A new survey from the Pew Research Center found that seven-in-10 teens identified anxiety and depression as a major problem they face, The New York Times reported. While being a teenager has long been synonymous with angst, it's important to distinguish typical teen behavior from anxiety and depression, which are diagnosable mental health conditions. Though issues like bullying, substance use disorder, alcohol consumption, and gang violence were also cited as problems, mental health was found to be the top concern among the 920 teens surveyed. Only 4 percent of teens didn't identify mental health as a concern at all, while 26 percent said anxiety and depression were minor problems.
"What teens need most is to know they can express themselves in a safe and nonjudgmental way, and that they will not scare off the listening ear they choose to trust with their thoughts and feelings, whether that is a parent or other trusted adult," Dr. Lindsay Henderson, a psychologist who treats patients virtually via telehealth app LiveHealth Online, tells Bustle.
Aside from having more pressure than previous generations to perform academically and extracurricularly, teens growing up today have never known a time without social media. Philip Kendall, director of the Child and Adolescent Anxiety Disorders Clinic at Temple University in Philadelphia, told The New York Times that FOMO and the pressure to appear to be living their best lives on social media (which he likened to constant surveillance) can increase anxiety in teens.
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