Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Social media. It’s a different beast and it created a different dangerous trajectory heightened by pandemic during lockdown.

We never had a lock down. We were asked to stay home a few weeks and business were closed. You could still go out and do what you want. The pandemic has been over two years. Find something new to blame. Either you are part of the problem or solution.

Oh please.

Stop being so patronizing to other parents. Maybe your teen went to a private that stayed open but I know so many parents who were able to control social media usage prior to the pandemic but that all went out the window. Many of our children were in online school for up to two years and were no longer able to control it. It was the main form of social connection for so many youth that many of us allowed it. Plus many sports, School music and other activities were cancelled. Our church youth group did not meet for two years in person.

Even friends with children who were in college said it deeply affected them as well as so many normal social college activities were sharply restricted.

Plus many youth lost parents and grandparents to COVID.

It was an extremely traumatic time for many people and especially hard for youth.

The record mental health crisis stats speak for themselves .

Also, being part of the solution requires understanding and acknowledging how factors specific to teens' pandemic experience harmed mental health. One thing that is contributing to poor mental health in teens of both genders is denying that teens lost experience that are essential to their development and pretending that everything was suddenly just fine when pandemic restrictions were removed.

This is so true

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m 30 and this does not surprise me in the least. I remember hoping as early as in high school that I would never have a daughter. The pressure on girls is immense, much more so than boys.

I’m 40 and didn’t feel this way at all. I would never want to be a man.

I’m 49 and have a teen DD and a teen DS, and I agree with the 30 year old PP 100%.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Social media. It’s a different beast and it created a different dangerous trajectory heightened by pandemic during lockdown.

We never had a lock down. We were asked to stay home a few weeks and business were closed. You could still go out and do what you want. The pandemic has been over two years. Find something new to blame. Either you are part of the problem or solution.

Oh please.

Stop being so patronizing to other parents. Maybe your teen went to a private that stayed open but I know so many parents who were able to control social media usage prior to the pandemic but that all went out the window. Many of our children were in online school for up to two years and were no longer able to control it. It was the main form of social connection for so many youth that many of us allowed it. Plus many sports, School music and other activities were cancelled. Our church youth group did not meet for two years in person.

Even friends with children who were in college said it deeply affected them as well as so many normal social college activities were sharply restricted.

Plus many youth lost parents and grandparents to COVID.

It was an extremely traumatic time for many people and especially hard for youth.

The record mental health crisis stats speak for themselves .

Also, being part of the solution requires understanding and acknowledging how factors specific to teens' pandemic experience harmed mental health. One thing that is contributing to poor mental health in teens of both genders is denying that teens lost experience that are essential to their development and pretending that everything was suddenly just fine when pandemic restrictions were removed.

Yes, teens are constantly invalidated. And adults are assuming that they understand the realities teens face now because “it’s not any different than when I was a teen”. It’s VERY different. If you are saying these invalidating things instead of listening, your teen isn’t going to tell you anything.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Social media. It’s a different beast and it created a different dangerous trajectory heightened by pandemic during lockdown.

We never had a lock down. We were asked to stay home a few weeks and business were closed. You could still go out and do what you want. The pandemic has been over two years. Find something new to blame. Either you are part of the problem or solution.

Oh please.

Stop being so patronizing to other parents. Maybe your teen went to a private that stayed open but I know so many parents who were able to control social media usage prior to the pandemic but that all went out the window. Many of our children were in online school for up to two years and were no longer able to control it. It was the main form of social connection for so many youth that many of us allowed it. Plus many sports, School music and other activities were cancelled. Our church youth group did not meet for two years in person.

Even friends with children who were in college said it deeply affected them as well as so many normal social college activities were sharply restricted.

Plus many youth lost parents and grandparents to COVID.

It was an extremely traumatic time for many people and especially hard for youth.

The record mental health crisis stats speak for themselves .

Also, being part of the solution requires understanding and acknowledging how factors specific to teens' pandemic experience harmed mental health. One thing that is contributing to poor mental health in teens of both genders is denying that teens lost experience that are essential to their development and pretending that everything was suddenly just fine when pandemic restrictions were removed.

Anonymous wrote:I’m 30 and this does not surprise me in the least. I remember hoping as early as in high school that I would never have a daughter. The pressure on girls is immense, much more so than boys.

I’m 40 and didn’t feel this way at all. I would never want to be a man.

Anonymous wrote:Mothers of daughters, step on up. You are failing your daughters

Are you kidding me? You know who the most clueless, dismissive person in my daugter's life is? Her father. The joy she feels with just the slightest bit of attention from him is pathetic. If men stood up and actually parented now and again, that could go a long way. You are a horrific person, and sadly, probably a woman.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many have survived sexual assault!

I think this is something too many people overlook when talking about teen girls. The statistics are shocking. I only had a second to look up numbers, but RAINN says 1 in 9 girls has been sexually assaulted or sexually abused by an adult before age 18. And that’s just by *adults* — the number of assaults by other teens is much higher.

Very true - and I believe it is worse with social media as photos and online shaming are often involved.
Will look for recent story in WP about a Potomac teen who started asking other teens about their traumas and was staggered by the high level of sexual assaults experienced by teen girls.

10000% THIS. Yes, social media is toxic. But a sexual assault is what made my DD suicidal. And the pandemic shut down so many avenues to help. And I’m fighting like crazy to keep her moving forward. And she’s FAR from alone. And parents often don’t know.

Anonymous wrote:Mothers of daughters, step on up. You are failing your daughters

Fathers of daughters, feel free to join in. And, hey, while we’re at it, both mothers and fathers of sons, plenty for you to do here, too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Instagram.

Insta and are social media are literally causing this.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/18/technology/meta-instagram-investigation-teens.html

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/teen-suicide-social-media-bullying-mental-health-contributing-to-rise-in-deaths/

The evidence is overwhelming.

True. My friend’s daughter was suicidal after bullying via Instagram.

No, she was suicidal because she was bullied and the bullying escalated to the social media. Even without social media she was being bullied. She needed to be removed from that school and get mental health treatment. Social media is a form of bullying but bullying was the issues. This is a parenting issue and instead of parents complaining about it they need to monitor their kids behavior, including on social media. Checked out parents are a huge issue.

Some kids are only bullied through social media. There is no in-person component to it.

Of course there is. And, as a parent you need to monitor your child’s behavior to make sure they aren’t bullied or being the bully. If they post pictures, they are bullied both in person and online as those pictures were taken in person.

Wrong, there was social media bullying going on during covid school closures between kids who hadn’t seen each other in months.

I’m 30 and this does not surprise me in the least. I remember hoping as early as in high school that I would never have a daughter. The pressure on girls is immense, much more so than boys.

Mothers of daughters, step on up. You are failing your daughters

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not a teen but I have had intermittent periods of suicidal ideation throughout my lifespan. You would never know it by looking at me

+1 me too, and my husband.

Half my friend group as teens were severely depressed and engaged in self-harm. I’ve had intermittent periods of it into adulthood (likely genetic in my case)

Anonymous wrote:I am not a teen but I have had intermittent periods of suicidal ideation throughout my lifespan. You would never know it by looking at me

+1 me too, and my husband.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many have survived sexual assault!

I think this is something too many people overlook when talking about teen girls. The statistics are shocking. I only had a second to look up numbers, but RAINN says 1 in 9 girls has been sexually assaulted or sexually abused by an adult before age 18. And that’s just by *adults* — the number of assaults by other teens is much higher.

Very true - and I believe it is worse with social media as photos and online shaming are often involved.
Will look for recent story in WP about a Potomac teen who started asking other teens about their traumas and was staggered by the high level of sexual assaults experienced by teen girls.

The crisis in American girlhood
Stark findings on the pervasive sadness, suicidal thoughts and sexual violence endured by teen girls have jolted parents and the wider public

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/02/17/teen-girls-mental-health-crisis/

By Donna St. George, Katherine Reynolds Lewis and Lindsey Bever

February 17, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. ET


When Sophie Nystuen created a website for teens who had experienced trauma, her idea was to give them space to write about the hurt they couldn’t share. The Brookline, Mass., 16-year-old received posts about drug use and suicide. But a majority wrote about sexual violence.

“Every time I’ve tried, my throat feels like it’s closing, my lungs forget how to breathe,” wrote one anonymous poster. “I was sexually assaulted.”

These expressions of inner crisis are just a glint of the startling data reported by federal researchers this week. Nearly 1 in 3 high school girls said they had considered suicide, a 60 percent rise in the past decade. Nearly 15 percent had been forced to have sex. About 6 in 10 girls were so persistently sad or hopeless they stopped regular activities.

The new report represents nothing short of a crisis in American girlhood. The findings have ramifications for a generation of young women who have endured an extraordinary level of sadness and sexual violence — and present uncharted territory for the health advocates, teachers, counselors and parents who are trying to help them.


The data comes from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from a nationally representative sample of students in public and private high schools. “America’s teen girls are engulfed in a growing wave of sadness, violence and trauma,” the CDC said.
… Now a 17-year-old junior at a public high school in Potomac, Md., Zuba relies on therapy, medication, exercise and coping strategies. She started a mental health club at her high school to support classmates also struggling with depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts.

At the lowest point of her depression, she said, she kept many secrets from her friends, parents and teachers because she felt stuck in her role: a cheerful high achiever who had it all together.

“My mom’s like my best friend, and there’s no way she would have ever expected it,” Zuba said. “Teens are really good at hiding it, which is really sad.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many have survived sexual assault!

I think this is something too many people overlook when talking about teen girls. The statistics are shocking. I only had a second to look up numbers, but RAINN says 1 in 9 girls has been sexually assaulted or sexually abused by an adult before age 18. And that’s just by *adults* — the number of assaults by other teens is much higher.

Very true - and I believe it is worse with social media as photos and online shaming are often involved.
Will look for recent story in WP about a Potomac teen who started asking other teens about their traumas and was staggered by the high level of sexual assaults experienced by teen girls.