Every three years, a survey is conducted among children and young people in Norway. The youth data survey will provide an insight into how Norwegian youth feel. Although not all the results will be presented until August, Norwegian municipalities have gained insight into what their youth have responded to. And in Meløy municipality in Nordland, with its around 6,200 inhabitants, there are things to worry about. The survey was conducted in February this year. 166 students in the age group 13–16 years, from 8th to 10th grade, participated. It was the newspaper Kulingen that first mentioned the case. – Joking about suicide One of those who participated in the survey is 14-year-old Gabriela Stolanowska, who lives on Ørnes but is from Meløya. – I’m fine with myself, and have nice parents with whom I can talk about everything. But I notice that young people joke with things you should not joke with, such as suicide and anxiety, she says. An alarming number of students at the lower secondary level in Meløy municipality say they have thought about taking their own lives. Here is Ørnes ungdomsskole Photo: Synnøve Sundby Fallmyr / news – Do you experience that some of your friends use a health station for young people? – I did not even know that we had a health station before I saw the examination. I do not think any of them use it. Here on Meløya, the nurse is only once every six months. We do not need a nurse all the time, but it would have been nice if she was available. – What do you think should be done? – When the figures from the Ungdata survey were presented in the municipal council, many politicians said how bad they thought it was, but it seemed that they were more concerned with appearing kind and worried than actually coming up with solutions. No one came up with a single suggestion. We need to find solutions and not just talk about how bad this is. Surprised by the figures Leader of Meløy youth council, Vinjar Meosli, says he was surprised when he saw the figures from the survey. – When I saw these numbers, I thought «Oops! Why is it like that?” Of course we are concerned that the numbers are so high. SOME OF THE REASON: Vinjar Meosli, leader of the Meløy youth council, believes some of the reason for these gloomy figures can be linked to the fact that around one in three young people in the municipality do not know that they have a health station for young people. Photo: Kasper Holgersen / news Questions about self-harm are not standard in the Ungdata survey. But Meløy municipality asked for extra questions about exactly this when the survey was to be carried out. Concerned about suicide rates The municipality is working on a project they call “Better interdisciplinary efforts and cooperation for children, young people and families”. This is one of the reasons why they want a more comprehensive answer in the survey. – Youth data figures from 2019 among students in Meløy upper secondary school worried us. Therefore, we wanted to map the status among the students at the lower secondary level as well, says deputy mayor Mette Bjørnvik. She says they are concerned about the proportion who say they have harmed themselves, or have had thoughts of suicide. – We take the results of the survey very seriously. DEPUTY MAYOR: Mette Bjørnvik (H) is deputy mayor in Meløy municipality. Photo: Kasper Holgersen / news The politicians in the municipality have now asked the municipal administration to make a thorough review of the findings in order to be able to implement necessary measures for follow-up. Nevertheless, it is important for the deputy mayor to emphasize that not everything about the findings is gloomy: – Most young people are well satisfied with their lives. The figures in Ungdata tell how many people have thought about taking their own lives, and the majority were girls. Nevertheless, those who actually commit suicide are mostly men: About 600 people take their own lives every year in Norway. Two out of three are men. The majority are over 40 years old. “Norwegian youth are generally doing very well” The academic leader of the Ungdata survey, Anders Bakken, says that Norwegian youth are generally doing very well. – They score high on quality of life and most people think they have a good life. Still, there are differences. – Although very many young people are doing well, there are some young people who have a rather stressful everyday life. School is what may stand out on the national figures. Anders Bakken, researcher at the Welfare Research Institute NOVA. Photo: Nova, Oslo met Bakken can not say anything about the category of suicide, as only individual municipalities have asked to include this as part of the survey. Bakken points out that a trend that has caused concern is well-being at school. – What we have seen as a trend now is that young people do not thrive at school. There are more people who say that they do not thrive at school now, than 5-6 years ago. Need someone to talk to? If you need someone to talk to, you can use some of these low-threshold offers: Kirkens SOS: Call 22 40 00 40 or write to soschat.no or meldinger.kirkens-sos.no. Cross on the neck: Call 800 333 21 or write at korspaahalsen.rodekors.no. The service is offered by the Red Cross and is for you under 18 years of age. Mental Health Helpline: Call 116 123 or write to sidetmedord.no. Dial 2 for parental care and dial 3 for the student telephone on the same number. Mental Health Youth: Chat service on www.mhu.no on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 17-20. The service is aimed at young adults (18-35 years). Acute suicide risk? Call 113 when it is urgent and about life. Call the emergency room on tel. 116117 for immediate help. You can also talk to your GP. Tromsø tops the suicide statistics Meløy’s gloomy figures have led to concern for the municipality. But it is no better further north. In Tromsø, they top the statistics for suicides in this year’s Ungdata survey. Nor do they know exactly why they are at the top of the list. They are part of the ten-year pilot project for public health, and will strengthen their work with mental health and drug prevention. Ask yourself, “What makes you happy?” Although Vinjar Meosli in the youth council is worried, he is not surprised that some young people in Meløy are having a hard time at times. – It is a development we have seen in recent years, not only in Meløy, but throughout the country, he says. – I think social media plays an important role here. You see nice things you like on the screen, the brain produces endorphins, but when you lay down you realize that your life may not be quite like on social media. It can be devastating, says Meosli. – What can you do, then? – I think it is important to ask yourself what makes you happy. Then we must do more of what makes us happy. In addition, I think it is important to talk to each other and ask how we are. Because even though some of the results in the Youth Data Survey are negative for Meløy municipality, Vinjar Meosli also sees positive things. – We see, among other things, that many of the young people exercise or are physically active, and they are good at using the leisure activities in the municipality. I see Meløy as a nice municipality with many opportunities for adults and young people. We just have to be aware of the possibilities and use them. How do young people with suicidal thoughts influence each other on social media? Vilde explores a closed network of young people who share their painful everyday lives.
ttn-69
In Meløy municipality, 40 percent of the girls have thought about taking their own lives – news Nordland
