Hi everyone! Welcome or welcome back to "The Teen Safe Zone," where it's safe for teens to be themselves! In today's blog post, we will be talking about the harsh reality of struggling to believe in yourself.
This blog is dedicated just for teens and is for teens to connect and relate to each other. So, I decided to start talking about thoughts we have as teenagers. My goal on this blog is to not just talk about the good, but also the bad. The bad things often get pushed aside, which leaves only the good to be seen; this leads to toxic teenage stereotypes. By only seeing the good things, us teenagers sometimes underestimate our lives when things start going left.
Your teenage years aren't always going to be fun or exciting; in fact, being a teenager comes with life responsibilities that no one ever prepares us for by never talking about them. No one ever addresses the tough things teenagers go through. Instead, everyone is quiet about it, leaving the next generation to find out on their own, which sometimes makes you feel "not normal" or that you're doing something wrong when things aren't going as they appeared to be.
I hope that this post draws awareness that your teenage years don't have to be "typical" in order for them to be fun, and that it's OK to speak up about the struggles you go through as a teen.
Struggling To Believe In Yourself:
Today's topic is something that not only teenagers go through, but something that every age group goes through; struggling to believe in yourself. No matter how hard you work or how successful you may be, let's admit it: we all have struggled to believe in ourselves at some point in our lives.
I feel that this is so common in your teen years because, as mentioned before, we're always surrounded by the "good". We all practically grew up with teen stereotypes that we looked forward to, but when we actually reached that age group, it was nothing like what it appeared to be. Unlike previous generations, our generation not only has media like television that has an influence on us, but we also have social media. On one hand, social media can be a fun way to connect with people like you around the world, or to talk to friends and family, but on the other hand, it's packed with unrealistic standards. There's always someone sharing something big in their life on social media, and then you look at yours and feel like you "haven't done enough." There's always society admiring someone for their looks, and then you may look in the mirror and see past your beauty. We're always comparing ourselves to something else instead of focusing on the things we've already accomplished.
Teen Stereotypes VS. Reality:
Take a look at these teen stereotypes vs. what it's actually like for most teenagers. Then, you may realize how normal your life is.
Teen Expectation 1: Parties
In Reality: Go to a party, most likely feel unwanted, uncomfortable, or get peer pressured.
Teen Expectation 2: Friend Groups
In Reality: 1. Can't make friends because you're too shy. 2. Don't have anything in common with people around you. 3. Toxic friendships. 4. Get in a friend group and feel left out. 5. Actually find a rare group of friends who sincerely cares for your wellbeing.
Teen Expectation 3: First car when you're old enough to get a license.
In Reality: Not having enough money to afford a car when you get your license.
Teen Expectation 4: High-school love triangles.
In Reality: Most likely happens in high school, but the situation gets messier then what the movies and social media makes it seem.
Teen Expectation 5: Being reckless about life and not caring about anything.
In Reality: Constantly overthinking, and high anxiety levels.
As seen above, there's so much pressure on things that you're expected to do during your teen years, but the majority of the time, life may not go that way, and that's OK. Society may never normalize the reality of teen years, but normalize these things in your mind.
Not Having Hope In Yourself:
When all you see are good things happening around you but not actually happening for you, sometimes it's hard to see past the bad; all you see are the negative things. When all you see are life's greatest blessings happening to other people, it's hard to even imagine those things possibly happening to you because it seems as if the things you do are overlooked. "Am I doing enough?" "Should I put in more effort?" "What am I doing wrong?" are all common questions we may ask ourselves.
Next time you underestimate yourself, just remember that life was never meant to be easy. We will endure tough things in life, but it's all about overcoming them, and you will overcome tough things in life. If you want to contact me about anything, please visit the "Contact Us" page on this blog where we can privately talk! NEW POSTS EVERY SUNDAY & FRIDAY! - Lexi
Your post gets better and better every time! Keep up the work!