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Academic Stress
We will discuss social media as an anxiety trigger for teens but one trigger that tops the list with social media is academic stress. Teens constantly worry about their grades, test scores, college admissions, and what they plan to do after high school if they aren’t going to college. Many teens still enter the workforce following high school matriculation, while others choose to serve their country in the military. All of these decisions play a major role in the anxiety your teen suffers from daily.
Social Media and Social Groups
A teen will place a high value on their social life. The majority of their waking hours are spent among their peers (school, after school clubs and sports, work, hanging out, etc.).
Keeping these social groups intact throughout high school and even in the early years of college is not easy. Everyone goes their separate ways after high school, friendships dissipate, and your teen will meet new people. Social media is another anxiety trigger for teens. Peer pressure has never been greater with the advent of social media.
The pressure to bully other teens, take part in illicit activities and more runs rampant because of social media. There’s also the pressure for teens to appear to have the ‘perfect’ life with what they post on their social media accounts even if what goes on behind the scenes at home isn’t so perfect.
Family Problems
What goes on at home can also be a trigger for teen anxiety. The issues your family faces can put a lot of stress on your teen even though he or she doesn’t have to deal with them directly (make decisions for the family). Common family problems that trigger teen anxiety include the following:
- Financial troubles
- Sibling rivalries
- Family members suffering from illnesses
- Unrealistic expectations set by the parents or the teen themselves
- Marital problems
- Discussing their sexual identity with their parents
Significant Changes in the Teen’s Life
If your family has made significant changes recently, your teenager could be triggered by those changes and suffer from anxiety. Common significant changes include:
- Divorce
- Becoming a blended family
- Moving
- Changing schools
Suffering a Traumatic Loss or Other Event
The death of a parent at a young age for a teen is devastating. The same goes when a teen loses a friend, grandparent, or other loved one due to a tragic accident or illness. Teens who face verbal or physical abuse will likely suffer from anxiety. Teen dating is not easy either. Roughly 10 percent of teens experience teen dating violence.
Making a Safe Space in the Home
An excellent way for your teen to deal with anxiety is to make a safe space in the home. A great place for this is their bedroom. If you have to redo their bedroom to make this happen, make sure that your teen has input and helps with the redesign of their bedroom. This alone can help them relieve some of their stress.
Select a corner of their room to make a safe space. Buy them a comfortable chair, a table, and a journal. Make sure they can listen to soothing music and encourage them to write in the journal at least once per day while sitting in the chair. When your teen has a safe space at home it will be easier for them to deal with their anxiety.
Schedule A Confidential Appointment
Schedule a Consultation with BasePoint Academy Today
If your teen has been dealing with high levels of stress and anxiety, it’s time to schedule a complimentary assessment for them with BasePoint Academy. Call our office at (972) 325-2633 to speak with an experienced member of our team. Also, we offer tours of our facility so that your teen and family can see the safe space we have created for healing.
