Friday, February 4, 2011

Today's Teens Face Countless Problems

Being a teenager has never been one of the easiest tasks, but today's teens are facing countless problems and challenges.

A number of adults think that being a teen today is the same as it was when they were an adolescent, nothing could be further from the truth.  Although yesteryear-parents may have been strict and life seem hard. On the grand scheme of things, it does not measure up to the challenges and life threatening decisions today's teens face just about everyday.

In the normal course of a teen's day, he or she may encounter any number of these challenges:

Depression  With all that they see and do, teens face depression today at an alarming rate as compared to just a decade ago.  Depression is not something that just goes away, but can cause them harm and threaten their lives.

Driving  Teens drive drunk.  Teens drive under the influence of drugs.  Teens get in cars that others are driving under the influence.  Although a number of teens may be responsible drivers, they share the road with those that are not.

Drugs  Kids today are not just smoking basic marijuana - it is laced with other hallucinate drugs.  They are also into meth, crack and other strong and deadly drugs.   In addition to the illegal list of drugs, teens are reaching into the medicine cabinets and abusing prescription medications such as, Vicodin,  Valium, Xanax, Ritalin, Adderall, Oxycontin, and whatever other prescription medications they can find.

Sex  Not only are they exposed to it on the television and the movies, but they are encouraged by others.  They may be engaging in sexual acts that parents have never heard of  -  At school, after school, on the car ride home - there are many opportunities for them to do so, and more than likely they are not  Practicing Safe Sex.

The Choking Game is a senseless activity causing death and suffering for thousands of families worldwide. It often begins with teens choking each other or themselves until they pass out, as a way to get high without the risk of getting caught with drugs or alcohol. It ends with thousands of kids dying or suffering permanent brain damage each year.

Violence  Today's teen problems often revolve around violence.  They see friends with guns at school or after school.  They witness huge fights.  They hear threats.  They see anger and deal with it daily. 

In additional to the issues listed above  teens also have to deal with:
·         teen pregnancy
·         eating disorders
·         obesity
·         cyberbullying

Helping today's teenager
Lower level teen problems can be just as deadly.  They face lying, cheating, emotional trauma, learning disabilities and divorce.  All of these things a child will face daily in some cases.  In those cases, it is no wonder that they have low self esteem, high drop out rates and some students will break under the pressure.  Teen problems should be noticed and addressed by their parents first, however this is not always the case - and when this occurs, the teen's well being will fall to the wayside.

Whether or not you think today's teens have more problems, bigger problems or just different problems, it is important to get that teen help for those problems before they become overwhelming.