“Many young people lean on each other for support, which can provide comfort, solace, belonging. But often the burden of holding a peer’s pain is too heavy to shoulder.

There’s a certain guilt or shame that comes when people who are confided in — whether young or old — are unable to help peers contemplating self-harm, said Carolyn Redmond, a licensed clinical social worker and the behavioral health manager at Metro Inclusive Health in St. Petersburg.

It’s especially difficult when the person being looked to for help is suffering through their own battles, said Redmond, who works to help youth set boundaries against taking on too much.”