ABSTRACT
When we think of the potential problems that can occur in adolescence, we typically fall back on media portrayals of the stereotypical teenager. You know what I mean: words like angst, dark, sullen, rebellious, thug, hoodlum, and even criminal come to mind. The stereotypical teen pushes legal limits and fights social norms. This teen makes parents cringe and teachers furious, and, worse yet, makes other teens gaze in awe and amazement at the sheer guts it takes to shoot the proverbial bird at everything approved in our boring, lame, adult-run society. But is this an accurate portrayal of teens today? Is there something to be said for such stereotypes, or are we simply watching out for the wrong things? In this chapter, I’ll discuss the real problems adolescents face today. Despite exaggerations and hyperbolic representations of teens in movies, ads, memes, and the like, adolescents today really do face some serious issues that we, as parents, should be aware of. Of course, we are all cognizant of the possibilities
involving drugs and alcohol, because we were young once too. But in addition to substance use, depression, eating attitudes and disorders, and, most salient to teens today, stress are all areas of vulnerability for teens.
