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Teens today are thrust into a media circus of magazines, cable channels, and Internet sites designed to shock awe and stun the population. It's hard for teens to maintain good self esteem when sex and promiscuity, drugs, drinking and violence are our societal "norms." Trying desperately to fit in, teens try to achieve this "glamorous and adult" life and are left feeling exposed, unnerved and depressed.

Unequipped to deal with very adult situations, teens are left feeling vulnerable. Everyone battled pressures in high school to smoke, drink, do drugs, have sex, but today society has elevated that pressure to a whole new level. Whereas before nudity and graphic sex was relegated to an "R" rating, a teen need only watch cable TV past 10 pm or turn to a plethora of shows on HBO, Cinemax and Showtime. Simply turn on your computer and a teen can access any site on the Internet, be it sexual or graphically violent.

With more access to adult themes, kids try to be little adults themselves. With parents not as accessible and working longer hours than ever before, teens are granted more freedom than in the past. Many kids are their own bosses, making their own rules. Without limits, kids have no one to reign them in and many times are left conflicted and with low self esteem.

Just ten years ago when I was in high school, my idea of living on the edge was reading articles about boys in Seventeen, or possibly toilet papering a teacher's house. Watching my sister in high school now is a drain on me. Every week it's a new manicure, or pedicure, or highlights in her hair. She tries so hard to keep up with the new trend-setters that she's completely lost who she is.

I think teens have always had to battle their demons through puberty. Pimples, weight fluctuations, periods, underdeveloped muscles...teens bodies are morphing into adults leaving in their track an explosion of hormones and emotions. With the exception of very few who breezed through adolescence unscathed, try to think back to yesteryear. Not having any control over how you feel and how you look is a confusing place to be. If you are a parent, try to have a little sympathy for this confusing time in your child's life. If you are a teen, rest assured that it too shall pass.

Teens battle self esteem issues on a daily basis. If you are a teen struggling, find someone you can talk to that you trust. Be it a parent, counselor, or a trustworthy group of friends, discuss your feelings. Find something that you are good at, be it a sports team, an instrument or theatre. Throwing yourself into something that you excel at helps put focus on your good qualities and makes your self doubt seem less significant. Self esteem is a nasty little bugger that will sneak up on your throughout life well past your teen years. Start building confidence in yourself now!

Learn more about this author, Molly Carter.
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