An online social media challenge is believed to be behind the suicide deaths of at least two kids in the United States.  

It's called the Blue Whale Challenge and it reportedly originated in Russia a couple of years ago.  

According to reports, it is named the blue whale for the way in which whales beach themselves and later die.

The Blue Whale Challenge is supposedly played on social media.  It's alleged an anonymous instructor assigns players tasks over a 50 day period. Some tasks are as simple as listening to music, others encourage self-harm.  The final act instructs participants to kill themselves.

Child psychologist Dr. David Chiarella says the challenge shows the power social media has over some teens.

"When you start getting into these more dark kinds of situations or these games, I think it has a tremendous impact, especially on those students or children that are already struggling," said Dr. Chiarella.

Dr. Chiarella says if parents are aware of the signs of depression and suicide, they may be able to pick up on clues that their child is struggling.  He encourages parents to have discussions with their kids about what really happens after someone commits suicide.

"There are so many places out there that can contribute to problems rather than solutions and so I would encourage parents, they need to get involved.  They need to know what is going on," said Dr. Chiarella.

Knowledge is power and in this case, it could also be the key to keeping other kids from falling prey to the Blue Whale.