Spencer Smith Brunswick teen suicide amid ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Maine teen struggling with dashed hopes, self isolation and displacement takes their own life.
A 16 year old Brunswick, Maine teen struggling with isolation amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is reported to have taken their own life.
Spencer Smith, a sophomore at Brunswick High School, had found his mostly online class schedule challenging since it meant he was away from his friends, WMTV reported.
‘The social distance ain’t working for the kids. I mean, the kids are having it hard,’ his father, Jay Smith, told the news outlet.
Even with his one day of in-person classes, he felt it was difficult to really connect with his peers, so he asked to stay home.
‘He was a fun-loving kid, but we didn’t see the pain that apparently he was in,’ his dad said.
His dad said the teen had spent the summer bulking up to be a lineman for the football team.
But the teen who had been anticipating an active school year was crushed when he learned that the sport would be replaced by flag football.
‘As soon as he found out it wasn’t going to be a regular football season, looking back, we noticed he stopped working out,’ his dad said.
‘He stopped riding his bike as much to the point he didn’t even work out anymore. Instead of working out, he took naps.’
His father said the family ‘missed catching the signs that things were getting worse for him’ before committing suicide, Dec. 4.
‘He wanted more out of life. He wanted everything out of life,’ Smith said.
The psychological stress of self isolation, social distancing has also led to other adolescents taking their own lives, whether suffering from boredom, frustration, vanished dreams, or just the opportunity to be around their peers along with struggling with mental health issues.
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