by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: January 26, 2009

Teenagers have always had it difficult, although there seems to be even more pressure on them today than in years gone by. The teenage years are perhaps one of the most traumatic and eventful times of a person's life, as the teenager's body undergoes profound changes and they begin to discover who they are as people. There is also substantial pressure on teenagers to fit in with their peers, particularly with regard to their physical appearance.

Although some teenagers may like to proclaim their desire to stand out from the crowd; to be different, in most cases teenagers just want to fit in. There are those teenagers who revel in their 'black sheep' status, but such individuals often have their own insecurities and hang-ups. People can choose what they want to wear; they can put on a t-shirt which makes a statement, if they want, but they may have less control over their weight or their skin, and can become defensive as a result.

Teenagers feel a lot of pressure to look a certain way because they watch television and movies, which often have actors who are in their twenties playing characters that are in their teens, and read magazines where the teenagers are all beautiful specimens. Teenagers as represented in fiction tend to be focused on members of the opposite sex and how they look, which is often 'perfect'. Being a cheerleader or a jock, and being part of that social circle is seen as something to aspire to whereas the Goths and the geeks are portrayed as being worthy of derision. Being overweight is another reason for being regarded as an 'outcast'.

It is easy for teenagers to become bullies, because there is a sense in which if they help pick on other people they will be safe from taunts themselves. Being a teenager can be difficult for loners and people who dislike social situations because the emphasis of being a teenager is very much on the social side. This is why there is so much focus on looking a certain way; a certain look marks you out it is the first thing that people notice about you and can help determine how other people perceive you, and consequently how they act around and treat you.

Sometimes peer pressure is in the individual's mind, so that even when nobody says anything about a person's weight or general appearance they may put pressure on themselves to look a certain way, and feel self-conscious if they do not reach a certain standard established in their minds. Indeed, it is often teenagers who develop eating disorders as they are entering a tumultuous period in their life and their external appearance, with regard to weight, provides them with something they can gain control over.

Unfortunately, all teenagers experience body image issues at some point, and it is hard for their perceptions not to be influenced by their friends and by the media, particularly at a point in their lives when everything is changing and they become more socially aware.

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