Fifteen's Swan Song

*  At the end of a long day, it can be influential to reflect over the events of the day and take some time to analyze everything that happened and how you feel about it. What were the good parts? What made them so good? What were the not-so-good parts? Why were they upsetting? Were the problems fixed, or do you need to make a plan to work towards a solution? How can you do that? Do you need to ask for help? *    Having answers to these questions at the end of the day can make it a lot easier to fall asleep quickly without worrying about what tomorrow is going to bring. Even if you don't have definite answers to every question, it can help to just consider them and try to identify the reason for specific negative feelings and experiences. It puts you in control of your problems and helps you to feel more secure and ready for a new day.It organizes the worrisome thoughts and helps to keep your mind clear. *  As someone who lives with general an...

*  I've heard a few people say that how everyone is getting freaked out over mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic is a big deal and a statement about today's teenagers and how we apparently "cannot deal with big things." *  But sometimes it's okay to need help dealing with big things. It is much better to get help and be okay than to not get help and be struggling with mental health issues and with feelings of isolation or anxiety concerning the pandemic. It's a HUGE thing! It's having a HUGE impact on pretty much everybody in the world right now, whether they are children, teenagers, or adults. Regardless of how old you are, where you come from, or what you believe in, you are allowed to have HUGE feelings about this HUGE thing, and you are allowed to ask for help dealing with those feelings! It is so so important to take care of yourself, because that is the only way you will be able to help care for others. *  You might be angry that ...

Sometimes there's something you want to say. Maybe to one person, maybe to a group of people, maybe to the world. Sometimes it feels like maybe, if you could just say something about it, your whole life would change. If everyone could understand why it was so important, if everyone would just take it seriously, if everyone would just take  you  seriously.  But at fifteen years old, most times people don't take you seriously. Not because you don't deserve to be heard or because what you have to say is unimportant, but because you're fifteen. And fifteen-year-olds these days have a bad reputation. When we have an opinion about something important, it is often assumed that we don't know what we're talking about or that we're in over our heads. When we try to voice our opinions or talk about important issues, we are too often seen as little children playing dress-up. When you are a fifteen-year-old trying to make a difference in a cruel, unfair world, the...