The suicide of a 10-year-old child sows consternation

AnnSofy, who preferred to be called Alex, experienced bullying for many years as she was going through an identity crisis.

• Read also: Intimidated 10-year-old girl takes her own life

Several people gathered in front of the child’s mother’s home to show their support.

This is a tragedy that raises many questions.

“It strikes the imagination a bit to think that a child of that age can even think about suicide. It’s really sad news, ”said Françoise Roy of the Quebec Association for Suicide Prevention.

According to her, a 10-year-old child may not be able to understand that the gesture made leads to death.

“What does the child understand of death. What does he understand about suicide?”, asks M^me Roy.

She also stresses the importance for children of having trusted people to whom it is possible to express their discomfort.

Several organizations, including Jeunesse IDEM, listen to young people, but also to parents who have questions.

“We see young people from 7 years old. It’s something that happens, young people question their gender or already have an innate sense of who they are and they manage to communicate it quite young, ”explains Stéphanie Meunier, community worker at Jeunesse IDEM Outaouais.

Experts agree that discussion is needed between parents and children to limit prejudice.

“It’s important to make them understand that everyone goes through this phase. But not everyone experiences it the same way. And it’s important to accept people as they are, as they live this period of questioning without judging them,” believes Nafissa Ismail, holder of the Research Chair in Mental Health at the University of ‘Ottawa.

A drama that affects all of Quebec, including the political class. The Minister of Families and responsible for the Outaouais, Mathieu Lacombe, says he is heartbroken, and that everything will be done to fight against bullying and also improve access to services.

The leader of the official opposition, Dominique Anglade, adds that a suicide, regardless of age, is tragic and that there is still a long way to go in the face of intolerance.