Teenage Angst

Ever since I was 13, or the beginning of my teen-age, I have encountered a cycle of emotions similar to anxiety, fear, and anger. Perhaps this is just one the 100000 emotional circuits wired into my brain that I will experience throughout my life. However, I think that we experience these emotions the most during the teen age.

Whether it is the hormones raging, the social pressure bearing down, or the expectations rising, my teenage years have always brought out angst in me. I have experienced emotional down times because of girl situations, friendships, sports teams, school work, and family relationships.

Looking back at this list, I would think these are the better things in life. Although all they have done is leave me with even more stress. Now perhaps by living like an adult and dealing with mature problems render growing pains... I had to learn how to be emotionally intelligent, manage my time, and not to give in to peer pressure. However, I think that there is something more to this.

Our society does not provide an appropriate structure for teenagers to live in. After leaving middle school, wired with hormones and drives, we have to enter a four year period filled with tremendous expectations of getting into college and constantly fighting social pressure. Now there is nothing wrong with living with your parents and going through high school; these are institutions established for the sole purpose of educating us about the real world and life. On the same token, it becomes bothersome to go through these motions in the eyes of the teenager. I think that as young and passionate growing individuals, us teenagers should have true freedom to get out and do what we want.

Thats right, college days come too late. College comes at a time when we are ready to start truly maturing and stabilizing ourselves. In stead, the late coming of college serves as a digression from true maturation. We may be civil and intellectual in the day, but at night we come back from the bars wasted. We eat scrupulously unhealthy food. We burn money on totally unneccesary objects or excursions.

Yeah, these things are good outlets to blow off steam and be a free spirit, but weekend to weekend we begin beating a dead horse. How many times does it take to get black out drunk and throw up before we drink in moderation? How often can we be wild adults and get away with it? I feel like the free college life conditions us to be irresponsible while we are supposed to learn the ways of the world. Counter-productive.

But I digressed. Perhaps my true angst is derived from my understanding of the imperfect social structure for the young person. Yeah. The conclusion: suck it up. Getting drunk, chasing hot girls, spending freely, and waking up at 11 cant be so bad after all. Like any other emotion, my angst will come and go, but I guess in the end its just a part of growing up... yeah, even at 19.