young people presenting younger and younger with concerns around or in relation to suicide, particularly that 10-to-14-year-age group.”

This was often driven by feelings of isolation and disconnection from their peers, he said.

Social media was also found to offer young people positive connections but could also have a negative impact on their lives if bullying in the schoolyard extended to cyber bullying.

Issues with family relationships were the second most common concern, with busy lives impacting the opportunities for families to sit down and talk, he said.

And one in five calls were from regional and remote SA, where concerns were high about the drought.

“Young people who identify as LGBTIQ and indigenous, were also more vulnerable to incidents of suicide and mental health issues,” Mr FitzGerald said.

Three out of four contacts were from females, and most were 13 to 18 years old.

Almost a third spoke to one of the Helpline’s 130 counsellors via a webchat. However, phone remains the most popular method.

The Helpline hopes to raise an extra $5 million funding to answer more calls; almost half went unanswered last year.

Liberal MLC John Dawkins was last year appointed head of the Premier’s Council on Suicide Prevention and tasked with reducing SA’s suicide rate.

“One of the great hopes we have got is young people, who tend to be more willing to talk about these things than people of my generation,” Mr Dawkins said.