ABSTRACT
In discussing depression and suicide attempts during adolescence, we have to look at this in relation to the normal stresses of adolescence. For example, it is quite normal for the adolescent to feel depressed at times, it may be due to feeling lonely or socially unwanted, having been rejected by a girlfriend, feeling ugly or dissatisfied with his appearance, hating his work or school or parents, and so on. A moment later, he may feel elated and think everything is perfect. Suicide seems to indicate a specific way for an adolescent to deal with his aggression and his fear of it, because it is an actual turning of physical violence against his own body, even if the accompanying fantasy makes it appear as 'just going to sleep', as in an overdose. It is also worth noting here that suicide is an act of violence that typically first appears during adolescence.
