LESSON 5

COMMON
PROBLEMS AND
CONCERNS OF A
TEENAGER
 The common issues on teenagers are:

1. Problems between parents and teen.

2. Identity issues.
3. Body image.
4. Poor self-esteem.
5. Drug use.
6. Poor school performance.
 1. TEENAGERS AND BEHAVIORAL DISORSERS

Common problems associated with behavioral disorders are as follows:

• Feeling of isolation
• Demanding and always thinking of themselves
• Disregarding rules and refusing to take responsibility
• Poor behavior in school
• Erratic or emotional outburst
• Lying
• Violent or threatening behavior
• Self-harm or suicidal behavior
 1. TEENAGERS AND BEHAVIORAL DISORSERS

Common problems associated with behavioral disorders are as follows:

• Lack of studying in school

• Performance dropping in school
• Defiant behavior
• Disrespectful behavior
• Taking part in reckless activities
• Turning to smoking , drugs or alcohol
• Turning to stealing
 1. TEENAGERS AND BEHAVIORAL DISORSERS
Common causes of behavioral problems are as follows:

• Peer pressure
• Feelings of inadequacy
• Parental divorce or separation
• Abuse or neglect
• Having gone through traumatic experience
• Feeling abandoned
• Parents with alcohol or drug abuse problems
• Drug abuse or alcohol abuse
ESSENTIAL POINTS TO REMEMBER FOR PARENTS/ELDERS

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.
 2. TEENAGERS AND STRESS

Most common signs and symptoms of stress:

• A general sense of being run down or experience tiredness all the

time.
• Snapping and anger directed towards those who are making
demands.
• Irritability and negative thoughts and feelings.
• A feeling that everything is just out of reach no matter hard you try.
 2. TEENAGERS AND STRESS

Most common signs and symptoms of stress:

• Flying off the handle at the smallest of things.

• Persistent headaches and/or nausea or vomiting.
• Weight problems.
• Sleeplessness and depression.
• Feeling of not being able to breathe.
• Tightness in the chest area.
• Feeling paranoid.
 2. TEENAGERS AND STRESS

Most common signs and symptoms of stress:

• Feeling helpless.
• Taking risks you would not
normally take.
 2. TEENAGERS AND STRESS

Ways of dealing with stress:

• Recognize stress and try to find the reason behind it.

• Realize that what you are feeling is only temporary and try to let it
go.
• Take deep breaths, breathing is through the nose and back out
through the mouth.
• Count to 10 or 20 or 30.
 2. TEENAGERS AND STRESS

Ways of dealing with stress:

• Have a scribble pad on hand when you feel stress building up then
doodle.
• Avoid stressful situations.
• Get up if you can and get some fresh air.
• If you feel panic building up inside you, let it wash over you and
move on.
 3. TEENAGERS AND PANIC ATTACKS

• Panic attacks are common in teenagers as teenagers worry about a

lot of things during puberty and they can very often become
overwhelmed by concerns.
 4. TEENAGERS AND BULLYING

• Bullying is widespread across the world and even though it is most

ripe in teenagers, it can even occur in pupils as young as 8 and 9.
 5. TEENAGERS AND SEX

• As much as any parent does not like to admit or think that their
teenager is thinking about sex, or even worse they are having sex,
we all know that sex is on teenager’s mind and perhaps more in
boys’ minds than girls.
 6. TEENAGERS AND PEER PRESSURE

• Teenagers are very susceptible to peer pressure and make excellent

targets for advice.

• In order to be able to cope with peer pressure, the teenager first has
to understand how to decipher the advice given and how to deal
with it.
 6. TEENAGERS AND PEER PRESSURE

• SELF-CONFIDENCE is what is needed more than

anything to enable the teenager to stand up for what they
believe in and not just agree and follow along like a lost
sheep.
 7. TEENAGERS AND EATING DISORDERS

• Eating disorders can be a big problem in teenagers.

Teenagers become obsessed with their weight and how they
look and sometimes this can cause medical problems such as
bulimia and anorexia.
 BULIMIA
• The teenager will
severely restrict what
they eat. They
immediately purge
what they have eaten
by making themselves
vomit.
 ANOREXIA

• See themselves as
overweight in the
mirror when in actual
fact they are painfully
thin.
 8. TEENAGERS AND COMMUNICATION

Essential points for parents to remember:

• Always make time to listen.
• Respect your teenager’s point of view and privacy.
• Try to be flexible.

Things that parent’s should never do:

• Don’t play power games.
• Never make a rush decision or snap judgement.
• Never force your own ideas down to your teenager’s throat.
 8. TEENAGERS AND LOW SELF-ESTEEM

• Appearance
• Not mixing with the “in” crowd
and feeling left out or there is
something wrong with them.
 9. TEENAGERS AND DEPRESSION

Some common factors that can lead to depression are:

• Bullying at school.
• High expectations placed on teenagers by parents.
• Communication problems between teenagers and parents.
• Break-up, separation, or divorce of parents.
• Physical or sexual abuse.
• Studying for an exams and expectations of exams.
• The lost of love one.
• Low self-esteem.
 9. TEENAGERS AND DEPRESSION

Sign and symptoms of teenage depression:

• Feeling very fearfully without knowing why.
• Feeling anxious without knowing the reason why.
• Feeling tired all the time with no energy.
• A feeling of hopelessness.
• Becoming very sensitive.
• Feeling a sense of doom for no apparent reason.
• Feeling irritable or angry for no apparent reason.
• Poor concentration.
 10. TEENAGERS AND TEENAGE MARRIAGE

• Marriage is hard.
It is a give and
take process that
many adults fail.
 11. TEENAGERS AND DIVORCE/SEPARATION

• Divorce and separation is a stressful time for everyone

concerned and perhaps more for the teenager.
 11. TEENAGERS AND DIVORCE/SEPARATION

Common emotions and feelings through his particular time could be:

• Feeling of abandonment.
• Feeling of insecurity.
• Anxiety and depression.
• Loneliness.
• Confusion.
• Anger.
• Self-blame.
• Worries about the future.
12. TEENAGERS AND SELF-ABUSE
13. TEENAGERS AND CONFUSION
14. TEENAGERS AND SMOKING
15. TEENAGERS AND DRINKING
16. TEENAGERS AND COMPUTERS/CELLPHONES
17. TEENAGERS AND COLLEGE EDUCATION