TEEN SUICIDES STUN MANY STILL IN THE DARK ABOUT RISK TO YOUTH.

Byline: Kerry Cavanaugh Staff Writer

They argued about breaking curfew and chores not done, but Brenda Madha never thought her daughter - laughing, outgoing, maybe a little goofy - would take her own life.

Her daughter, Chanelle Villalobos, would mope when she was on restriction. But then mom and daughter would make up; they'd go shopping together, rent movies and sunbathe in their Calabasas back yard.

That's why Madha can't understand what happened on the evening of April 19. Barely 15, Chanelle went to her bedroom, wrote a letter describing her problems and then hung herself from her canopy bed.

Now, nearly two months later, Madha remembers like it was yesterday the pain of looking at her daughter's body at the hospital.

``I kissed her and told her, I'm sorry. I didn't know you felt this way. I could have helped you if I would have known. I'm your mom. I protect you against everybody else in this world; I never thought to protect you from yourself.''

The anguish felt by Madha and her husband, Jack, who was Chanelle's stepdad, is repeated far too often today.

Chanelle's death was just one of three unrelated teen suicides over five weeks this spring in the West Valley.

A 17-year-old boy from Miguel Leonis Continuation High School in Woodland Hills died in March and another 17-year-old who had recently left the school died in April.

Earlier this month an El Camino High boy died in what appeared to be a suicide and word quickly spread around campus that he'd killed himself. Investigators later determined his death was an accident.

The deaths put the spotlight on a troubling and silent public health issue among young people.

``There are no simple answers to suicides. A suicide is a very complex issue and no one person or no thing is to blame,'' said Richard Lieberman, coordinator of the Los Angeles Unified School District's Suicide Prevention Unit.

Teen suicide rates have doubled since the 1950s, and suicide is now the third leading cause of death among young people, after accidents and homicides. In Los Angeles County, about 26 teens kill themselves each year.

But experts say many more teens consider or even try to kill themselves. They estimate about 150 children attempt to kill themselves for every completed suicide. One in four children consider suicide.

Even more troubling, the rate of suicide among children ages 10 to 14 doubled between 1983 and 1998.

Yet suicide is rarely discussed.

There's a stigma surrounding depression, mental illness and suicide, and an unspoken fear that talking about suicide may spur someone to do it.

Health classes may briefly touch on the issue. Teen magazines and television shows occasionally mention it. Young people themselves rarely speak of self-annihilation - until a classmate commits suicide.

Brenda and Jack Madha never thought to talk to Chanelle about suicide. She had so many friends. She seemed so happy, cackling away in that loud, high-pitched laugh of hers.

Later, they learned their daughter was upset on the day of her death because she would have to attend summer school and she was devastated by rumors that she was fooling around with a high school boy.

Seemingly typical teenage worries, Brenda Madha said. ``Chanelle didn't have a reason besides these problems, everyday problems; that is just life. Every kid has to go through this stuff and she's thinking that 'This is the reason I want to die' when it's just life.''

Since her death, the Madhas have learned that suicide and suicide attempts are much more common than they imagined, driven by an undercurrent of depression and problems coping among teens who don't comprehend the finality of death.

They vowed to reach Chanelle's friends and their parents and speak publicly about teen suicide.

``I do believe there's a group of kids there that think suicide is the way to go and Chanelle was just the first to take that leap,'' Brenda Madha said. ``If we could just save one kid, it's worth it. One family that wouldn't have to go through this is worth it to me.''

Experts said that with little public discussion of suicide, many young people don't know how to express or understand their thoughts of killing themselves.

They also may not have the coping skills to handle a traumatic event, like a breakup or a failing grade, said Kita Curry, president of Didi Hearsh Community Mental Health, which created the nation's first suicide hotline.

``Teenagers don't have the experience or life view to understand, OK, my heart may be broken today but it will get better.''

But, she said, suicide is rarely the result of one event.

Ninety percent of people who die by suicide have some mental illness. That can include depression or a conduct disorder, such as breaking rules in class or running away. But depression is often undiagnosed, and young people may not be able to recognize that overwhelming hopelessness as a treatable disease.

Teens may also turn to drugs to self-medicate, and that drug use can severely impair their judgment. Access to guns is another major risk factor, as a suicidal impulse is much more likely to be completed with a gun.

After a suicide, school officials often struggle with what to tell students and parents because of privacy issues and sensitivity to the victim's family.

``Many times families don't want schools releasing any information,'' Lieberman said. ``It's a delicate balance. The school must think of the other students now. They must reach out and try and prevent the next suicide in the community.''

Some El Camino High parents were troubled by the lack of formal information on the deaths coming from the administration. Some students wished school officials had organized an assembly to talk about the incidents.

``A lot of my friends are really disturbed; they've been crying even though they don't know (the victim) that well,'' said 16-year-old Malorie Moriana. ``It's comforting to talk, and when you don't talk about something that's when you need to talk about it the most.''

El Camino High is preparing a letter to parents talking about ``loss in the community'' and providing information on suicide prevention.

At A.E. Wright Middle School, administrators rushed counselors and all of the district's 10 school psychiatrists to the campus the day they learned of Chanelle's death.

They set up a triage system to handle upset classmates, and put out an automated call to parents announcing an informational meeting on her death.

School officials also struggle with how to talk about the deceased child. Children want to honor the victim with memorials and flowers, but suicide prevention experts warn against glamorizing the victim and turning the child into a tragic hero.

At Miguel Leonis Continuation School, Principal Odus Caldwell said his 80-student campus was devastated by the suicide of their classmate in March, but he was warned by experts against over-memorializing, which can spur other teen suicides.

``We made a deal that they would put up a cross and candles for a period of time and then take it down. We've talked a lot about not letting this happen again and not glorifying this.''

Likewise, the Madhas didn't want any sentimentality around Chanelle's death. Brenda Madha asked all of her daughter's teenage friends to attend a viewing and to touch the girl's cold body.

``I would say, look at my daughter. She's dead. This isn't a joke. This isn't something you do when you're upset. Look at her. Chanelle's dead.''

Both the Madhas and school officials hope these recent deaths will spur more parents to talk to their children, and for teens to seek help when they or their friends talk of suicide.

``There are no variables that have been identified that can help us predict which kids will make a suicide attempt from those who just think about suicide,'' said Lieberman, with LAUSD.

``We tell parents, don't just blow this off.''

Kerry Cavanaugh, [phone]

kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) Brenda and Jack Madha reflect on the April suicide of daughter Chanelle Villalobos at their Calabasas home.

(2 -- color) Chanelle Villalobos was just 15 when she hanged herself from her canopy bed. This was the latest photograph taken of her at the time of her death. Chanelle's death was one of three teen suicides over five weeks this spring in the West Valley.

(3) Brenda and Jack Madha are now trying to reach out to other families since Chanelle's suicide. ``One family that wouldn't have to go through this is worth it to me,'' said Brenda Madha.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

Box:

SUICIDE WARNING SIGNS

SOURCE: American Association of Suicidology