Mental Health Issues in Teenagers

 

Mental health directly refers to the well-being of the mind. Besides physical well-being, emotional well-being is crucial as well. Proper coordination of emotional and physical well- being contributes to the perfect functioning of a human being’s life. Teenage is a bridge between childhood and adulthood. One traverses from the naivety of childhood to the depravity of adulthood. Henceforth, it is a difficult phase for the young children, since they go through an abrupt transition. As per statistics, globally, one in seven ten to nineteen years olds experiences a mental disorder. Particularly in India, teenagers are highly privy to academic pressure and stress in high schools. They commit suicide at times because of this pressure. This happens way too much in institutions like Kota, IIT where the stress is all overpowering. The competitive nature of the world is in fact quite disheartening. If a student fails to get good grades, he or she has to face the severe consequences. 

Asian societies are not at all appreciative of a kid’s individual talent and strength. Rather than focusing on how unique a child is, totally different from another individual, the society expects each and every child to just be the same, devoid of any alterations. Depression, anxiety and behavioral disorders oftentimes contributes to the leading causes of illness and disabilities and adolescents. Adolescence is the stage of metamorphosis. In short, suicide is the third leading cause of death among those aged fifteen to twenty-nine years old. As per reports presented by WHO (World Health Organization), the consequences of failing to address adolescent mental health conditions can extend to adulthood. Physical and mental health, thus, gets impaired beyond comprehension. Opportunities would be limited to a great extent as the individuals develop into adulthood. Their adult life gets limited to a great extent. 

Multiple factors end up affecting mental health. The lack of access to quality support and services in case of young adolescents suffering from depression or any other mental issue leads them to feel highly guilty regarding their condition. Protective and supportive environments, in the family and at educational institutions, contributes greatly to the right and safe upbringing of children. Parents and authoritarian figures do give in efforts to protect their children, but none to support them. Comparing one’s kids to the neighborhood children and cousins, deals in lowering the self-confidence in children at a very young age. Emotional disorders are common among adolescents. Emotional disorders stem from distorted emotions, which get disheveled either as a result of trauma or bad experiences. As per data, anxiety disorders are the most prevalent in this age group. 

Anxiety and depressive disorders can profoundly affect school life and schoolwork. Depressive disorders stem from depression, in reality. Depression, in return is a disease which originates from a traumatic childhood, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or symptoms linked to a broken marriage (for children growing up in a household with broken relationships). In addition to this, behavioral disorders are also an offshoot of mental health issues and problems. One of the most common behavioral disorders is ADHD, however. Attention Deficit Hypertension Disorder disables a person, preventing them from focusing on one thing at a single point of time. Behavioral disorders can adversely affect children’s education. ADHD, especially, affects a child’s educational life to a great extent. As per reports, eating disorders like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, mainly stem during adolescence. Eating disorders involve abnormal eating behavior, a consequence of stress and anxiety, mainly as a coping measure. Children who suffer from anxiety eat a lot of sweets and chocolates to cope with anxiety and stress.