So, I am now taking part in another blogging project, alongside the Secret Blogger Project but this one is called the Teens Tell Their Story Project, and it's basically a topic a week to write about and I guess it'll probably just be general things! I will leave a link to Caitlin and Sherina's blogs at the end of this post as they are the creators and I'm sure they would be happy to answer any questions you may have about the project!
So, the first topic is the Struggles Of Being A Teen and I honestly think this is such a perfect topic to start this project off with because let's be real, being a teen comes with a lot of struggles. So, I'm not going to waste anymore time rambling on and I'm just going to get straight into it!
SCHOOL STRESS
I think school and the pressure put on teenagers at school is one of the biggest problems for teenagers right now. Whether it's GCSEs, A Levels, college courses whatever, it's really stressful and there is a hell of a lot of pressure put on people to pass, to get good grades, to even really push for the highest grades possible. I understand our teachers want us to reach our full potential, and I want to reach my full potential too but having just finished GCSEs and having to take 7 subjects, it's a lot of pressure to do well on ALL of them. I think I had about 17 exams in total, including my practicals in dance and that is a lot, we are still children and I think sometimes that is forgotten because these are the grades that we need in order to live a successful life. I think the fact that your teachers say 'this will affect you for the rest of your life' so many times until it makes your ears bleed, puts so much extra unnecessary pressure on kids. But, I guess we have to get on with it if we want to get a job...
PHYSICAL CHANGES
I don't want to go into too much detail with this because if I do I'll end up sounding like that school nurse that came to talk to you about puberty etc. in middle school. However, the physical changes that happen in the body are at their peak in teenage years which makes it even harder for us. I think hormones are the biggest problem because let's be honest, they control everything. I don't really know if it's worse for boys or girls but I feel it might be worse for girls with the menstrual cycle etc. so I'm going to speak from a girl's point of view on this one. Hormones literally control everything we do, in my opinion although that may be a little extreme, but I over exaggerate a lot, moving on. I find that I can go from being the happiest person in the world to rock bottom within 2 seconds flat, and that sucks. I feel like I'm going off the physical changes thing here a little... But I guess hormones in the body control the physical changes in the body, yeah, let's go with that.
RELATIONSHIPS
When I use the term 'relationships' I use it loosely as I am referring to both intimate and friendly relationships here. Building relationships as a teenager is so hard I think we underestimate it because it was so easy as a child. People say things get easier as you get older but for me personally, building relationships with people is something that just gets harder with age. Whether it be a boy or girl you're completely head-over-heels in love with or someone you would just really like to be friends with, making the first move and starting that relationship can be really difficult. I feel that there's some sort of wall that's built up between teenagers because it's such a judgmental generation, am I the only one who thinks that? I feel that teenagers, more specifically teenage girls, judge each other like there's no tomorrow and I think that's the main problem. We judge each other before one word has been said and it really isn't fair, but that just seems to be how the world works these days.
Another thing about relationships is once you have that relationship with someone, keeping it the way you want it to be and keeping it good can be super difficult too because again, the judgmental and jealous generation that we live in sucks. There are too many things of getting in the way of keeping a good strong relationship with people, my bet is technology...
CONFIDENCE
I have written a few posts about being confident now and I will be writing many more in the future but I think confidence in teenagers lacks so much, I even lack confidence myself so I know that it's a huge issue for people my age. Again, I think one of the main problems is the judgmental society we live in but I also think the media plays a huge part in how confident teenagers are with themselves, and more specifically their bodies and their appearance. I've seen countless articles and interviews etc. about the media and the effect it has on teenagers, more commonly girls, and how they view themselves. Magazines, TV shows, you name it, we've all sat there and said to ourselves 'I wish I looked that good' but honestly, they don't really look that good either. I've said the same thing so many times on this blog now but I can't say it enough! These people have someone touching up their hair and makeup every 30 seconds, they have lights, photoshop, everything! They have absolutely everything there for them and that's how they look that good, I bet if you saw them in real life they wouldn't look as good as they did in that picture.
CAREERS AND JOBS
I've recently been doing some part time job hunting after finishing my GCSE's and honestly, it's been so much more difficult than I thought it would be. I saw something on the news a while ago that said there was something like 14% of teenagers were employed last year, or something along those lines I can't quite remember what it said, but I remember thinking, if only they realise how hard it actually is for someone of the age of about 16 or 17 to get a job. My problem has been experience, but how can anywhere expect me to have experience if no one will take me on and give me that experience? It's a hard thing to do. Staying along the lines of work, choosing your career path is also so hard at this age but there is also again a lot of pressure to have some idea of what you want to do and where you want to take your life. Currently I'm settled on the idea of event management or photography, and possible interest in interior design. But I have changed my mind multiple times and I'm sure it will change again at some point. You get interviews at school, college etc. where people ask you what you want to do when you're older and you just freeze...
I guess that's everything I have to say for today! I really enjoyed this as a first topic for this new project I am a part of and I hope you all enjoyed reading it just as much!
Love, Becca
-xoxo
