After a 15-year-old Clay County, Florida, boy watched the Netflix show, 13 Reasons Why, at the urging of his high school teacher, the teen began making his own list of reasons to kill himself, according to his mother. The mom, however, noticed the warning signs and got her son immediate psychological help.
The mother, who does not want to be named, visited with Nancy Grace for this episode of “Crime Stories” to warn other parents about what can happen if their children view the Netflix series without supervision.
“I didn’t even know the show existed,” she said.
Her son watched the show alone.
“If your child has some issues that he’s hiding from you, it is a problem,” the mother said. “It can suck you in deeper.”
Her son was sent to a mental health facility for counseling after he ran away from home soon after seeing the series. He later admitted he had been cutting himself and had suicidal thoughts. In fact, he had already written 10 reasons why he might kill himself, the mother said.
“He never told me he felt that way,” she said.
The Florida mother said she believed teachers had been bullying her son by humiliating him in class.
Psychologist Caryn Stark said the series glorifies teen suicide.
“The problem with 13 Reasons, although they are well intended, is it makes it really look like that everyone will love you, regret their behavior, gather together to talk about you, all of the sudden you will become this important person that you didn’t feel like.”
Anyone with suicidal thoughts can call the National Suicide Prevention Line at 1-800-273-8255.
“They keep you on the line and talk you through it, until you get past that horrible moment,” Grace said.