Here you’ll find the top 5 reasons your teenager is suffering from anxiety:
1. Perfectionism
Teenagers are constantly faced with competition – even if they are not aware of it. They are living in a world where having more, doing more, and getting more is viewed as successful. Therefore, their self worth is highly based on how other’s view them regardless if that’s social media ‘likes’ or wanting to achieve the highest GPA in their class. The pressure to perform and look perfect at all times causes high levels of anxiety as it “never feels enough.”
2. Fear of Change
Going through change is difficult for majority of people. Even if it is a positive change, your teen fears the unknown. Especially the lack of control they have over the change itself. For the most part, as parents you have decided where they live, what school they attend, and how often they can or cannot do something. Therefore, leaving your teen feeling as they have little to no control over their external factors which may lead to high anxiety.
3. Overwhelmed
Similar to perfectionism, your teen may feel overwhelmed due to feeling pressure to perform. As I meet with my clients, most of them have a fixed schedule with little little to no space to relax. This increases their anxiety as it always feels like there is never enough time to complete a task or improve in a sport.
4. Feeling Stuck
If your teen struggles with setting goals or accomplishing goals they feel stuck. They are uncertain with their future which leads them uncertain with which steps to take in the present. Another way of explaining this, is that their heart may be in one place but their head in another which leads to conflicting actions.
5. Social difficulties
Gaining trust and maintaining friendships are becoming more and more difficult. If your teen is having difficulty building and maintaining friendships they may struggle with bullying or teasing at school. Although bullying does not cause anxiety, it may a mixture of one of the above reasons for anxiety and lack of social support from friends.
For more information on your teenager’s anxiety click here.