What every parent needs to know about the 'back-to-school necklace' trend
The trend refers to a noose as a 'necklace' and expresses the suicidal thoughts some kids have on the heels of going back to school.
The dark meme seems to resurface at the end of the summer each year, and although some regard it as a joke about dreading school, experts warn of the negative connotations of the trend.
Dr. Chelsea Hetherington, a developmental psychologist, wrote in Family Education that jokes about suicide can trivialize the issue and impact students who are struggling with mental health.
'The 'back to school necklace' trend is just one of many ways that teens might joke about suicide and self-harm without recognizing the consequences,' Heatherington argues.
The disturbing meme often pictures a noose with the caption, 'Guys look it's a back to school necklace' or 'Back to school necklace. Only $4.99.'
Experts warn that parents should be on alert for this phrase and teach their children that joking about harming themselves has serious implications.
Samantha Westhouse, a psychotherapist and maternal-infant health social worker, told Parade that parents can facilitate open dialogue by asking their children and teens if they've heard of the meme.
The meme pictures a noose with captions like 'Guys look its a back to school necklace' or 'Back to school necklace. Only $4.99'
'It's always important to refrain from judgment so your child feels comfortable sharing how they are feeling,' she said.
Emily Cavaleri, a school social worker and child and family therapist, told the publication that if a student refers to a 'back-to-school necklace,' there's a chance that they're struggling with their mental health.
'Whether your child is seriously contemplating suicide or they use this phrase as a cry for help, signs you may see [include] spending time alone, acting withdrawn, irritability, crying easily and often, sleeping more than usual, difficulty sleeping, loss of interest in things they used to enjoy, giving away belongings, and overall, a change in behavior,' she added.
Although many kids and teens may use the meme as a form of dark humor, youth suicide is a serious problem.
Suicide is responsible for more deaths than any major medical illness for those ages 10 to 24 years old, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Data cited by the AAP found that roughly 7-8 percent of adolescents attempt suicide every year, with around 17 percent reporting suicidal thoughts.
Around 157,000 individuals in this age group receive emergency medical care a year for self-harm.
The United States Surgeon General declared a mental health crisis for children and teens in 2021, citing stressors like gun violence and the impact of social media on young people's lives.
Heatherington suggested that parents should be aware of the signs indicating mental health struggles in their kids and keep an open dialogue on the subject.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
10 minutes ago
- The Independent
Americans get more than half their calories from these ultra-processed foods
More than half the calories consumed by most Americans originate from ultra-processed foods, according to a new federal report. While nutrition research has shown for years that ultraprocessed foods make up a big chunk of the U.S. diet, particularly for children and teenagers, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has, for the first time, confirmed these high consumption levels. Their findings are based on dietary data collected from August 2021 to August 2023. The report comes amid growing scrutiny by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who blames them for causing chronic disease. 'We are poisoning ourselves and it's coming principally from these ultraprocessed foods,' Kennedy told Fox News earlier this year. Overall, about 55 percent of total calories consumed by Americans aged one and older came from ultraprocessed foods during that period, according to the report. For adults, ultraprocessed foods made up about 53 percent of total calories consumed, but for kids through age 18, it was nearly 62 percent. The top sources included burgers and sandwiches, sweet baked goods, savory snacks, pizza and sweetened drinks. Young children consumed fewer calories from ultra-processed foods than older kids, the report found. Adults 60 and older consumed fewer calories from those sources than younger adults. Low-income adults consumed more ultra-processed foods than those with higher incomes. The results were not surprising, said co-author Anne Williams, a CDC nutrition expert. What was surprising was that consumption of ultra-processed foods appeared to dip slightly over the past decade. Among adults, total calories from those sources fell from about 56 percent in 2013-2014 and from nearly 66 percent for kids in 2017-2018. Williams said she couldn't speculate about the reason for the decline or whether consumption of less processed foods increased. But Andrea Deierlein, a nutrition expert at New York University who was not involved in the research, suggested that there may be greater awareness of the potential harms of ultra-processed foods. 'People are trying, at least in some populations, to decrease their intakes of these foods,' she said. Concern over ultraprocessed foods' health effects has been growing for years, but finding solutions has been difficult. Many studies have linked them to obesity, diabetes and heart disease, but they haven't been able to prove that the foods directly cause those chronic health problems. One small but influential study found that even when diets were matched for calories, sugar, fat, fiber and micronutrients, people consumed more calories and gained more weight when they ate ultra-processed foods than when they ate minimally processed foods. Research published this week in the journal Nature found that participants in a clinical trial lost twice as much weight when they ate minimally processed foods — such as pasta, chicken, fruits and vegetables — than ultra-processed foods, even those matched for nutrition components and considered healthy, such as ready-to-heat frozen meals, protein bars and shakes. Part of the problem is simply defining ultra-processed foods. The new CDC report used the most common definition based on the four-tier Nova system developed by Brazilian researchers that classifies foods according to the amount of processing they undergo. Such foods tend to be 'hyperpalatable, energy-dense, low in dietary fiber and contain little or no whole foods, while having high amounts of salt, sweeteners and unhealthy fats,' the CDC report said. U.S. health officials recently said there are concerns over whether current definitions 'accurately capture' the range of foods that may affect health. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Agriculture Department recently issued a request for information to develop a new, uniform definition of ultra-processed foods for products in the U.S. food supply. In the meantime, Americans should try to reduce ultra-processed foods in their daily diets, Deierlein said. For instance, instead of instant oatmeal that may contain added sugar, sodium, artificial colors and preservatives, use plain oats sweetened with honey or maple syrup. Read food packages and nutrition information, she suggested. 'I do think that there are less-processed options available for many foods,' she said.
Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
Merck KGaA is looking into direct distribution to U.S. patients
FRANKFURT, Aug 7 (Reuters) - German drugmaker Merck KGaA ( opens new tab on Thursday joined peers in saying it was considering distribution models that serve U.S. patients directly if the government goes ahead with plans to slash drug prices to align with lower levels in other countries. President Donald Trump has ramped up efforts to cut prescription drug prices through a "most-favored-nation" (MFN) policy, aiming to align domestic prices with the lowest levels paid by comparable high-income countries. "Direct-to-patient sales is an option in our plans if MFN is implemented," CEO Belen Garijo said in a media call after the release of quarterly results. "There is a significant cost burden associated (with) the distribution of medicines in the U.S., so anything that we can do to alleviate the burden to the patient is something that we will contemplate," she added.
Daily Mail
11 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Kelly Grandmaison's Blueprint for Helping Women Entrepreneurs Break Barriers and Build Lasting Wealth
Kelly Grandmaison stands at the intersection of personal triumph and professional vision. As co-founder of Impact Ventures International (IVI), the Mexican-American entrepreneur embodies an example for women in business that rejects the false choice between profit and purpose, personal success and community impact. Her outlook on business consulting, born from her journey of resilience and transformation, has redefined business consulting and inspired women who aspire to claim their rightful place in boardrooms and balance sheets. Grandmaison, pictured above, mentions, 'We don't see success as just numbers on a balance sheet. It's in the stories we hear from clients who feel more aligned with their vision after working with us. It's in the nonprofit leaders who now have systems to scale their missions. It's in the people who've found new opportunities and stability because of our work.' These words are not just a mission statement—they are a call to action for a generation of women entrepreneurs whom others have too often told to wait their turn. The Path Through Pain Grandmaison's vision for women's economic empowerment stemmed from her personal adversity. In 2019, at just 26, she received a diagnosis that could have ended her professional journey before it truly began: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). This debilitating condition confined her to crutches and eventually a wheelchair, with a 50/50 prognosis. For many, this would have been the end of ambition. But for Grandmaison, it became the foundation of purpose. Her path to healing led her to Italy, where innovative medical treatment allowed her to walk three miles unassisted after just 10 days. This experience of confronting a system that failed to offer solutions and finding an alternative path mirrors the journey she now guides other women through in the business world. This sentiment reflects what she aspires for women entrepreneurs: not just business strategies, but liberation from personal struggles and confining paradigms about what success means and who achieves it. Wealth Beyond Balance Sheets Men who define success through narrow metrics have long dominated the consulting industry: revenue growth, market share, and exit valuations. Grandmaison's perspective, grounded in her CEPA (Certified Exit Planning Advisor) credentials and psychological training, expands this definition to incorporate holistic measures of wealth. The Los Angeles Business Journal recognized her as part of its ' Women of Influence: Finance 2025 ' feature. The publication describes her work as combining 'entrepreneurial innovation, strategic financial proficiency, and a passion for community impact.' For instance, IVI's signature program VentureMax360 represents a feminine slant on business growth—not because it is softer or less rigorous, but because it is comprehensive and refuses to separate the business from the person running it or its community. This integration of personal values, business strategy, and social responsibility allows women entrepreneurs to build enterprises that reflect their authentic vision rather than conform to masculine paradigms of success. She understands that for women entrepreneurs, particularly those whom traditional business spaces marginalize, business success must serve deeper purposes than status or accumulation. The 20% Revolution Perhaps most noteworthy in Grandmaison's blueprint is IVI's commitment to donate 20% of annual revenue to nonprofit causes. This is not corporate social responsibility as an afterthought or marketing strategy; it is a fundamental factor in the business model. In a capitalist system where institutions systematically deny women access to capital, this redistribution of resources represents a profound challenge to traditional power structures. Grandmaison's method acknowledges what many women entrepreneurs intuitively understand: that wealth creation apart from community well-being results in systems of inequity. By embedding philanthropy into the business model, she offers owners (especially women) a way to succeed financially without abandoning their values or communities. Grandmaison adds, 'When you build a business with strong values at its core, it's not about sacrificing one for the other—it's about creating a model where both can thrive. In this case, it is when profit and purpose give way to true success.' Beyond Gender Roles: Having One Goal Despite her well-known advocacy for women's entrepreneurship and commitment to helping women scale and build wealth, Kelly Grandmaison does not frame her work as a competition between genders. As co-founder of Impact Ventures International (IVI) alongside Joshua Kirshbaum, Grandmaison has consistently emphasized that the true measure of business success lies not in gender, but in whether partners and teams align around shared goals and a unified vision. It all comes down to the question: 'who is your team?'. In the competitive business world, she believes that collaboration and mutual respect transcend questions of gender, enabling diverse leaders to combine their strengths for greater impact. Grandmaison and Kirshbaum built IVI on the foundation that the ability to create meaningful, sustainable value best defines success, not by who claims credit or outperforms whom. Her vision suggests that the future of women's entrepreneurship lies in elevating ideas and voices of women in male-dominated models and in pioneering processes that honor wholeness, connection, and purpose alongside profit. This philosophy has allowed IVI to become a trusted partner for many businesses, resulting in successful partnerships with over 200 clients, including entrepreneurs, nonprofits, and high-net-worth individuals across multiple industries. It proves that true leadership is about unity of purpose rather than rivalry.
