Just a heads up, this episode talks directly about suicide.

This is NPR's life kit.

I'm Ritu Tadidi, a health correspondent with NPR.

Today I want you to meet Regina Crider.

She runs a support group for families of youth with mental illness in Illinois.

But she's also a parent and over a decade ago she got a call no parent wants to get.

Her daughter's school counselor was calling to let her know that the 10-year-old had attempted suicide.

It just took my breath away. I mean as a mom, the thought of you losing your child to suicide is overwhelming.

Her daughter survived the attempt but Regina was still upset and confused as she processed the news.

And she felt as if she'd failed as a mother.

I felt like maybe I missed the signs and because I work with families why didn't I see it?

It's hard for any parent to know if their child is struggling with thoughts of suicide.

Children are often scared to share these feelings even with parents.

And parents don't even know what science to look for or how to support a child who's having those thoughts.

As Regina's experience shows it's an overwhelming experience for the parents too.

But we know growing number of children and teens have been struggling with thoughts and attempts

of suicide in recent years. A CDC survey in 2019 found that about one in five teens reported

seriously considering suicide. And nearly half of teens who identified as LGBTQ had considered suicide.

And suicide is a leading cause of death among children and teens.

But research also shows that suicide is preventable and there's a lot that loved ones

especially parents can do to reduce the risk that a child will go on to make an attempt.

So what can they do? That's what Regina cried her set out to find out after her daughter's first

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