RECENTLY, we ran a tragic story of a Kuwadzana Grade 7 pupil who committed suicide.
It’s the latest death by suicide to hit the community of Kuwadzana in which a student took his or her life.
There have been a number of such cases countrywide and they all tell us that even our children go through a lot of stuff which become a burden on their young souls.
Children are being exposed to a lot of toxic stuff and some of these things are now driving them to not only consider but also go ahead and commit suicide.
Against this background, it is important that we should constantly monitor our children’s behaviour and pick some signs and signals which could give out the strain that they could be under.
In the case, which we reported, the primary schoolboy shocked his grandmother by taking his life.
She described him as a jovial character and very intelligent pupil.
The tragedy, which left many of his peers at a loss for words, is a genuine reminder that children should not be spared when we are talking about the challenges that come with mental health issues.
The fact that his parents were staying in South Africa might have affected him in a big way.
What is shocking is that similar cases have been reported in the same suburb.
Children should be taught that suicide is not the solution.
Failure to educate our children about the dangers of suicide will create this impression, among our kids, that taking their lives is an easy way to escape from the challenges they are having.
Children also need the same counselling which the adults get.
They are fragile and they really need to be handled with care.
As parents/guardians, we should also be considerate and understand the needs of our children.
We should never allow our children to bottle issues.
If they do something wrong, we should find a better way of whipping them in line.
What we say to our children can drive them to the extremes.
The Kuwadzana schoolboy did not leave a suicidal note and we might never know what really drove him to consider suicide as an option to deal with the challenges he was facing.
The grandmother also needs counselling because of the trauma she is going through.
It’s a loss she will feel for the rest of her life and the pain will follow her everywhere she goes.
The pain that comes with losing a child, who will be under your custody, is something that words cannot describe.
It’s such a horrible feeling that, if we don’t support those who would have been affected by such a tragedy, we could end up losing them as well.
That’s how sensitive and challenging these cases are.
That is why the grandmother and the parents also need our support as they deal with the pain of losing their loved one in such a tragic way.
His siblings also need counselling.