I was watching the news unfold yesterday about the shooting in a Seattle high school. Listening to a few students tell what happened was chilling. I am saddened to hear these stories over-and-over and to know that, unfortunately, these shootings have become more commonplace than any one of us ever could have imagined.

In yesterday’s shooting, one student and the student-shooter were killed, and three other students were critically injured.

Student Austin Taylor recounted to KING News what happened in the cafeteria.
“I was sitting at the table right next to the round table (where the shooter was). I just got done eating my food. He was quiet, everyone was talking. All of sudden he stands up, pulls something out of his pocket. At first I thought it was someone making a really loud noise like a bag, a loud pop. There were four more after that. I saw three kids just fall from the table, like they were falling to the ground dead. I jumped under the table as fast as I could. When it stopped, I got back up and saw he was trying to reload his gun. And when that happened, I just ran in the opposite direction and I was out of there as fast as I could.”

I have said before, we could use better gun control laws in this country, but I don’t believe that those laws, necessarily, will prevent the gun violence that results in mass shootings. What we need is to focus more on student-mental health and mental health in general, in this country.

I want to be clear that mental health issues do not mean a person is going to become violent, so we certainly should not stereotype. If anything we should be breaking down the stereotypes of mental illness so that the stigma attached goes away. What I am saying is that the perpetrators of the thirty some-odd mass shootings since Columbine in 1999, most likely had some form of mental illness, that coupled with other issues (social, family, etc.) led to them making their decision to become violent.

Over the years, students, teachers, parents and school administrators have become more aware of some of the signs that might imply someone is planning a violent attack. In my May blog “Not One More”, I provided a short list of some behavioral changes that should be of concern including:

1. Increased anger, aggression, tantrums, irritability, and revenge episodes especially when you can’t make any sense of the situation and the person seems more depressed, isolated and unruly than usual.
2. The appearance of strange ideas especially having to do with anti-government themes, conspiracy theories, and other paranoid trends especially if accompanied by hearing voices.
3. Interest in and ownership of weapons that are a new or heightened twist for the individual.
4. Overt or thinly veiled threats, writings, interest in and worship of lethal ideas towards self or others, including suicide.
5. Increase in substance use by people with a history of violence and especially in those who have been treated for a severe psychiatric illness who have stopped their medication.

The important thing is for all to continue to be vigilant. Students should take threats they see on social media, overhear or that are said to them, and report these threats to parents, teachers, coaches, school administrators or law enforcement. It has been proven in many cases that reporting these incidences has prevented other tragedies like the one today.

DISCLAIMER

Information contained in this blog is intended for educational purposes only. It is not intended as medical or psychiatric advice for individual conditions or treatment and does not substitute for a medical or psychiatric examination. A psychiatrist must make a determination about any treatment or prescription. Dr. Paul does not assume any responsibility or risk for the use of any information contained within this blog.