Class 10 student with bipolar disorder ends life in Kasaragod

Kasaragod: A 16-year-old girl undergoing treatment for a psychiatric condition was found dead in her room in a suspected case of suicide in Kasaragod.

The deceased is Devika (16) of Manimoola in Kuttikol panchayat's Bandadka. She was found dead in her bedroom on Tuesday morning.

Devika was a Class 10 student of Government Higher Secondary School, Kundamkuzhi, said Bethalam ward member KR Venu.

She is survived by her mother Savitha, who runs a porridge shop near Kerala Gramin Bank at Bandadka, and her younger brother, a Class V student. Her father, Satheesh, died by suicide four years ago. The family has endured other tragedies as well -- Satheesh’s father had earlier taken his own life in the same house, and his sister's daughter, who lived next door, also died by suicide.

Bedakam Police Sub-Inspector Sumesh Raj, who conducted the inquest, said Devika had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was on medication prescribed by doctors at Kasaragod District Hospital, Kanhangad. 

"Around three months ago, she was taken to Pariyaram Medical College, where doctors advised her to continue the medication," he said.

Panchayat member Venu said that Devika, a bright student, frequently fainted in school and was receiving counselling along with medicines. She was also the president of CPM's children's wing, Balasangham, in Bandadka village.

Bipolar disorder is marked by extreme shifts in mood, energy, and activity levels. A 2023 Finnish population-based study published in BMJ Mental Health found that bipolar patients were six times more likely to die from external causes such as accidents, violence, and suicide compared to those without the condition. Of these deaths, suicide accounted for nearly 58%.