Teen Problems

Introduction• It’s not easy being a teenager in today’s world.

From depression and eating disorders to bullying and cutting, teens deal with a wide range of issues as they grow and develop.

Teen problems• Bullying;• Social Exclusion;• Conflict Resolution;• Panic Disorder;• Anxiety;• Depression;• Peer Pressure;• Drugs and alcohol consume;• Eating Disorders;• Body Image;• Parents Divorce;• Adoption.

Social Exclusion• Social exclusion is social disadvantage and relegation to

the fringe of society. It’s a process in which individuals or entire communities of people are systematically blocked from various rights, opportunities and resources that are normally available to members of a different group, and which are fundamental to social integration within that particular group .

• The Alienation resulting from social exclusion is often connected to a person's social class, educational status, childhood relationships, living standards, or personal choices in fashion.

• Such forms of discrimination apply to people with a disability, minorities, drug users, "seniors" or young people. Anyone who appears to deviate in any way from the "perceived norm" of a population may thereby become subject to coarse or subtle forms of social exclusion.

Bullying• Bullying is repeated verbal, physical, social or

psychological aggressive behaviour by a person or group directed towards a less powerful person or group that is intended to cause harm, distress or fear. Bullying is divided into four basic types of abuse – emotional, verbal, physical, and cyber. It typically involves subtle methods of coercion, such as intimidation.

• Bullying examples:• Slapping, hitting, pinching, punching, kicking;• Extortion;• Name-calling;• Racist or homophobic comments.

Effects of Bullying

• The victims often struggle with acceptance after suffering at the hands of a bully. The victim may experience:

• Fear and withdrawal from normal activities where they may encounter the bully;

• Anxiety and depression;• Stress;• Poor self-esteem;• Headaches, stomach ailments and other physical

problem.

Peer Pressure• Peer pressure is influence that a peer group,

observers or individual exerts that encourages others to change their attitudes, values, or behaviors to conform to group norms. Social groups affected include membership groups, in which individuals are "formally" members (such as political parties and trade unions), or social cliques in which membership is not clearly defined. A person affected by peer pressure may or may not want to belong to these groups.

Drugs and Alcohol consume• There are many things that can make a teen start

doing drugs or drinking alcohol. Maybe they are having problems at home or in school, or a friend was doing it, maybe they think that doing it will make them “cool” but they don’t know that they’re only harming themselves, they are the ones who are going to suffer from that in the future, sure alcohol, cigarettes and drugs might sound fun for teens but they only bring lots of problems and dangers, for them and for the people around them.

• These days teens aren’t well informed about all the trouble of intoxication, they only care about what they feel in those moments, regardless the consequences.

Types of Drugs and Alcohol• Beer;• Whiskey;• Vodka;• Tequila;• Wine;• Gin;• Liquor;• Rum;• Cocaine;• Marijuana/cannabis;• Ecstasy;• Heroin;• Meth;• LSD;• Crack;

Causes• Family Problems;• Peer pressure;• Health problems;• Money;• Physical, emotional, and lifestyle changes;• Developmental transitions (increasing

independence);• Academic failure.

Consequences• Appetite changes;• Weight loss;• Eczema;• Headaches;• Sleep disturbance;• Vomits;• Coma;• Depression;• Anxiety/Stress;• Health problems.

Parents divorce• Depending on what happens in your family, you might have to

adjust to many changes. These could include things like moving, changing schools, spending time with both parents separately, and perhaps dealing with parents' unpleasant feelings about one another.

• Your parents may go to court to determine custody arrangements. You could end up living with one parent most of the time and visiting the other, or your parents may split their time with you evenly. At the beginning, it means you might have to be flexible and might have more hassles to deal with for a while.

• Some teens have to travel between parents, and that can create challenges both socially and practically. Over time you can figure out a new routine that works for all of you. Often, it takes a while for custody arrangements to be finalized. This can give people time to adapt to these big changes and let families figure out what works best.

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Adoption• It is important as adoptees learn about and deal with their

stories, that adults help them with the difficult information. Sometimes a parent was abusive or neglectful or addicted or even died. Sometimes a parent had a mental illness or was in prison. Sometimes adopted children don't or can't find out the information because it is unobtainable. Many children want to know what their birth parents looked like. Many want to know if their birth mother and birth father cared about one another or were they an accident?

• It is vital that adoptive parents share this important information with their adopted teens or else they risk having the teen find out anyway and feeling angry, betrayed and imagining even worse scenarios than the truth. By the time a child is an adolescent they should know all of the pieces around their adoption that can be shared.

Credits• Ana Lúcia Dionísio nº3;• Ana Luísa Teixeira nº4;• Sofia Ferreira nº22;• Class: 9º2ª.