If a doctor or medical professional tells you that your child may be depressed, what does that really mean? The trouble with depression is it’s not a rash—it’s hard to “see”—although in research, brain studies can show how the brain can look different in someone who is depressed. So then how does a doctor know that’s what’s wrong?
The SOVA Project is happy to feature this blog post written by one in our team of fantastic SOVA Ambassadors—these are young people who help create meaningful blog posts from adolescents’ perspectives.
Venting is a way of verbally airing one’s frustrations with others. It can be super emotional and intense. And depending on the way you handle it, venting might feel like a ton of bricks was taken off your chest, or it might be unpleasant and hurtful.
So is it okay to vent? And if so, when and how?
The SOVA Project is happy to feature this blog post written by one in our team of fantastic SOVA Ambassadors—these are young people who help create meaningful blog posts from adolescents’ perspectives.
A few months ago, I wrote a blog about an emotionally abusive relationship I was in. Afterward, I decided that I would give the relationship another shot, but the relationship escalated to be physically abusive. As a result, for the final time, the relationship ended.
It just so happened that the relationship ended around Valentine’s Day, which I felt like was the worst thing that could ever happen. I thought that I needed the love of someone else to make me feel whole. However, I learned through this breakup that loving myself was the best way to go. I think happiness should come from within.
The best way to start loving yourself is by participating in activities that you enjoy. Here are some of my interests that are helping me getting over my breakup:
When anyone goes through a tough time, their first instinct is often to seek advice and help from someone who has gone through the same thing. This kind of help is sometimes called peer support. In the mental health field, peer support specialists, also called peer navigators, or “PNs.” For teens, these are adolescents with a self-identified history of mental illness, and who work with people with mental health conditions by them offering encouragement, resources, education and reassurance.
A PN is someone who has made significant progress with their own recovery. PNs use a variety of approaches to help their clients:
Continue reading Adolescents Thrive with the Help of Peer Navigators
As some of the newest and most stigmatized immigrants to the United States, the Latino population is often exposed to many suicide risk factors. Not only do some of them have to deal with living in neighborhoods where there is higher crime rates, low quality housing, and poor schools, but Latino youth also are faced with the challenge of familism (when family is prioritized before and over the individual).
Familism can cause tension between Latino parents and adolescents. Parents often hold on to traditional Latin American expectations of their children while Latino youth are pressured by American culture to be independent. Trying to balance the differences between two cultures can leave teens feeling trapped and alone.
The SOVA Project is happy to feature this blog post written by one in our team of fantastic SOVA Ambassadors—these are young people who help create meaningful blog posts from adolescents’ perspectives.
Getting outside may help your child’s happiness.
Do you find that you tend to be in a better mood when the sun is shining, when you are walking through a park, or when you are by a creek and hear birds chirping away in the background? There is a reason for this.
A new study found that exposure to nature is linked with not only higher momentary happiness, but also prolonged happiness afterwards, which shows lasting benefits of being with nature.
The implications of this are great for us, as I already find that taking a walk generally helps calm me down if I am stressed or anxious. The researchers behind the study are not saying that we now have to go live deep in a forest, but that we may feel benefits from living in urban or city areas that include elements of nature.
The SOVA Project is happy to feature this blog post written by one in our team of fantastic SOVA Ambassadors—these are young people who help create meaningful blog posts for us to share.
You may have heard the term “self-care” being used on social media or in interactions with other people. It’s an idea that has only recently become popular.
I have seen arguments both for and against self-care. Some people believe it’s a selfish fad that emphasizes narcissistic behaviors and attitudes, because of the focus on “self.” But if you think about it, a lot of people our age, especially girls, have been trained to take care of other people before we take care of ourselves.
One primary purpose of self-care is to set boundaries, recharge yourself, and establish disciplines that help you be happier, more relaxed, and better able to function in your relationships with other people.
I have anxiety that is present pretty much all the time. In order to be the best person I can be, I have adopted self-care practices to help me let go of some of that anxiety at the end of each day.
So, what exactly is self-care?
“Stress” has become such a loaded word in our society. The internet is full of articles about reducing or even “getting rid of stress,” as if stress were like a disease that has to be eradicated.
But did you know that humans are actually evolved to need a certain amount of stress?
Of course, being overwhelmed with stress all the time—usually called “chronic stress”—can hurt us. But a moderate amount of short-term stress can improve our powers of awareness and even improve our memory and short-term immune function.
There are now researchers who are studying the effects of short-term online stress on adolescents’ mood. Continue reading How Some Online Stress Can Help Your Adolescent
Sometimes it can be tough to talk to your daughter! When are you being too much of a friend versus a parent? It can be good to share some details of what being a teenager was like for you, but sometimes it is too much information…
This article from WebMD offers useful tips about how to talk to your teenage daughter. Continue reading Mother-daughter communication as part of daily life
The SOVA Project is happy to feature this blog post written by one in our team of fantastic SOVA Ambassadors—these are young people who help create meaningful blog posts for us to share.
One of the most important things I have learned on my mental health journey is that it’s okay to be self-centered. In fact, you NEED to be self-centered to some degree. It’s so easy to get caught up in the lives of everyone around you and lose sight of your own path.
At the beginning of 2018, I decided to make myself the focus of this year. While this doesn’t mean I neglect my friends and family, it does mean that I stop breaking my back doing things that don’t bring me joy. Here are some of the important steps I’ve taken to accomplish this goal:
