Our generation of teenagers

In this blog entry, instead of focusing on a specific topic, I would like to touch on what it is generally like to be a teenager at the moment (as I am very experienced in this area). Of course, there are many teenagers going out to mad parties right now while I'm sat typing up a blog entry alone in my room, so this obviously does not apply to all teenagers. 

Recently though, it has come to my attention that our generation of teenagers happen to be facing a lot of difficult situations that people our age aren't really equipped to face, especially as we have so many other things going on in our lives. 

Having said this, I am aware that being a teenager does, and always will, suck. There are just some things about going into your teenaged years that will never be particularly fun. 

Some examples of this are:

• Spots
• Exams
• Other teenagers >.< *cue dramatic music*
• The pain of having braces
• Everyone having expectations of you that are too high.
• Peer pressure
• Responsibilities 

Some of these problems will sort themselves out with age, though there are a few that will follow us into adulthood. 

Nevertheless, these things are not the reasons that have been concerning me. The thing that has really been getting to me is how many serious issues our generation are facing, namely ones to do with mental health. I believe the reason us teenagers are so ill-equipped to deal with these issues is mainly because although we are no longer children, we are definitely not knowledgeable or experienced enough to be considered adults. Sometimes we forget this, meaning that we treat ourselves as if we are stronger and more equipped to deal with some situations than we may be in reality. After all, how do you expect a 13 year old to fully understand their mental health problem? 

Ans: they are unable to do so.

I mean, when you think about it, sure: you are better off in this situation now than you would have been five or so years ago, but you are still growing up. You will learn new things throughout your entire life, but at your age, when you should be focusing on learning other things, do not not put too much pressure on yourself. If you have a real problem, whether that is self-harming, depression, bipolar disorder, plain bullying, cyber bullying, an eating disorder or otherwise, do let someone know. It isn't fair for you to concern you with these stupid things when you have so much else you can be doing. By stressing yourself out, all you will do is drive your friends away and fall behind with school work, possibly affecting your career and future. 

By getting help for whatever is getting to you, you can learn to be kind to yourself. Always make sure that you are your no.1 priority and that you are properly taking care of yourself. You can do so by taking a step back and reflecting on a situation before you get hung up with things that you can't handle, whether you are 12 or 16 years old. 

That thing that's been keeping you awake at night? Tell someone about it. This could be a parent, a best friend or a teacher. Trust me, things will get a lot easier once you have done this.

Also, I just want to remind people that if you have suffered from the any of the issues I have mentioned; you are not alone. It's okay to feel weak sometimes - everyone has both good days and bad days, and just because you may be having a bad day doesn't mean you are a failure of a human being. Frankly, I think that is just ridiculous. 

One thing that I feel affects how teenagers see themselves is social media. They see people around them on FaceBook and Instagram seemingly having a more fun time than them, making whoever sees this feel insecure about their own lives. This makes the teenager feel as if their life is insignificant in comparison to other people's. However, the thing to remember is that people only put small snapshots of their life on the internet. They may look happy in one picture, but in reality, their life could be crumbling down around them (e.g. they could be going through a really tough time at home). Of course, if they were to post a status on FaceBook telling people about this, they would begin to feel insecure and vulnerable, so they don't.
Your life is just as significant and precious as other people's. 

In addition, there are also some aspects of being a teenager that don't suck that could easily be focused on instead of everything else, such as:

• The freedom you get as you become older due to more adults trusting you (although it is a long wait)
• You begin to learn more about yourself as a person
• It's kind of funny to see yours and other people's transformation between a child and a young adult (or is that just me?) 
• You are allowed to pick specific subjects you do and don't want to take in school, making it easier to focus on the things you think will be useful to you in the future. 

To conclude, just remember not to let certain problems consume you and your teenage years will become a whole lot more bearable.

If this blog entry has helped you in any way, remember to follow me and share this blog post! If you have any suggestions for what I could write about in the future, do leave them in the comments below. 

Speak to you soon, 

Lucy x