The article states that those at YouthLine have an age limit of 18 though those are the people who they can relate to the most. I can’t relate to the people that vent on people like those who call on this line as I just keep it in and feel decent most of the time. The times I do vent it’s to those close to me, friends and family. I have my friend John who would most likely help me and give me emotional support whenever I needed it and helping introduce me to other people and he’s the same age as me. I’m not sure why the people at Crisis Text Line believe that so many of us are so mentally weak that helping somebody will scar us. I’ve helped maybe around 7 people in about the same way noted they’re my friends so I relate to them a lot easier but that’s not the point. There should be requirements for being on the helpline for people as there could be some who are simply too immature and naïve to help people and understand what they’re going through. I have no plans on being any sort of teenage counselor not because it'll scar me or cause me “vicarious trauma” but because I’m too afraid I wouldn’t have been able to help them enough. To make them feel better about themselves in a way that stops these thoughts.
Part One-
Whenever I’m overwhelmed with all life is throwing at me I turn to my friends to talk to and I also turn to the next blank sheet in my purple 5-star notebook. Whether it's facetiming my best friend 888.9 miles away and crying it out even if it's just from laughing so hard and then helping her with all of her problems or angrily scribbling with a red marker all throughout the college ruled paper I always will find a way to make it out of the tough times. In that very notebook you can flip through letters confessing my love that were never sent, then 4 months of pages later you'll find the anger of being let down by that same person. Flip a few more pages and there's goofy drawings me and my friends thought were hilarious and memories of staying up all night talking about what happened that day, or since we last talked.
After reading the article I feel less alone knowing that there are other teens going through similar situations and also knowing there are students, my age, helping other teens. Programs like the one instituted at YouthLine can be very beneficial, sometimes there are some situations that we can’t even turn to our closest friends about because you don't want to overwhelm them with your burdens. I can account to that because there have been times where I’ve thought “I wish I could just talk to a stranger about this” because sometimes your friends have heard about it 1000 times before and they give a response you don't want to hear,
Whenever I have a personal crisis I always vent to my personal hotline, my old man. Sometimes I talk to other adults and teens to get their opinions as well, but for as long as I’ve known I’ve always talked to my dad. Mainly for a mixture of good advice and brutal honesty developed throughout his life. My pops will help me on major problems, but if it’s something I’m blowing out of proportions (or dumb) he’ll tell me it's nothing. Problems like “why don’t people like me’’ my pops will not answer.
In a crisis I turn to my dad or my mom because we have so much in common and they can help me work out problems. It really depends on what the crisis is on who i turn to like if its sports or school related I will turn my dad but if it's personal i will sometimes turn to my mom. I have recently been very stressed due to long nights of homework on top of soccer everyday and I have gotten a tutor and my parents have helped me deal with a bunch of this stress.
Reading this article makes me realize how much stress teens have that leads to depression and that sometimes the best people to turn to are the ones your age that want to help or even your closest friends. “She said she was struck by how smart the students were — indeed, she said, the 15-year-old she was paired with for an exercise in reflective listening did a better job than she did.” this really shows the importance of knowing who can help and it's a good thing that people have these options like lines for life to help save them in rough times.
In a crisis I turn to my dad or my mom because we have so much in common and they can help me work out problems. It really depends on what the crisis is on who i turn to like if its sports or school related I will turn my dad but if it's personal i will sometimes turn to my mom. I have recently been very stressed due to long nights of homework on top of soccer everyday and I have gotten a tutor and my parents have helped me deal with a bunch of this stress.
I, unlike most of my peers, usually turn to my parents first. I am really lucky in this way. My parents, my dad more than my mom, went through many of the same things I am and are able to show me where it took them in life. My Dad and I have a very strong bond because of this (and jamming in the car, eating gallons of ice cream, and late night gigging to name a few others.) My Dad really is my primary listener if you will.
If I was a teenager with the common case of a missing father and a struggling mother I would definitely turn to my friends first as to not add another weight to my mom. Not to say that my friends aren’t always the second people I inform of my problems, but I think an open and willing relationship with my dad is one of the main factors that keeps us so close.
On those points, teenagers talking to teenagers about problems is a great idea since it covers the entire spectrum of people with great parents and people with no parents, they are all teenagers and can all talk to other teenagers. However, I side with Dr. Turner when she says that young teenagers coming face to face and talking through life changing situations often “run the risk of vicarious trauma.” Because of this, I, like Crisis Text Line, believe that this is an amazing and needed service. However we should never form two separate issues from one issue by allowing younger kids to respond to such calls. That job should be left to mature and capable men and women who still fit the age group.
I honestly can’t remember the last time I turned to my mom or dad when I was dealing with a problem. Even the smallest things I don’t mention to them anymore.
I think my peers and I stopped talking to our parents and other adults about our problems because we think they won’t understand or that they will ask a billion questions or they’ll give us a dreaded lecture.
We don’t want a lecture or some philosophical answer to our problems. We just want to be told that we are correct, that everything will be okay, or that we are better than whatever is causing us this pain.
The article writes about how teens shouldn’t see the behind the scenes of a help line because of the risk of a “vicarious trauma”. They were worried about the risks of exposing young people to a line like this. However, teenagers may be able to relate to kids their age and do better at listening reflectively.
I usually go to my friends if I'm having a bad day but if it super bad I'll go to my mom because she has been through a lot and probably has advice on a lot of things that could help.
I tend to turn to my mom for advice on any problems I have. Adults are a good source of advice because they have much more life experience. For other teens, I can see that there are many reasons for it to be hard to trust adults, like loss of relatability or fear of being scolded. However, I think they’re more qualified to help us with our problems, especially if it’s regarding suicide. We might find it more comforting to confide in other teenagers because it can be easier for them to understand what we’re going through, but our friends might not offer the best advice. Personally I’ve found that trusting others my age for good advice has only made situations much, much worse.
Being a teenage counselor would be challenging. That’s a lot of weight to carry. But it’s important that teenagers have somebody that will listen to them and can confide in if they absolutely can’t trust any of their peers. I think I’d feel accomplished as an adult if I could help younger people with their problems.
Usually when in need of help or advice I typically keep it to myself. I don't really trust anyone and even if I do I never get what I fully need. Most teenagers don't know how to respond or how to help someone and are like "lol same", which can come off insensitive most times. I believe adults are great to talk about certain things , but most of them don't fully understand the mental health epidemic with teenagers. I personally feel weighted with being my friends "therapist" especially because I have problems of my own, therefore I wouldn't want to work as one. I've stayed up all night trying to prevent people from doing things and that's a huge weight to carry.
In times of anguish, there is always someone there to help me. I should say, people. They are my friends. From little things to big things, I can always confide in my friends in any situation. Even though I’ve never had suicidal thoughts or any of the sort, I understand the many ways friends help each other. It’s something that you never see around parents. Maybe we confide in each other because of our similar circumstances. At least that’s how I feel. Being around a friend all the time produces a different feeling than what you get being around parents. Because of the bonds I have with my friends, I can see why a teenager would need someone of their stature to hear them out. The article talks about how there aren’t many studies on how teenagers affect each other when giving advice/help. However, I find it to be obvious, to myself at least, that teenagers in a depressed state need to talk to other teenagers. It just makes sense. That is why the YouthLine service is probably needed in more places. There are teenagers responsible enough to handle the task.
@Akye Nixon-McCray I agree with you. Friends are often a lot easier to talk to than adults. It seems they are easier to talk to because they are closer to us and are often going through or have been through similar situations. I know personally when I turn to my friends for advice I always end up feeling better about the situation.
When I need to vent, my first option will always be my close friends. I chose them because I know that regardless of what I have say, what time of the night it is, or what they're doing, they'll make time for me and my thoughts. There are several friends I would say I could turn to in a crisis, but there is one special one that that stands out over everyone else. For as long as I've known them, they've always been so welcoming to and have never failed to look out for those around them. They know what it's like to feel like everything is falling apart around them and it seems like they can empathize with anything I have to say. The knowledge that I have someone who will be there, no questions asked, is one of the greatest gifts I've ever received, and I can't imagine going back to a time without that sort of support in my life. I need my closest friends to give me a pick up when I fall down, a shoulder to cry on when I'm upset, or someone that will listen when I need to get something off my chest. Because they're always there for me, I make every effort possible to make sure I'm their support system as well. Not only can I see the impact simply being there for them makes, but I feel better knowing that those I care about are quickly getting out of their times of crisis. We cannot always turn to adults because they struggle to empathize with us, so we hold one another close and know that without one another, we lose those that can support and relate to us best.
@Sam McNamara, I know exactly what you're talking about. Of course, I value the counsel of my parents and superiors, but those close friends of mine are the ones I really rely on. Because of our shared experience, their unjudgemental listening, plus my confidence in their regard for me, my close friends are the ones I am most likely to turn to in times of crisis. I'm so thankful I have friends like that, who stand by me at any time-- and especially in times of "crisis."
For me, I find it easier to confide in my parents than my peers. I honestly don’t like talking to others about my issues because it makes you vulnerable in a way that nothing else does. My friends are great people, but are they always going to be there for me? Who knows if next month we will get in a fight and they will put all my information all over the internet. Also, I feel like I value my moms opinion more because she has been through similar things. Having new step parents can be hard, especially when they make my sister and I uncomfortable. A lot of my friends don’t know about what goes on at home, which is why I mainly talk to my sister, or my mom because they understand. When I do turn to my friends though, it is usually about things that are less personal and more for the social aspect of my life.
When I am hurting or to many troubles cloud my mind, I don't turn to anyone. I deal with my problems by myself, I go to the core of my problem and fix it. I lost trust in people long ago and I figured that I only really have myself. No matter how friendly or nice people seem, they can turn your back on you. It may take a few days, a couple weeks, even many years, but it’s bound to happen. And I learned that the hard way.
Being only 15 years old, I can not say I have gone through a big crisis, I have so much more life ahead of me that what I consider a big crisis now, might not actually be so big later. Although when I do get frustrated or upset, it is not who I go to, it's what. I feel no safer or more myself when I have a ball at my feet- cliche, I know. But really the truth is, soccer has been the only constant in my life. I have been going to practices, games and new places for soccer since I was three years old. Soccer has taken my to 17 different states (multiple times), I've been to Spain, England and Costa Rica. I simply do not know life without it, and I definitely wouldn't be the person I am today without it. So I do feel better when I play, because it is one thing I know I will have for the rest of my life.
part 1
Suicide is the second leading cause of death for children and young adults age 15-24. There should be no question as to if teenagers’ should be allowed to help someone in a crisis, because they already do it every day. Teenagers who are too afraid to call and put their life into the final words of their best friend who is unprepared. “Don’t do it, you have so much to live for.”
If call centers allowed for emotionally prepared teens who were trained to do this job to help others, countless lives would be saved. Although adults at call centers are trained to do the exact same thing, confiding in someone the same age may be the saving factor for these adolescence who just want someone to talk to. In addition to helping those they talk to over the phone, these teens would also be able to bring these skills into their everyday life and may end up helping someone who is too afraid to call at all. They would be equipped with the skills to catch the warning signs before it’s too late. In 2017, 17% of high school students reported having seriously considered attempting suicide. Maybe it was a call that saved them, or someone who knew what they were saying. Whatever the case, peers can help so much, and if you talk to the right ones, their knowledge can help immensely.
As teenagers get older, they tend to distant themselves from adults. As teenagers try to become more independent, they become more isolated from the adults who are involved in their life. Whenever it comes to advice, most teenagers would much rather turn to their peers than to an adult. I believe that adults have the most advice to give, but teenagers are so afraid that they might get lectured or punished by adults, instead of getting the advice they need. For example, if a teenager needs advice on something irresponsible that they did, an adult might penalize or discipline them instead of helping out. It benefits teenagers more in the long run to talk to an adult, but they would much rather turn to their peers because they know they will not get scolded and judged by an adult.
@Vivian Armendariz
Yes that can be true for some, but like the article says it's usually easier for most teens like myself to talk to our close friends because they might have gone through the same things as us. Peers can or in some cases have better advice than adults. Ms. farmer had a similar idea about peers like you, but being paired with one for a practice she saw how partner was able to listen and help better than her, an adult.
I think something like YouthLine is so needed. Adults don’t fully understand everything we go through because when they were kids there wasn’t social media and every kid wasn’t almost expected to go to a university. Teens understand the problems other teens face exponentially better and that’s why most teens are more willing to talk to a peer and not an adult. However I do understand some adults hesitation to allow teens to talk to teens in crisis for it might trigger something but that’s a risk with adult volunteers too.
When talking to your peers it is easier to be open, because they won't truly judge you the way your parents would. Namely because they don't care as much as your parents and or adults in your life that see you as an importance and priority. They say, “it’s fine” and “your good, I get it”when your parents would otherwise scold you or show not as much sympathy. Although, it is way better in the long run when you bring it to an adult and not a peer. Peers blow it off and show it as not much of a concern, which makes you believe that whatever it is that you are doing bad, you can continue with it. Mainly with what we see in teens today with pornography, pre-marital sex, drugs, and alcohol, all grow due to this concept of “it’s ok”. Whilst with a parent, they won't make you feel all warm and fuzzy right then and there, but they will stop it at its source since they truly care about your well being than caring about your momentary feelings. In the long run, with peers you'll still be in that state of guilty limbo, asking again and again the same thing, getting the same answer and the same result. With an adult or parent, you will most likely still have struggles, that your parents know about and consequently help you with. Giving you a different result, giving you long lasting joy, instead of that momentary happiness with a peer. Giving you hope or eventually getting that long lasting outcome of getting over your shackles of grief and ill deeds.
When I feel dispirited about a situation or something going on in my life, I usually talk to my friends about it just to rant at that moment, but then I will talk to my therapist about the same thing whenever I see her so that I can get an adult’s perspective too. Both adults and peers have their own advantages when asking or talking about something that’s got you down. With adults, I would say you get to hear more rational solutions and how they have dealt with things in the past. Then again, with my peers I usually get more empathetic responses because they may be in the same situation at the moment. It really does depend on what you’re going through because I have found that adults don’t really relate to small things and usually just tell you that they’re not as big of a deal as you’re making them out to be, whereas my peers usually understand the stress and unreasonable expectations that are piled onto today's youth.
I believe adults do have more knowledge and experience than us as teenagers; however, I think that most teens find that confiding in our peers is much easier than speaking with the adults around us. I think that teens are afraid to talk and discuss life’s hardships with adults because we don’t feel like they will understand our difficulties at our age. Also, we don’t want to be judged by the decisions and choices in life that we’ve made or faced. With our peers, we feel more at ease and comfortable. I believe this is because it helps us feel support, as if we are not alone within our own age group. Even though some may think that teens don’t have the responsibility to take on these hardships and deal with them responsibly, many teens help others in more ways that some may think.
When the author says “Youth suicide is climbing faster than suicide by any other age group,” I found that this statement is very true. When we confide in our peers about thoughts we have, we feel they are going to listen and help with better solutions. When we speak with adults about our situations and feelings, we feel as if they may not take them as seriously or as if we are just living the “normal teenager life”. Adults wouldn’t understand all of the hardships that teens nowadays go through daily. On the other hand, when we have our peers that we can confide in and talk to, it helps us realize that the difficulties in life are going to turn out ok in the end.
In my opinion, adults can be a good source for advice; at other times, our peers can also be a good source for advice. I can always confide in my parents/family members in certain crisis that they can understand. For example, I can talk to them about the problems I have in my relationship with other friends and they usually can give me better advice than a peer would. On the other hand, a peer can give me better advice when it comes down to technological reason because they can understand it better. It all comes down to what the topic is and how well the other knows how to help cope with better.
@Ashley
I agree with your comment regarding who do you turn to in a crisis. It does really depend on what the problem or topic is. Peers and friends understand issues that happen in today’s society, while adults understand how to deal with emotions and serious problems more.
Adults are a good source of advice because of their knowledge, but I don't usually go to them due to them trying to make it light and failing, unless it is something very serious. From prior knowledge, seems as if they don't care about the smaller things as much as they should. Whereas with most of my friends, I would tell them because not only are they possible going through something similar,I know that what they say and do, is them trying their best, while in return I can also help them down later down the road. The person I turn to, it also depends on what is going on, and who is around. Most of the time for me it usually isn’t anything serious, but it does happen.
For Me, I confide in my Mom with any crisis that may occur in my life. Sports take up most of my life, and I am also in all honors classes in school so the level of work and fast pace has definitely increased. My mom has been helping me through the tough times of late nights and trying the best to help me prioritize as I talk to her about me being so overwhelmed at times. We have such an unbreakable bond that I am able to confide in her with anything I am up against. I feel that is so important to be able to have a bind like that with your one or maybe even both of your parents.
Reading the article it states that “Youth suicide is climbing faster than any other suicide group.” I believe this is so true just because of social media, illegal substances and influences around us everyday. The Youth Line that Mr. Harrison has joined in the story is peer-run to help young people to not only uses their voice but to help other young people that may be going through the same things that one on the Youth Line has already gone through.
Anytime I have needed to vent about something that has been troubling me, it has never been my first instinct to talk to an adult. The reason for this is different for each person, but personally the lack of judgement I receive from my friends isn’t something I could say I couldn’t rely on from an adult. Anytime I mention a full plate of balancing a job, school, and my personal life, to an adult, it’s immediately shot down by, “Just wait until you’re older. It gets worse.”
It is more common for kids my age confide in one another. Sometimes things we need advice on would get us in trouble if we mentioned it to our parents, they would take the decision away from us. Our friends and peers don’t hold authority over us, and while they are able to guide us, aren’t able to make any decisions for us.
I, like many other high school students, experience anxiety and crisis often. during these hard times I, of course turn to my friends and family but sometimes that isn't enough. When I am
undergoing these dreadful feelings the thing that helps me the most is being active. whether it is maxing out at the gym or surfing on a big day at the secret spot it always seems to clear my head up and make everything OK.
Usually no matter how bad the situation is or whatever is, I always talk to my godsister. Most people don’t take me seriously when I talk to them, they might think its a joke and “play along” but she listens and gives her opinion. Just talking about it makes me feel overall better. I believe that turning to a adult is a great idea, depending on what adult you talk to. Of course people have their ‘person’ and someone who supports them. Being a teen introduced to all sorts of new responsibilities and assignments can be very stressful, having someone there for you is extremely relieving and can help you gain a clean head towards things. I love how they allow the teens to talk to others through a call line, when your caught up in the mess of it all it can be difficult to sort find the clear state to make a decision. Someone, something to raw and pure can help and get to see what others are going through, I think it’s great.
Why shouldn’t teens be able to council other teens. I understand the worry that it might traumatize the children to be speaking to people/teens in crisis. I just think that people in general might not understand that we have some of the same pressures whether it be school or parents or social life pressures or a feeling of inadequacy. Most of us have those feelings or pressures and I don’t think that just spans to us being able to talk to teens. Adults have the same feelings we do just about different things. Pressures from work or being a provider for the family. It’s all along the same premises.
We deal with many people in our daily lives that are upset and stressed about things whatever they may be. So I think it would be a stupid excuse to say that it might traumatize us. We see it almost every day.
It really depends on what the problem is to determine who you turn to for help or just to share your thoughts with. Most of the time I don't talk to my parents about my problems because I feel like they already do so much for me they don't need the extra task of helping me deal with stress, ect. I also feel more comfortable talking to my friends about these things because in my family we don't really talk about our feelings and I feel like it would be awkward.
After reading the article I now understand how important things like crisis hotlines are. I knew that depression affects many teenagers so it didn’t surprise me that youth suicide is climbing faster than any other age group. The crisis-line organization, Lines for Help is a great resource for teenagers who need to talk about their th in their life. Teenagers can easily reach out for help by just sending a text or calling the organizations. I believe these organizations to be the first step in lowering suicide among teenagers.
Changing school times to later seems really good on paper. After all, almost 50 percent of teens say they do not get enough sleep on school nights. But this article only focuses on the positive aspects of starting school later. For example, if we started later, school would have to end later. Many teens have after-school jobs or extracurricular that they have made a commitment to attend to, you could back up the times for those, but doesn't that mean they end later too? Causing kids to get home and stay up later. Pushing back the time they wake up causes the time they go to bed to be later, leaving us with the same problem we started with.
Nobody ever wants to be in a crisis. But it is an experience that everyone has, and they become more common as you get older. I’ve found that during crisis, I usually turn inwards and just push it down. After all, I have work to do, and it’s not going to wait for me to freak out. But sometimes, that doesn’t work, and I need to talk to somebody. And usually those people are my friends. When I talk to my parents, they try and help me solve the problem. Great! That’s what I need to be doing. But sometimes, I don’t want to solve the problem. Telling me that I need to work on homework on a night with a lot of homework doesn’t help me with my crisis. Sometimes, I just want to rant and have someone empathize with me.
Having someone who understands what you are going through is important. I believe that the group featured in the article, Lines for Life is the future of suicide hotlines for teens. A lot of the time, when you talk to adults about a problem, they just don’t seem to understand. But when I talk to my friends, they just listen. And in times of crisis, that’s what I need.
When i am in a crisis i often find myself turning to a few different people depending on the situation at hand. I also am sometimes on the opposite side of that and help others in their crisis.
In my opinion i do think that adults are good to go to and provide good help in some situations due to their experience and age. But they also could have less experience with some situations because they might not be as in touch with your social life or those aspects.
When I have a crisis I tend to talk to my closest friend, Logan. He reassures me that everything is fine and that I can get through it. He’s one of two people who knows me well enough to help distract me from my problem and calm me down. He’s always there for me and I know he can keep it between us, unlike some of my friends.
I wouldn’t be able to be one of the teens who participate in peer-run crisis lines, I've never been in the situations the ones in need have been. I'm also very bad at comforting people general and it would be even harder to comfort someone in need when I've had no experience with it. Adults like the ones on the Crisis Text Line I believe have more experience because they might have lived through an experience similar to someone else or have more in depth knowledge than most teens. Like Dr. Shairi Turner I'm also concerned about the possibility of “running the risk of vicarious trauma” because I’ve seen and how some teens can be to each other.
I take charge when a crisis happens. It is so much easier to talk to peers than adults. That’s not saying that adults aren’t easy to talk to. Older people are great at listening and giving advice, excluding the the bad egg that patronizes everyone. People in their twenties are easy to work with and well as people in their forties and fifties. Thirty year olds are that one acception, they try to act cool but if something bad happens, they lose all touch with reality.
Peers aren’t any less complicated. Most of us are terrible at listening and there are some who just end up relating everything said to their lives, effectively ruining conversations. Most teens aren’t naive and can tell when someone is being serious. They can listen but can’t say or do anything worthwhile in response. The rest are just like the people in the excerpt, they are great at listening and responding. They almost definitely aren’t as good as the teen who is better at listening than the medical professional but they can certainly do the job.
When I find myself struggling with my mental health, anxiety about school, friends, and even family, I always turn to my mom. She knows me better than I know myself and she always knows exactly how I feel. She had me knowing that she was going to be a single mom alone in Miami; she is by far the strongest person I know. I have so much respect and admiration for her, but sometimes I am unable to go to her for advice if I am having family struggles. When I find myself in this position, I always turn to my best friend. Even though it is important to have someone who is your backbone in life, I believe it is important to gain perspective from someone else. Even though I turn to my mom for almost everything, sometimes I trust my best friend more. Having someone your own age that is going through the same period of life as you are is important when asking for advice. Most young people are more open minded because they have not fully lived life. We are all still learning and experiencing things. My mom is the only adult I fully trust, but sometimes I trust my best friend that lives a completely different life than me a little more.
2
For many years I turned to myself in a crisis. I contained the pain inside and tried to be self sufficient. Over the years I learned that sometimes I need help. I had to realize that was okay. I became open to my parents.
For a period of time last year I believed I wasn’t going to live past the end of the semester. I was in a crisis with my internal self. I finally turned to my parents and shared the crisis I was going through. Once I did so, I’ve realized I need someone to lean on when times get tough. It's easier for me to talk to my parents or adult rather than my peers.
Reading this article gave me dought at first. I don’t believe a teen in a crisis situation should be relying on another teen to save their life. Wendy Farmer also had her reservations about this idea. She did change her mind as she saw the work that was going on. Talking to someone your own age can be helpful, but I believe talking to adults with more life experience is a better way to deal with a crisis
@Lilah Pate I agree. Talking to a teenager might reassure a teen a little more since they are around the same age, but being a teen also means you don't have very much experience. There is only so far you can go when giving advice being a young adult, so that's why it would be a better decision to talk to an adult.
A friend of mine killed himself earlier this year, and I feel that if he had asked me to help him, I wouldn't have known what to say or do. If he had maybe talked to an adult, or asked someone to help him, then I feel that he probably would be alive today. Adults have experienced more and have matured more, and us teens haven't. Talking to a suicide hotline would also make a bigger difference than a teen.
Teens shouldn't have to handle the pressure of keeping someone alive, or bearing others' problems. It bears a weight for a very long time; especially if you are very involved with the person that asked for advice or help. Adults don't know everything, but they know a lot more than a teen.
When I first looked at this article and saw that teenagers were volunteering to work on crisis lines I thought it was a terrible idea, but then I kept reading. I saw how much work these teens put into training and being prepared to help their peers who call into the life line. I thought it was a bad idea because I assumed that these teens weren’t given much training or were given none at all. Now that I see how these teens are adequately prepared to help in a crisis, I think that they will be a great source of advice for other teenagers. I think they will be a great source of advice because they will be able to better see things from the teen in crisis’s perspective than an adult would.
Depending on the severity of the situation depends on who I turn to. If it is a family matter or something my parents wouldn’t like then I turn to my peers, but only if it isn't a super severe crisis. Yet I am not ashamed to go to my parents if I need help with something even if it is embarrassing or prone to get me in trouble. In the article it says they don’t want to have under 18 volunteers so they don’t see all the trauma that goes on. While I understand this I also beg to differ that they already have seen some severity of what goes on with these calls. Maybe not a close up of someone commiting suicide but they do face other challenges. Most teens feel more comfortable talking to other teens instead of adults and having teens be anonymous and available to talk to could help save lives.
I think I would feel more comfortable talking about any sort of problems I have with my peers rather than my parents. Adults can be more knowledgeable, but they can’t relate to a teenager the same way a teenager can relate to a teenager. I think part of the reason a kid would rather talk to their friends is because if they talked to their parents, they’d probably try to fix the problem, but sometimes just talking to someone is helpful, and adults don’t seem to have the same experience as kids. They’ve moved past the high school portion of their lives, and probably wouldn’t understand what a kid is going through because times have changed, and their own related experiences were so long ago, or they have worse problems now and don’t understand how you’re so broken up about something they probably think is trivial.
Your peers tend to know more about what’s happening to you. They feel a lot of the same things you do and know the people or things getting on your nerves. You can talk about your problems with them and they’ll tell you their similar problems, and you get a sense of community and feel less alone when they can relate. They’re your own age and might judge you less than an adult because of their youth. (1/2)
When asked who I turn to in a crisis I immediately thought of a specific person. My friend who I will not name for anonymity is always there for me through every crisis big or small. No matter how big or small my worries are she always has the right things to say. She talks me through the situation and makes me feel better 99% of the time. Despite our busy schedules, we are always there for one other. Sometimes we end up talking late at night because its the only time we have available. She never makes me feel bad about talking to her which is really important to me. I’m really lucky to have her to lean on when it feels like my entire world is falling apart.
When I am in a crisis I typically turn to my mom or my best friend. It depends on which person I turn to based off what is going on. When it is about something personal that would be embarrassing to say to my best friend, I talk to my mom a lot. For example, when I dealt with anxiety last year, I turned to my mom to get help, and that was the best move possible. She helped me seek help and was solved in the best way. When it is about my social life, I turn to my best friend. It is usually something about stupid drama.
I am very thankful for the “Lines of Life” program, I believe it helps kids out a lot for example, how Mr. Harrison talked the kid out of walking in front of the next train and taking his own life. This program really saves kids lives!
Many adults don’t know how much teengagers suffer from depression, anxiety, and so much more. I am glad an adult noticed this and formed this organization.
I believe “Lines of Life” should enforce the rule that “Crisis Text Line” implemented. They said their staff had to be 18 or older to receive the calls or texts because it could “Run the risk of vicarious trauma.” I also think some teens aren’t mature enough to deal with some of the calls and wouldn’t know how to deal with the situation.
Working as a counselor could probably scar someone. They hear about people wanting to, maybe, commit suicide, and they can’t forget that someone has said that to them. They’ll have to convince that person to not do anything drastic and they could fail. Just talking to someone might help, but sometimes talking doesn’t help, and the person on the other end of the line could commit suicide if the kid fails. No one wants to have to live knowing that they couldn’t save someone. (2/2)
The people I turn to vary from crisis to crisis. For most of my typical teenage problems, an adult is probably the last person I would confide in. I feel my teenage problems are embarrassing and too insignificant to discuss with an adult. What's my stress over memorizing my lines for a play and an upcoming Bio test compared to an adult's stress over their bills/work and supporting their families? Adults do, however, have more experience than teenagers and can most likely give more sound advice than teenagers. The reason I can share my problems with other teenagers is because they are more likely to relate to my situation and make me feel like I'm not alone; they might also be going through a similar problem. The best advice I've been given by someone my own age is to trust others more and think about the consequences before doing something rash.
In times of a crisis, I usually don’t turn to anyone in particular for help. In fact, I internalized most of my conflicts. I always try to deal with problems in my life by myself. But I do try and help other people with their own crisis or problems. Through helping other people I am able to understand how to deal with my own problems. Sympathizing for others helps put my mind at ease and overcome my own problems.
I think that it would not be a good idea to put teens in a place where they have to listen to suicidal people. They don't have the maturity level to do so.
people would rather tell their friends what is going on with their lif rather that their parents or school councilors because they feel as if they will be judged for how they feel when all they really want is someone to understand what they are going through. they want to tell someone who they think will understand where they are coming from and what they are going through. they feel like their peers would be more relate-able and more understanding since they live in the same generation as them
usually when I'm upset or sad or feeling any emotion that worries me or the people around me, I turn to my family but manly towards my brother. because he has gone through pretty much the same thing I have gone through in my life. And he can relate to me nd offer better advice. The knowledge that we both have is something we can sue to help each other nd help others.
If i were in a crisis i would go to my Mom or Dad for help. Yet if it were a smaller more easily handle crisis i would seek my Sister or friends. adults are a good source for advice yet are not always a best example of what to do. yes i would if i had to today i see too many depressed Teenagers out in Public or Online were they go to cope with. Furthermore in the many years I have seen my friends go through hardships and sometimes all they need is someone they trust to talk to. This would be hard for me but know i could help someone if they needed it in a crisis.
In times of need the first person I and most students turn to is their friends. They always know that they can trust their friends because they are going through or have gone through the same stuff. Most of the time when you go to talk to an adult something they just brush it off or say that they’ve been through worse and you’ll get over it. Additionally most friends chose you where they could’ve chosen other people and that shows that I’ll be there for you even if your parents aren’t. Most kids don’t want to disappoint their parents or are scared that if they tell their parents sensitive information they could be punished. Friends don’t do that, so it makes sense why most children confide in their friends.
I believe I have multiple people to turn to in a crisis. Deciding who I will turn to really depends on the level of the crisis. I will go to my friends in almost any crisis im in but if it is a very concerning situation that could have detrimental outcomes I turn to my mother or sister. A lot of the times will smaller crisis' I go to my friends and they help me the best that they can.
Part 1-
Who I turn to in a time of crisis really depends on what that crisis is. If I have a serious issue, I will turn to my dad usually. Whenever it is something that I feel like I need a lot of help with, I feel comfortable talking with certain adults. Some issues that are more mellow, I feel more comfortable just talking with friends about it. If I feel as though the crisis doesn’t need adult attention, I won’t bring it to their attention.
After reading the article I think that teen hotline for crisis to talk to other teens is a really amazing organization to have. A lot of adults may think that teens wouldn’t be very good for that type of position because some teens have trouble relating with adults. That’s the exact reason teens would be great for that position, some teens may not relate with adults well, but that usually means that we relate with people our age very well. People, not just teens, tend to relate with people the same age as us.
Part 2-
“...some limited studies show that teenagers experiencing the stress of adolescence cope better emotionally when they are with their friends than with their parents.” This piece of text from the article shows why this organization is great. The person who has called the hotline may not consider you a “friend”, but they know that you could relate to them better than an adult. “...the 15-year-old she was paired with for an exercise in reflective listening did a better job than she did.” Wendy Farmer, the chief executive of Behavioral Health Link in Atlanta, didn’t do as good as a teenager who hasn’t had nearly as much experience as she had. Even though this was just an exercise, it could have saved somebody’s life.
Usually, most of the time I talk to and vent about my problems to my friends and or my dad. I usually don't go to most adults about about my problems but i don't got to all my friends either. It's really all dependent on the the trust level between me and the person, not whether or not they are my friend or an adult.
Often times I find myself talking to my friends about my problems but it doesn’t seem to help much. They show sympathy but they don’t actually care or they don’t know how to help, so when I’m in a crisis I come to my mom. My mother knows me better than I know myself and in hard situations, she always knows what to do. In the article it mentions how the youth tend to cope better with stress when around their friends rather than their parents, which I do partially agree with that statement because your peers can relate to the stress you’re in because they experience similar issues and can help you get your mind off things but when it comes to talking about problems my mom is the better listener.
When I am angry of frustrated, I usually vent it out to my parents. I can always trust all of my childhood friends, and my family members. When my friends are frustrated, they will come to me at some point as I usually understand what they're talking about and can give them pretty good advice. My childhood friends and I are like a circle that never breaks apart, at some point leaning on one another for help and support.
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It is hard for me to talk to adults about my mental health. I’ve been forced to talk to people about my problems since I was little and because of that it is really hard for me to open up. Regarding mental health, adults can seem very judgmental. Teenagers just seem to close up around adults, fearful of what they are going to say, definitely about suicide. In the article, Crisis Text Line decided to stay clear of volunteers under the age of 18. I believe that having teenagers work on suicide hotlines can convince kids to call them for help more often. I do understand their hesitation to have teenagers work, but I think that if they do mental health checks they shouldn’t have to worry about trauma.
Who I turn to in a crisis is my grand-mother, what I turn to in a crisis are my religious beliefs. I find comfort in believing there is something out there that is in control of everything. My grand-mother has really helped me form the foundation of my faith as a Christian. I say my grand-mother is who I turn to in a crisis because we have a bond like no other. She is insightful and well articulated when it comes to discussing life. I do not turn to my friends or peers in a crisis like I have in the past. Peers are less likely to ease my mind due to lack of knowledge or experience with words or life in general in comparison with my grand-mother.
I think Taylor’s decision to join the Lines for Life team is understandable and very admirable. Although I understand Taylor’s decision, I do to some degree agree with Dr. Turner in saying that trauma occurring with being a volunteer for a crisis line is a concern. I think that if someone who has been through something traumatic such as a parent dying then there could be a support group they volunteer at. Anything can happen over an anonymous phone call but if the volunteer persists on joining the Lines for Life, I think the calls should be at least go through an adult or educated official before a volunteer that is a child can accept the call.
This is situational. If someone just needs to vent or complain about something minor, then a sympathetic peer is likely the best person to turn to. However, if the person is seeking advice or intervention, or if their situation is serious, they should seek out an adult. Ultimately, adults have more life experience and maturity to give teens advice that will result in them making the best choices. I also know that personally, I have felt awkward or unqualified to give advice to friends who struggle with mental health. Adults and trained mental health professionals, on the other hand, have the emotional maturity and expertise to handle a crisis. Although it might be more awkward approaching an adult at first, it is ultimately a better decision.
Part 1-
During a crisis, the main people who I turn to is my family because I am the most comfortable communicating with them. Even though I often want to deal with the issue myself and am reluctant to turn to them, I know my parents are the only ones who can understand me well enough to actually empathize with me. For example, when I need help with a certain issue and especially when I want to complain about something, I know my parents will give me the most sympathy. It might be easier for me to try and explain something to my friends, but I know that my friends may not give me the sympathy and advice that my parents would provide me. People might say that adults do not always understand how teens feel; however, I believe that the adults in my life are capable of protecting and helping me.
When I have a crisis and I usually turn to one of the only people I can trust someone who I consider my best friend. I do have a twin sister but I feel too pressured to talk to her because I personally feel that everything that she does is perfect and I don’t want to tell her I’m struggling. So I talk to a friend or I text them. I feel like it’s more comfortable for me just because I don't have the pressure to try to be something or someone I’m not when I talk to a friend. Like when I ́m feeling anxious I overthink a lot and adults tend to judge me but I don't feel judged when it is someone who is my age.
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1/2 In times of crisis, it is definitely easier for me to turn to my friends and peers rather than adults. This is largely because I feel like my friends can accept and help me in a more constructive way; we share similar experiences and they can relate to my experiences more than my parents ever can. Recently, I experienced trialing mental health issues, and instead of turning to my parents, I instinctively turned to my friends. During such times, when I would cry, when I would feel nothing, when I would feel everything, it was my friends that I called for solace.
After reading the article, I have conflicting opinions on this issue of whether to allow teens to manage the crisis lines. I agree that it would be more beneficial for people in such a situation to be able to talk to people their age, but there is also the issue of trauma for the volunteers participating. I believe that a happy median to this problem would be to have all volunteers be fifteen or older and have them take a training course in what to expect and how to effectively help while also relating to and comforting them. But if these requirements are met, I can see the benefits of having teenagers working the crisis line. One woman in the article said that during a conference for the crisis hotline, a fifteen year old performed better on a reflective listening exercise then her.
When I am going through something, I can find it difficult to discuss the stated topic with an adult. I usually go to my closest friends for help, mainly because it's harder talking to my parents about situations that don't involve them on a personal level. I choose to talk to my close friends because we have a bond to the point where I am ready to tell them just about anything whereas with and adult, I have a more difficult time talking to them because I don't know what they will say, or do.
Coming from different places and growing up in a different generation than us, sometimes adults don't completely understand what we are going through.
When I am talking to my closest friends, it is much easier to let go, and tell them what is going on. I feel that people your age are much more willing to listen and to help you, due to the chance that they have gone through something similar.
Over the summertime, while I was at an overnight camp, there was this girl in another bunk who was being bullied, and the "responsible adult" there knew about it, but stood there and did nothing. That was a time that was much easier to talk to my peers because anyone we would tell would automatically believe the other adult.
I have a much harder time dealing with stuff when I have to talk to an adult about it, fearing the unknown. For me and many others, people my own age are easier to talk to and have a better understanding of how you feel. (I will talk to adults if I am comfortable about doing it)
When I am in an emotional crisis, I turn to my peers or myself for assistance. I find that adults are usually a bit too judgemental. I can trust adults in my family, and I also entrust my most intimate friends. I also seek my friends out if I know they need help.
I find that my relatives usually have good advice when I obtain their aid. But, they can be severely condescending at times.
I do not want to work as a teenager counselor, not because I'm afraid of trauma, but because I fill slightly ill-equipped. I might be able to give support to one adolescent, but I won't be able to help the next three. It is crucial for teens having a crisis to have somebody listen to them because it will substantially reduce the burden they have keeping their secret.
I reach out to my sister whenever I have problems with school, friends, or anything like that. She is older, has been through everything I’m going through, and knows me the best. Similarly, she also tells me about her problems and emotions. We help each other get through any obstacles in our way. I also talk to my friends about my problems, though not as much. I don’t really feel comfortable telling adults my emotions, because I feel like they don’t understand what I’m going through. I feel most comfortable talking to someone who is slightly older than me and understands what I’m going through.
(2/2) I would love to work as a teenage counselor- I think it would be very neat to be able to help people my age work through difficult times in their lives and watch them possibly triumph over them. However, I don’t think I’m very well equipped to handle darker situations, particularly since, as stated before, I have problems relating to my own peers. My life has been fortunately filled with blessings, and while I have had my share of dark spots and death, I don’t think I could be able to counsel the people who need it most. I don’t know if I could be put on the phone and come up with the right words to say at that moment- if I could find a way to let them know that everything is going to be alright in the long run, even if it takes a while together. And what if I were to fail? I would definitely be concerned about experiencing “vicarious trauma”, not from the listening itself, but the aftermath. It sounds a bit selfish to be worried about my own trauma when there are so many people who just need someone to listen to theirs. That listening ear can be the difference between life and death, and I’m not sure if I want that power thrust into my hands.
When I am going through something, I can find it difficult to discuss the stated topic with an adult. I usually go to my closest friends for help, mainly because it's harder talking to my parents about situations that don't involve them on a personal level. I choose to talk to my close friends because we have a bond to the point where I am ready to tell them just about anything whereas with and adult, I have a more difficult time talking to them because I don't know what they will say, or do.
Coming from different places and growing up in a different generation than us, sometimes adults don't completely understand what we are going through.
When I am talking to my closest friends, it is much easier to let go, and tell them what is going on. I feel that people your age are much more willing to listen and to help you, due to the chance that they have gone through something similar.
Over the summertime, while I was at an overnight camp, there was this girl in another bunk who was being bullied, and the "responsible adult" there knew about it, but stood there and did nothing. That was a time that was much easier to talk to my peers because anyone we would tell would automatically believe the other adult.
I have a much harder time dealing with stuff when I have to talk to an adult about it, fearing the unknown. For me and many others, people my own age are easier to talk to and have a better understanding of how you feel. (I will talk to adults if I am comfortable about doing it)
When I want advice I turn to my parents, more specifically my mom because my dad doesn’t really get home until later in the day, but my mom is always there. I usually turn to my parents first, because I feel like they are the people that know me best. Then, I turn to my friends because they are about the same age as me, and I feel like we are all going through the same problems. I feel like there are benefits and drawbacks of turning to both adults and kids. The benefits of turning to adults are that they probably have experienced more, so they will know how to help you more than your friends who are your age. However, the drawbacks are that they might not understand what it is like to be a kid in this generation, and things change, so they might not be familiar with the kinds of things that kids say to put others down. The benefits of turning to someone your age is that they will likely understand you better than an adult because they have gone through the same things that you have and they will be able to help you more. The drawbacks of turning to someone your age, however, is that they might not be mature enough to help you in the best way possible. So, I think that I would feel most comfortable turning to someone in between my age and an adult, maybe two years older than me, because they have experienced more, but yet they are still living in the same generation as me and are experiencing the same conflicts as me.
In a crisis I usually go to my friends for advice or for when I need to vent. I only have two friends that I always run to when I really have a problem or just stressed out. My friends will come to me with their problems and i go to them. Depending on the situation I will also get advice from an adult so that way I get someone with experience who might have gone through something similar. My aunt is usually a trusted adult that I go to.
@Deysha I do the same thing. I have 2 friends I trust and they have all the answers. I trust them not to tell anyone and they never do. Whenever i am stressed out they always find some way to calm me down. The same things they do for me i do for them. I give them advice about what to do and tell them i will help them with anything they need.
For me, it just depends on what the situation is. If it's light drama or something that gets on my nerves at school, I feel more comfortable going to one of my friends who might understand the situation better. If I'm dealing with something more serious with my anxiety, I talk about it with either my mom or my small group leader from my church. I find that in most situations, my small group leader is the best outlet. She's 25, so she isn't too far away from her own high school experiences, but she's old enough to have wisdom to pass down, especially when it's something that I don't feel comfortable talking about it with my mom. I think that Lines for Life does a good job of getting teens involved in the community, but I do not think that I would be able to work as a counselor. I know that I would feel pressured, as if someone else's life may depend on my responses, which would not help my own anxiety. I think that some of the things that I would hear would be traumatizing and hard for me to hear. Even though I do not think that it would be a good fit for me, I think that using teenage counselors is a great idea.
I feel more comfortable talk about personal stuff with my friends because they are the same age and they might be going through it as well and my parents aren't the best to talk to. My mom just calls and tells everyone what I just told her and my dad just won't do anything about it. But my friends will talk with me and make me feel better.
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When I need advice, I like to turn to my friends, because they seem to understand me considerably, as I do for them. When my friends need advice, they do sometimes turn to me, but not that often where it can get irritating. I do not believe that adults are a good source of advice, because they don’t seem to understand people our age. Sure, they have been children before, but not in the same days and times as us. Things are different, and I believe that adults become too judgemental to our choices, when they would do the same in our conditions. However, my peers can relate to me, and we can easily share our problems with each other. Most adults I’ve met are subjective, while my friends take the time to listen, therefore causing me to appreciate their advice over adults. They take things seriously, while adults (sometimes) take things overboard. The teen hotline seems like an amazing idea because it is much easier for a lot of teens to talk with someone their age. The original hotlines must have been created for adults because they can relate to them more. But with the rising teen suicide rates, it’s time someone takes a stand. With this new hotline, our suicides could decrease. This is the beginning of a hopeful future.
Just like the article was talking about I would go to other teenagers, More specifically my friends, at this age our parents " don't understand." No matter how much they say that they were teenagers at one time too it still not the same. The struggles we have to deal with are drastically different. Going to other people your age makes the situation more comforting because they can most likely understand and relate to you.
"studies show that teenagers experiencing the stress of adolescence cope better emotionally when they are with their friends than with their parents" these studies help further prove my point. While parents can be helpful they just don't give off the same security as your friends do. Telling certain things to your parents can lead to you getting in trouble or being told that you're overreacting while your friends wont do either of these things.
When I have problems, I turn to many of my friends. I have friend groups because I feel that the purpose of a friend is to have good times and fun, but also to help get through hard times. I am usually the person my friends turn to because I think I’m trustworthy enough of the position. I usually don’t tend to turn to adults because the times I have confided in them, I usually get judgemental and unhelpful suggestions. I wouldn’t work as a teenage counselor because I don’t think I have the skills necessary. And I definitely would experience vicarious trauma. Listening to a friend is one thing, but trying to help hundreds of people a day go through their own problems is way too much, especially with an over-empathetic sense of feeling. But besides the problems it would cause me, I think it would be a bad idea for me to give advice on situations that I couldn’t handle if I were going through them. But it is totally important to have someone to vent to, especially in super tough times, because a build-up of such emotions could be catastrophic.
Whether you feel more comfortable talking to an adult about a problem or a peer it definitely depends on the person. I know for me though I definitely feel more comfortable talking to my close friends. Sometimes it feels like they just simply know me better and the situation that I am in they will more closely relate too, because they might be going through it as well. Also sometimes my parents seem to think there is an easy solution but I know that if they were in my situation it would we harder than just that. When the problem that I am dealing with gets to big for me to handle, I do go to an adult though because in the end they have had more experience and will probably know what is best.
Who I choose to turn to for advice or venting depends on the situation Sometimes I know my friends will understand more and other times I turn to my mom for help. I have many friends I can trust, but I have one friend in particular that understand me best. Many of my friends do turn to me for help when they are in a tough situation and I hope they know that I am always here for help. I think it is good to have a balance of peers and adults in your life to seek advice. Sometimes you will need the experience an adult can offer, but sometimes they just don’t understand the current issues of teens. I do not believe I could work as a teenage counselor. I think I would panic if someone was threatening to hurt themselves and it would make me very depressed if I didn’t think I was helping someone who was in real trouble.
There are people I will turn to and talk when I'm frustrated or worried. Most of the time, it is my family but I have some friends can I feel as if they're always there for me and they have my back so I can talk to them too. Their are tons of people I can trust, but there is plenty. I have plenty of choices of people to talk to but something's wrong. So yeah, I usually have somebody to talk to when something's up or wrong. I feel like talking to people my age for example some of my friends is better choice because they are the same age as me, they can relate to me more than some adults.That's how I deal with the situation.
In a crisis I turn to my dad or my mom because we have so much in common and they can help me work out problems. It really depends on what the crisis is on who i turn to like if its sports or school related I will turn my dad but if it's personal i will sometimes turn to my mom. I have recently been very stressed due to long nights of homework on top of soccer everyday and I have gotten a tutor and my parents have helped me deal with a bunch of this stress.
Reading this article makes me realize how much stress teens have that leads to depression and that sometimes the best people to turn to are the ones your age that want to help or even your closest friends. “She said she was struck by how smart the students were — indeed, she said, the 15-year-old she was paired with for an exercise in reflective listening did a better job than she did.” this really shows the importance of knowing who can help and it's a good thing that people have these options like lines for life to help save them in rough times.
Generally, if I have a problem that I need to talk to someone about I will either talk to my mom or talk to my best friend. I talk to them because I know I can trust them and they will be honest and give me an outside perspective on my situation. Sometimes adults can be helpful to get advice from because they are better at being mature and finding a reasonable solution, but sometimes adults don’t really understand the problem so they can’t really give good advice and it makes the whole situation worse. I think I definitely relate better to my peers. They can sometimes be immature, but I would never describe them as naive. Most of the kids my age have gone through at least one serious life-changing event so they normally are not naive when talking about really serious issues.
If I am in need of advice or need to vent I would usually go to one of my older sisters. I tend to not like opening up to people but I have learned that it's better to let someone know what's bothering rather than just keeping it to yourself and let it eat you. I like to keep my trust limited. Trust is something you earn and not just automatically get. Another thing is that I like to have friends come to me when they need anything. I let them know as much as possible that I am available at all time for whatever they need and that I will help as much as possible. I like that some friends have that trust in me, it makes me feel good about myself. I feel like I am an open book. I like to be able to be trusted and have anybody talk to me in whatever circumstance they are in.
The people I go to depend on what the crisis is. My brother is probably the first person I go to for my problems because I can talk to him about pretty much about all my problems, whether they are personal or not. I do feel that I go to my friends for my problems than I do my parents. I feel like adults just don’t really understand the things kids my age go through. People around your age can relate to what you are going through and give you good advice. I only talk to my friends that I know I trust and aren’t going to say anything behind my back. I would go to an adult such as my parents if it is something very serious.
(1/2) I don’t like to vent my problems to just anyone. There are really only a handful of people that I trust enough to confide in and of them only a couple that I can truly turn to for anything. Depending on what kind of advice I need to hear, I will go to either my best friend or my mom. My friend has been the only one of my friends to ever reach out to me when the whole world seems to be crashing down. I have a few people that come to me when they need help, and it always makes me feel honored.
I definitely believe that adults are a wonderful source of advice and wisdom, and our parents are constantly trying to give it to us, whether we want it or not. I enjoy their advice, and my mom’s advice has been probably some of the best I have received when I encounter problems in my life. I have some issues when it comes to relating to my peers, so when I do find people that will listen to me I will cling to that relationship. I think that our generation is capable of providing assistance to one another better than some adults, but as for me, I find myself drawn closer to the advice and care of the adult perspective.
Reaching out to peers can be so much easier than adults. Maybe it's because our parents and teachers grew up in a different generation, one we feel as though we oftentimes can't relate to. Or maybe it is due to the fact that our friends and peers are the same age and can relate in a way that adults will never be able to. I feel like it's way easier to get whatever it is that's on my mind out to my friends and confide in them before confiding in my parents. However, I will always trust my mom and tell her most everything, but sometimes you feel safer and less stressed when conversing with peers about something that's bothering you. I think that what Taylor Harrison did at the mere age of 18 years old, by creating a teenage hotline where teenagers in a crisis talk to other teenagers is a wonderful idea. Sometimes teenagers understand each other in a way that adults can't and can relate to them much more.
Adults can be great sources of advice due to their experience and knowledge. However, their methods can often lack the relatability needed for an adolescent to use the information, many times making the adult seem patronizing or judgmental, even in situations when they are giving sincere advice.
Part 2-
This article has changed my perspective on how teenagers can help other teeangers. After reading it, I realized that there are certain teenagers that are capable of providing even better guidance than adults. Teenagers who have been through a very similar crisis as the person who is coming to seek advice from them would definitely be better counselors than adults. On the other hand, teens who have not experienced a similar event would definitely not be able to offer the right guidance as they would not be able to put themselves in the other person’s shoes. For example, Taylor Harrison, whose friend committed suicide, had been through a tragic event and knew how other teens going through similar situations felt.
The majority of teens are not mature and developed enough to offer guidance on serious topics such as suicide. Adults, who are mature and knowledgeable, may be more apt in ensuring that a person does not commit suicide or perform any other dangerous deed. However, the small fraction of teenagers that have reached a higher level of maturity would be much more effective than adults at guiding their peers because they could relate to them. Even though I have always turned to adults over teens in my life, I realize that it is indeed possible for teenagers to transform and in some cases, save lives.
To start I genuinely haven’t had problems as of recent. When I did have a problem two years ago, I can’t really say anyone helped. Though there was one person. I don’t really trust anything someone says at face value as I lie myself. Nor can I say that my friends reach out to me. As for adults. I can’t say they are the most helpful people to talk to. Plus I don’t want to burden them with my troubles. I can’t even say my peers are helpful either, it’s not that their immature or naive because they are some of the smartest people I know. Even if they don’t act like it. I couldn’t be a teenage counselor, as I don’t think I’m even close to suited for the job. Though I can say one thing. If you have a problem, bring it up with someone you trust. Or someone who’s gone through that way of thinking before. Those are usually the most equipped to handle it.
Personally if I’m going through something I rather talk to my friends about it than talking to any adults. I just feel like it is a lot easier to talk to someone my age instead of a trusted adult. Even though adults say you can tell them anything sometimes telling parents can sometimes make things even worse. Sometimes it’s easier if parents just don’t know what’s happening in your life. When talking to kids your age they might have a better understanding of what’s happening and how to get through it.
I have many sources of stress in my life, so I have countless frustrations and worries. A majority of them are insignificant, so I keep them to myself because I know that my emotions will pass. I also don’t ask for help because I don’t want to be a burden on others. If I need advice, I usually turn to my peers because they can better relate to me. But sometimes even my friends don’t understand what I’m going through. In that case, I use the internet for information. My serious emotional issues often last for about ten to sixty minutes and occur when I’m alone at my house. When this happens, I reach out to people through texting. I tend to fake being happier than I am. Because of this, many of my friends aren’t equipped to deal with my breakdowns. I only know one, maybe two people who can adequately help me. Sometimes they don’t respond to my texts, which has taught me how to carry huge burdens on my own. When people reach out to me, they reject my advice. My methods are useful to me, but not as much to other people. People only seek me out to resolve small issues.
I, myself am going through a very tough time in my life. I have been struggling with depression and anxiety for over 4 years now. I get extreme anxiety answering questions in class, and from past experiences with bullying and hard times, I feel like I can’t really talk to anyone. My mother, whom I’ve tried to talk to multiple times, has told me to “Stay positive” and that “Everything will be okay”, but it’s not. Everyday is painful and I hate getting up in the morning. The closest thing to a therapist I’ve gone to is the school counselor. She was no help. Her advice was merely to “Wake up earlier in the morning so you can get to school early.” She told me I was fine because I had seemed happy talking to her when she clearly didn’t understand what I was telling her. I left feeling worse and never went again. My mom keeps telling me that she understands but I don’t think she does. Talking to my father also isn’t an option as he doesn’t really help, although I know he tries. Talking to peers also isn’t useful because I feel like I can’t trust them. I don’t even have any friends. They also aren’t helpful either. I can’t trust anyone anymore and I’m lonely during class. I’ve tried talking to people but none of them are really reliable.
1
@Christina A lot of the times schools make it seem like you have a ton of options to turn to when in a "crisis", but really I've gone to the school counselors as well, and didn't have a positive experience. I also agree that sometimes adults, even parents don't understand the problems we are facing. Even if they are trying to help, it can come off as passive and disregarding of our issues.
2/2 If this is the case, then why prohibit qualified people from participating if they are equipped for the job and could possibly save lives? Teens that are mentally prepared are willing to participate in such a task should be allowed to do it.
For me when I have a crisis, which is not so very often and usually when it happened it just so much I process in my head that I just need to let go of the situation and move on and by doing that I go to my “go to buddy’ and I talk about it a diccuss with him what should I do to make it better. And usually I don't tell adults none of business even though there is a saying “always go to a trusted adult.” I always go to one of my best friends and tell them the big problem im having and I do that because they have non me for a long period of time to be my friend so they pretty much now what I should do or how to deal with it. So I would rather talk to one of best friends over an adult unless its a parent I feel like they don’t know you very much and don’t know what is going in your life so kind of to the point where they don’t know how to handle my situation or thoughts I have.
When I have a problem, I feel that I can always talk to my friends. But if I have a real issue, I feel that the only people I can talk to is my parents (most likely my mom). If I have a crisis, such as hurting my knee, I feel that my mother is an inevitable person that I can reach out to and provides a beneficial response to my predicament. Overall, it depends on the person and the relation to the adult or friend to be able to place one's faith into. If you spend a lot of time near your close adults, you would be able to trust them. But, I see how people would avoid to tell their close adults. People may think that they tend to respond in a harsh and judgemental way. But on the contrary, some may think that due to their experience, they would most likely provide honorable responses that would give feedback that you could learn from (not always positive). Yet, I don’t rule out talking to my peers. Some may think they are naive and immature when they could have a preferable response then no adult could provide for you. Due to their similar age, they would have experienced similar problems. For example, they could have a problem with not receiving enough attention. An adult would be not likely to provide that much help (could be emotional help) that another child would be able to provide. Ultimently, I feel that there would be two ways to see your problems be disputed and have a beneficial outcome for them. In my situation, an adult would be a preferable option for me
Personally, if I had the choice to talk to an adult or a friend about my problems, I would automatically go to my friend. So many adults come up to me, trying to ask me if they want me to talk to them about my social life. Honestly, I’d be fine with that, but I can’t really express all my feelings and all my thoughts to them. Especially not like how I express them to my friends. And the answer is simple. Adults don’t understand your problems. And half the stuff you tell your friends, you can’t even get to that topic with adults! For example,what if you have a crush on someone. Adults can’t help you with that. Say, if your friend goes up to you and says, “Oh my gosh, the new kid is really cute!” I can’t even bring that topic up to an adult. They either don’t care, or can’t help, or don’t want you to even say the word “crush”. I can easily express that to my friends. And sometimes children your age understand you more than adults. Because they might be experiencing the same things right now, or they have experienced those things.
But I know adults can’t tell you their own problems. I’m sure everyone has heard, “Its an adult problem” or “Let the adults handle this” from one of their parents or peers. But really it should be “Let the kids handle this” when children are talking to other kids their age. Because in multiple situations, I believe that kids can handle problems better than adults. And talking with kids can be a lot less stressful than talking with adults.
I never thought about teenagers working on a hotline helping their peers. Now, however, I see that another host of possibilities is open to help teenagers cope with stress and other issues that parents cannot give good advice on. This is not because adults are dumb or mean, it is because sometimes issues that teenagers face today can be so much different than the experiences that their parents went through. It’s like a modern day teenager giving their grandparents advice on how to get a date. The times are so completely different that each generation has no idea how to help others.
1
When I am mad or frustrated, I either talk to my friends or just keep it to myself. When I talk to my friends, it is usually about things that they can relate to. Though I usually don’t talk about how I sometimes feel. On some topics, I just don’t talk about it at all. I just think about it to myself. When I am really mad and not just annoyed I really really get mad. And to get me that mad it would have been something so severe or just terrible on a whole other level. When that happens I sleep it off because you can’t be mad or sad when you are sleeping. When I wake up I feel refreshed and I just don’t think about it.
1
In general, I talk to my dad about my problems in school and in life. I feel like he went through the same stuff as I did when he was my age so we can relate to him. Most kids my age say that their parents don’t understand what is going on in their lives but all of our parents have been a teenager before so they understand your problems even if you don’t think that they do. I am not like other kids who say that they dislike their parents, I, for example, are very close to both of my parents. Also, teens don’t hate their parents they hate their authority and power which results in them hating their actions. Teens have a short temper because of there hormones so they don’t want to listen some times so they confide in there friends with their problems which is ok as well. So no matter who you turn to it is good to tell people what is going on in your life so you are not a ball of problems.
1
I feel more comfortable talking about personal stuff with my friends because they are the same age and they might be going through it as well and my parents aren't the best to talk to. My mom just calls and tells everyone what I just told her and my dad just won't do anything about it. But my friends will talk with me and make me feel better. If this is the third comment I uploaded it is because I didn't see my comment.
1
I feel more comfortable talking to my friends about personal problems than my parents because my dad is very stereotypical and my mom just tells everybody everything I say to her. My mom is also so concerned for no reason. I didn't turn in my homework one and she sent me to a therapist. Also, when I'm arguing with my brothers, he just yells " SHUT UP, y'all sound like little girls." When my friends talk to me about stuff and when I talk to them about stuff we just keep it between us.
1
Who I turn to depends on the situation. I tend to talk to my peers more about insignificant problems or situations that I know I can fix (grades, assignments, non-life shattering events) while the big problems are left for the adults in my life. In certain situations, it’ll be better to turn to a peer-run crisis line like Youthline because peers would be able to understand the feelings that I would have because they have gone through it, or are going through it too and can relate to my experiences instead of just saying “it will be okay”.
Adults sometimes downplay the problems that teens go through (because being behind on mortgage payments are much more important than your stupid psychology class!) while the teen volunteers are trained and ready to relate and help in situations that almost every teen goes through. Not only teenagers from the United States have embraced going to peers for help, a small percentage of calls have come from out of the country. It emphasizes how the support of peers can often change a mindset.
It depends on what the situation is. If I feel anxiety, stress, or start feeling depressed, then I would go to see my therapist to just talk about what’s going on in my life and help resolve my anxiety, stress, etc. But if it’s a more minor situation, then I would turn to my parents, specifically my mom. This is because my mom seems more emotionally stable when I express my situations, where as my dad may not understand it or would blow up at me. Most times though, I sometimes go to my friends if its stress with homework or problems with other friends. Sometimes my friends come to me when they need help with certain things or with other friends as well. I personally think that adults most times are not the ideal people to go to unless it’s someone you are comfortable with. From experience, most adults I’ve talked to are judgmental and always have something to say. I also think that I do relate with my peers because they are my age and pretty much going through similar things that I am.
5
When in a crisis where I need advice on something I usually talk to my friend or sister or mom. There are some situations where I could talk to a trusted adult. Some situations are hard and uncomfortable to talk with an adult. I can talk to my friends because they are closer to my age and can understand what I’m feeling. I know that they can give me advice to help the situation. I know that teens aren’t as wise as adults but we have different POV. For example if I’m have beef with a friend I need to talk to friends because they will know how to better the situation and know what they could be mad at me for. While an adult on the other hand could drag the situation and make it extra. Times I can talk to my mom is something really personal that they can relate to maybe something that has to do with race, looks, family drama, body problems and more. I sometimes feel that I should have talked to an adult after the situation happened. Once before I had a problem with a kid and I told my “friends” and they ended up backstabbing me. Then had I wish I told my sister or mom. I tell my sister a lot of things and trust that she will not share them, since we have off and on days. I like telling her things because she can give advice since she has been through some of these and she also can give me an adult person point of view since, she has gone through that helped shape who she is.
2
When I am in a crisis, it depends on what happened, if I am mad at something or having trouble with school. When I am having trouble with my schoolwork, my parents can’t help me. Both of my parents aren't fluent in English so when they explain something to me, I get even more confused because it is different from what I am learning in school. They never understand my ways or the ways that the teachers teach at schools because they learned something a different way since they had a different education. If the crisis is something more emotionally, then sometimes I would go to my friends or my parents. My friends are more understandable because they are in the same age group as me and have more things in common. Since my life is revolving around school, everything crisis I have is usually because of school. My friends go to the same school as me so whatever happens to me at school, they feel the same way and we can help each other.
5
@Vivina Dong My parents aren't completely fluent in English either. So instead of comforting or helping me feel better sometimes, they make me feel worse because I'm not able to communicate such an important part of my life; school.
For me, there isn’t really one person in particular I turn to. Depending on what the situation is, is when I’ll decide who I want to talk about my problem with. The first person I would turn to in a problem would be my parents but if they don’t understand what my problems and I can usually turn to a peer who will help solve the problem.
An example is last year around the end of April, I started getting really stressed out about a project because I felt that my partner and I were starting to fall behind. So I talked to my parents about it, you’ll get it done, we believe you, this made me feel better in that moment, but it didn’t last long. By the next day I was already stressed out again. I later I ended up visiting one of our school counselors who tried to help me through it but by that point I was already so stressed and overwhelmed. But, I talked to him and was able to make it through that day and when I got home my parents gave me a pep talk. The next day after school was over I showed my dad our work, and he said we did it wrong, and my heart sank, by that point, I thought that the project was never going to get done. But my dad helped me through the errors, showed me the mistakes I had made. I ended up finishing a day before the project was due (a Sunday), and my partner and I ended up getting and A. That afternoon after I had received my grade I talked to my parents about it again and they said, ̈See? After all that stressing out about it you got an A. I was so happy.
2
Honestly I have never dealt with mental health or really want to deal with mental health. It’s a thing I don’t experience and don’t want to experience. I understand there are other people who seriously deal with these issues and when I am encountered with someone like this I try to help and avoid the situation. I start to feel uncomfortable and ask a responsible adult to deal with the situation instead of me if I know anything about it. I would rather avoid the situation completely then get involved end up in a bad position. Although most of the time I don’t encounter people who are dealing with a situation and asking me for help. Sure I get frustrated about grades and I get really worried. My parents always say I need to back of on myself and not be so hard on myself, something I got from my father. I will admit that I am super hard on myself because I want to have a successful life, and I often look into my future and base things off of my mistakes. For example, sometimes before a test I feel that If I don't get a good grade I won’t get into a good college, won’t get a good job, and end up homeless. But this is because both of my parents and brother became and are super successful and I want to be like them. Although these feelings never connect to my mental health which I am grateful for. I do think social media plays a big role in mental health and as a community we should help fix that.
6
I feel like it is easier to share my difficulties with my friends. I feel sometimes that they can understand me better than adults like my parents. I never seem to know what a conversation with an adult will be like, but I feel comfortable talking to a companion that I feel would have an answer to my question that is more relevant to my problem. In addition, I sometimes feel like I can bond better with kids my age in general.
My point is, when I am having a serious problem, sometimes I feel like talking to my close friends over adults. Maybe sometimes an adult will have a better solution, I feel better when a kid knows my situation and genuinely cares.
3
When I feel as if I am in a crisis, I turn to my teachers in school. The reason for me doing this is because when I turn to my friends, it does not turn out as well. Sometimes if you talk with your friends about things, it can kind of backfire. I always go to an adult now because they help deal with things that I struggle with at school and I feel as if my teachers understand me better than the people I used to think were my best friends. Your peers sometimes think they always know what goes on or how things happen, but they know as much as you do. In middle school there are so many things going that people get into fights about. They are never good to be apart of and as someone in middle school, I really do know about that. I wish I never had to be in some of these crises, but I hope they can make me into a stronger person.
4
@Christopher Misko I think your response is really interesting, I've been reading other comments and it seems the vast majority of them will turn to a friend, sibling, or parent. I also relate to the fact that talking to friends can backfire. A lot of the points you made are very true.
I think that it depends on your relationship with an adult when it comes to asking for advice or just venting out. If you really trust that adult and you have a good relationship, and you know that they won’t judge you, then I think that they can be a good source for you. On the other hand, I don ́t think its a good source if you don't have a great relationship with that adult, and you feel uncomfortable talking about your problems with them. For me, I don't really like to go to adults with my problems because I feel that they can be a little too judgemental sometimes, but at the same time, some of the people who are the same age as me are a little immature and might not understand a certain situation. There are some people who can relate and give good advice, so I go to them when I need advice.
4
I think that I wouldn't want to work as a teen for youth line because I don’t think that I could handle so much pressure, I think I would panic. This wouldn't be good because if someone is in a situation that could be life or death, it would be important to be quick and not become flustered, which is something I don’t think I could do. If I had the skills, I would definitely want to do it because it would be great to know that I might single handedly be able to save people’s lives or at least put them in a better mental state.
2
I would want to work as a teenage counselor. I think that even though you have to deal with some really deep and emotional stuff, I feel that at the end of the day I'd be happy to know that I helped someone through a hard time in their life. I don't think I'd ever feel ill equipped to help someone because I have dealt with some hard stuff, and I'd also most likely have had rigorous training if I were to be a counselor. In my opinion it is very important for people in crisis to have someone to listen to them because I know when I'm in a crisis or a crisis like situation, I feel a little better, and feel like I have a stronger hold on my issues after I talk to someone.
4
When I have a problem with something, I usually turn to my parents or my peers. I trust both of my parents, and many of my peers out of school and in school. I think adults are a good source if you have known them for a long time, and same with your peers. I think it would be cool to work as a peer counselor, and I think it would feel really good to help people with their problems. I worry slightly about vicarious trauma, but it is not such a big problem if the peer counselors practice self-care and take breaks every so often. I think it is extremely important that someone in crisis should tell another person, because then it is possible for them to get help. If they don’t get help, they will just be stuck with a problem weighing them down, which could lead to serious consequences in the future. Overall, I think that peer counseling is a great idea, and I think that some people will find it easier to talk about problems with people their own age.
2
I think it’s extremely important to turn to someone you trust when in need of help, or just comfort. I, myself, always turn to my most trustworthy friend, always knowing they will never tell anyone else how I’m feeling. Again, it totally depends on who someone trusts the most, but when it comes to talking to a friend, rather than a counselor, or an adult, I agree 100%, Especially when it’s your bestfriend and you have lots in common with them, it’ll be easy to talk to someone your age. And if the person you’re talking to is the same age as you, they’ve most likely been in the same situation as you. Although, adults have more experience with different situations, you want to be comfortable with the person you’re talking to in a crisis. I think it’s hard keeping a crisis to yourself, and it might end up badly. Even if I can’t get help from someone, I would need my friend to know how I feel. That way, I can at least be comforted.
3
Based on my thoughts and observations, I see that adults are the better people to talk to. Adults will pay attention to you and they will find a solution to the problem that the teenager is facing.They are also responsible and will treat the teenager with a
“Crisis” fairly, not from what I have seen. I have seen teenagers just not care and leave letting the other teenagers suffer from the problem that they are facing, because their other friends might not even care about their problems. Adults will take the problem more seriously and have more car than present-day teenagers, which have changed due to innovative imports from technology. I believe that when a teenager is facing a major crisis, they should rely more on the adults than other teenagers.
2
The people who I would turn to would be either my mom (if it’s really serious) and my really close friends. I would turn to my mom sometimes because maybe she's been through the situation before and she could give me some good and responsible advice. I would turn to my friends sometimes because they would understand and they’ll give me advice that helps to. I have four special friends that I am super close to and I’m able to tell them about personal things that they know to keep to themselves. I am also one of the friends that people like to tell me things because I’m considered the “mom” so I give out good advice while still being able to give them advice in a teenager thought processed way.
3
A crisis is something that can be encountered both physically and emotionally. I usually go to my mom because my mom is the person who I can count on the most. She knows me the most because I have spent my whole life with her and encounter her the most. My mom knows the way I think, feel, and act, so she helps me the most get through something hard. I sometimes don’t turn to my friends because they don’t know me as well and might not understand what is going on. It might make me feel embarrassed or emotionally uncomfortable.
I do think adults are good helpers because they have more understanding for kids. Partly because they have been alive longer and know kids better because they were once one. Teachers, parents are all good people to go too. Even counselors and therapists. People who can talk to you and get a good understanding of what you may be going through. People who can help you get through something and not make it uncomfortable for you. I mean you could still talk with your friends, but you may not be as close to you as other people. Friends may not show this, but they could never think of you the same again. They could go behind your back and do something horrible, while therapists, adults, even councillors would never do anything like that.
2
Thankfully, I have lots of amazing friends in my life that can help me with my emotional and literal struggles. I don’t really like talking with my family because I feel like my friends understand me better since we’re the same age. Also, some of my frustrations are about my family life, so I can’t really rant to my family about them. One of the only people I go to when I'm stressed or need someone to talk to is one of my best friends, Erika. I feel like I can tell her everything and will make me feel at least a little better about myself. There hasn’t been a day for like 2 months where we just didn’t talk at school or text each other. Most of my other friends are guys that think everything is a joke, so when I try and talk with them about something that's even a little serious, I just get more frustrated.
2
I believe it is easier to share problems you are having with an adult than a peer because it is way more comfortable to share it with someone who you can always trust, an adult. Sharing with peers can sometimes be difficult because it makes you nervous because you don’t know if they’re gonna make fun of you or not. Sharing with adults can be nerve-wracking as well because you don’t know if they’re gonna be mad at you are not if you did something bad. But an adult will always stick by you through your tough times. Peers can easily ditch you because you don’t have a powerful, unbreakable relationship with them. But with adults, they will always care for you no matter what you do or what you’re going through. Adults and Peers are on different levels because peers sometimes don’t fully understand and they can easily switch-up on you, but adults have that “bond” that can never break and they’ll have the advice to give you to help you out during the tough time you are going through. Adults do this because they want to show care and compassion to you because they want you to be happy and succeed. In conclusion, that is why I strongly believe it is better to share with adults than peers.
2
When I feel down or a bit depressed, I usually tell both my friends and parents. I also tell my sister because we are twins and can relate on many things. I am very close with my parents so I tell them my situation. They really can help improve my mood because they are older than I am and have been through more than I have. Besides them, I tell my sister and friends. My sister and I are twins and we go to the same school so we can relate and help each other with many things. I tell my friends about my situation because they really help keep my moods high. They also tell me their opinion of what they would do in this situation.
If I were to choose, I would not want to talk to a counselor about all of my problems. To be honest, I don’t really trust them. Also, I feel very uncomfortable telling people who aren’t my friends or family deep secrets or problems.
3
Whenever I have a crisis, I don’t go to anyone. I keep it to myself until I just can’t anymore. Like, a bunch of little things can all happen, but it takes a toll on you eventually. For me, one minor inconvenience can happen, and I won’t do anything. But if more small things happen it eventually builds up inside me until I have this ball of raging fury mixed with sadness and confusion. I know I should vent to someone, but it’s hard. Kids are sometimes unsure of what to say, while adults will tell you to suck it up, it’s all in the past. Especially when you’re in middle school, high school, etc. They expect you to act all mature, but you just can’t do that. That’s probably why so many kids have stuff going on for months without their parents realizing. When a parent sees their teenager sad, their first thought is probably “Oh, just teenage drama.” But it’s more than that. And talking to kids can be hard, because you think they’ll call you weird or tell you to be happy. Sometimes, there’s just no one you can turn to.
2
Whenever I find myself in a crisis, I always find it easier to turn to one of my peers instead of an adult. I feel like adults are more judgmental and they don't really understand my issues. On the other hand, my peers are easier to turn to and I feel like they know where I'm coming from because they might have gone through the same things. When the adults I know were my age, they didn't have the same problems my generation has and they didn't talk about their problems either. Thanks to social media, kids nowadays share their problems with others all the time and certain issues are more discussed. Also, at my school, we have peer counseling where high schoolers come to talk to us every week. I really like that because I would never go to the school counselor, but I might talk to one of my peer counselors if I have any issues. Overall, I find it easier to talk to kids my age than adults in times of a crisis.
2
I believe turning to people that are slightly older than me, maybe a year or two, is good for me. That way I can talk to people who have had a similar life experience, but are also slightly wiser. For me, I turn to my sister. She is two years older than me but because we have been raised similarly she has gone through most of the things I have. After I talk to her, I would prefer to talk to my parents then my friends because my friends might not be the most understanding bunch, but my parents really know me.
2
It usually depends on the situation but when I am feeling down in the dumps or I need to scream out loud, I’ll usually handle the situation in my mind. I don’t talk to my parents because I feel like they would get angry if I did something wrong or they might belittle my problems. I don’t talk to my friends about it because I wouldn’t want them to worry about my problems when they’ve got their own to worry about too. I also wouldn’t want friends to talk to me about their problems, not because I don’t care for them but because their problem might distract me from my responsibilities. If the problem is too serious or cloudy for my brain to handle, my next option is to talk to my parents. I think parents are a good source for advice because they could tell you about past experiences and give you advice based on that. My friends, as amazing as they are, are not exactly the best source for advice, for me of course. Despite all this, I would still want to be a teenage counselor. This is mainly because I want to make people happy and see that I hold value to their issue. My love for helping people in need overpowers my own selfish needs.
3
People confide in other people who are similar. We are another animal, it just makes sense. You wouldn’t see a pigeon consulting a ladybug about his depression. It’s just more natural for people of similar ages to talk to other people who are similar ages. Now I can’t speak for everyone, but when you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. From Pre-school and up you are grouped with people of the same age group so you’re trained psychologically to want to talk to people your age. Now if you’re homeschooled, you’re most likely to tell adults about your problems because you spend the most time surrounded by adults. Additionally, each generation changes. Maybe not by a lot but they do. People have different problems now, and parents may understand those problems. Don’t they won’t get it unless they’ve been through it. Someone your age has been through it. But again, it depends on the person. If that pigeon wants to tell a ladybug about it’s problems it can. If it wants to tell another pigeon, it can. If it wants to tell a dog about it’s problems, it might get eaten. It’s up to the pigeon. For thou is a free bird.
9
I usually turn to myself or my sense of reason as I think that people are having much larger issues so I don’t panic in a crisis and focus calmly on solving it. I do have many people I can trust, but it depends on the crisis I'm having. If it's an emotional issue, I turn to my peers most of the time because older and younger people can't understand each other, as well as people in their age group, can. Not to mention, I usually complain to vent frustration towards unfair things that happen. Adults can be a good source for advice, but they're too judgemental, and peers are more empathetic. However, peers are likely to tell others of your crisis when you don't want them to. I believe it’s easier to confide in your peers as they can understand you more than adults even though no one can truly understand someone else.
2
I often turn to a sibling or friend instead of an adult. I find that people who are around my age are much easier to talk to than adults who often question you too much. Peers may have gone through something similar and will know how to cope through the experience. Close adults, such as parents, often react much differently than how someone such as a friend will react.
3
Personally I don't turn to my parents instead I will go to one of my friends. If they don't offer the proper advice then I will turn to my brother or my dad. I do this due to the fact that my mother is very overprotective, which makes me not want to talk to her about problems I have. Sometimes parents can just completely dishonor your opinion, and want you to do something a certain way. Like my mom just sometimes (Always), just wont take no for an answer. This upsets me when I talk to her which is why I reach out to other people that may be able to help me in the same way.
4
@Kobe Y. My mom does this as well, however I know she has the best intentions in mind. I try and give her the benefit of the doubt, but sometimes I just find it easier to talk to my friends. If it's extremely personally, the first person I might turn to is my Dad. My Dad and I are more similar, and he's more understanding and willing to listen.
When I need advice, I don’t turn to anybody I know. Instead, I keep it to myself. When my parents get mad at one of my brother and I, she gets mad at the other. My brother is in his teens, so he is always getting in trouble. I have no time to talk to my parents about what is going on, because they are busy dealing with my brother. I also can’t trust any of my friends with any of my private information, because they would just keep saying it to everybody. In the end, I don’t have anybody to talk to, so I end up just keeping it in.
1
In my opinion I think that it is easier to share my feelings with adults more than teenagers. For example, my mom would be a good and easy person to talk to. This is because she already knows lots of other things that have happened in my life and she went through some of them as well, so she gets what i'm saying and what I'm trying to say.
For the best advice I have ever heard for my age is that everything happens for a reason. One reason I agree with this is because getting through something is to help you in life. Like if you are scared about being on the stage for a production it could help you get over your fears and be comfortable on stage, so that next time you will have even more fun. Also, this could help you get a really good school or job in life. This is my opinion on why it's easier to share feelings with adults and what's the best advice I have ever heard.
When I’m in a crisis I go to the gym because I feel like I can’t talk to anyone but I can let my feelings out through fighting. My crisis right now is my grandfather, one day he can walk the next he can’t walk for a week or a month,the thing is my family doesn’t know whether he's gonna be here much longer because he’s having other major health issues as well and its hurting me but I cant talk to anyone about it…...or can I?
In the article it says “While peer support has proved effective for adults with mental health challenges, scientific evaluations of teenagers helping one another are difficult to find even though some limited studies show that teenagers experiencing the stress of adolescence cope better emotionally when they are with their friends than with their parents.” I feel like it's because teenagers can relate more or they feel like they can relate to each other rather than their parents.
Reading the article and it talking about teen suicide. my brother for instance suffers from mental health issues. He’s not diagnosed with depression but you can tell it's there. He tried to take his life one day but I stopped him and talked it through and it seemed to help but i know he couldn't talk to my mom about it. I'm his “safe rock” he tells me everything now.
So I think teens should be able to talk to other teens about their situations and with the life crisis line sometimes its not enough but it does help teenagers I’ve myself have used the line a couple of times.
When I’m in a crisis I go to the gym because I feel like I can’t talk to anyone but I can let my feelings out through fighting. My crisis right now is my grandfather, one day he can walk the next he can’t walk for a week or a month,the thing is my family doesn’t know whether he's gonna be here much longer because he’s having other major health issues as well and its hurting me but I cant talk to anyone about it…...or can I?
In the article it says “While peer support has proved effective for adults with mental health challenges, scientific evaluations of teenagers helping one another are difficult to find even though some limited studies show that teenagers experiencing the stress of adolescence cope better emotionally when they are with their friends than with their parents.” I feel like it's because teenagers can relate more or they feel like they can relate to each other rather than their parents.
Reading the article and it talking about teen suicide. my brother for instance suffers from mental health issues. He’s not diagnosed with depression but you can tell it's there. He tried to take his life one day but I stopped him and talked it through and it seemed to help but i know he couldn't talk to my mom about it. I'm his “safe rock” he tells me everything now.
So I think teens should be able to talk to other teens about their situations and with the life crisis line sometimes its not enough but it does help teenagers I’ve myself have used the line a couple of times.
For Me, I confide in my Mom with any crisis that may occur in my life. Sports take up most of my life, and I am also in all honors classes in school, so the level of work and fast pace has definitely increased. My mom has been helping me through the tough times of late nights and trying the best to help me prioritize as I talk to her about me being so overwhelmed at times. We have such an unbreakable bond that I am able to confide in her with anything I am up against. I feel that is so important to be able to have a bond like that with your one or maybe even both of your parents.
Reading the article it states that “Youth suicide is climbing faster than any other suicide group.” I believe this is so true just because of social media, illegal substances and influences around us everyday. The YouthLine that Mr. Harrison has joined in the story is peer-run to help young people to not only uses their voice but to help other young people that may be going through the same things that one on the Youth Line has already gone through.
For me opening up to someone or asking for advice I really don’t do that much often. I get anxious about feeling judged or looked at differently when asking people for advice so I just keep it to myself. Now there are times where I’ll ask for advice but mostly from adults, especially my parents. Asking adults for advice I think would be way more reliable and they are coming from another perspective that I could base on how to deal with my crisis because they are more knowledgeable and have more experience on things than I do. Advice coming from my peers I go to maybe because I want to get another perspective on the crisis but normally I would just stick with whatever my parents tell me because it seems more trustworthy. I believe that everyone should find someone they can go to when seeking for advice anyways because it’s unhealthy to keep everything to yourself and I’m still trying to learn to not bottle up all my thoughts too. It’s just better and healthier to get help or advice from others whether its an adult or your friend.
In a crisis, I have a few people I turn to. The type of crisis dictates who I turn to. If I have girl problems, I turn to my three closest friends who happen to be girls. If I have a serious problem, I turn to my oldest friend who always helps me out or my parents because they have gone through a lot of the same things I’m going through.
I think that teens are underestimated in their ability to give good advice. The main difference between us teens and adults is our POV. Sure we may not have the same levels of wisdom and experience of an adult but seeing things differently can be a valuable asset.
Ms. Farmer had doubts but she came to realise that teens were very effective in reflective listening. She credits them as being better than her and she is an experienced figure in this field.
Most institutions either don’t realise how effective teens are at helping or choose to shield them from “real life” but what those people may not realise is that we are exposed to very “real” problems on a daily basis. As far as I am concerned, teens deserve a seat at the table.
When I am worried about something, I usually talk to my mom first. She is the person who organizes my schedule and daily life. It’s not that I won’t talk to my dad-- it’s just that for some reason I reach out to my mom first, then my dad. I also always feel like I can talk to my grandparents-- they always have great advice and will always support me. I think adults are a good source of knowledge because they have lived longer than us and have had more experiences. But you have to find the right adult to talk to, someone who you trust and who you know will support you. I myself would probably not reach out to a teenage counselor because I feel like my family knows the most about me, but I can see why someone else would want to reach out to a teenage counselor because they are closer in age and might understand certain issues more than older people. To be honest, I would be nervous to work as a teenage counselor because it would be hard for me to hear about many traumatic experiences, and I admire the teenagers who do it. It definitely is important for people to be open about their issues and seek help when they need it, because if they don’t, their feelings will get bottled up inside them and nothing will get better.
4
I often find myself alone in times of crisis, or at least when they are actively going on. I don’t do it because I want to wallow in teenage angst, but because the crises I find myself facing are uncomfortable for others to hear about. I often don’t feel like my parent doesn’t fully support how I feel when I’m in crisis, but I also don’t want to weigh down peers with my problems.
While I think that crisis intervention and support groups works for some people, but it’s not something I feel like everyone will respond well to. I think that some people aren’t as inclined to explore their feelings through a support group. I’d say the best person for dealing with crisis is a therapist. Therapy gives people a time and place to explore how they feel, and I think it’s also good that therapists are able to initiate conversation and interact throughout a conversation instead of just listening. Support groups like the ones listed in the article are novel ideas, but sometimes volunteers just can’t avert crisis as well as a professional.
While I think the idea is a good one, but I also don't see why teens are able to volunteer for these communities. If teens want to talk to a stranger anonymously for support, I'd imagine they'd want to talk with someone their own age.
The people I turn to is my peers in a group chat we may have. The reason why I turn to my peers is because I love seeing if im the only person who is seeing what i'm doing wrong or right I love hearing if I could do anything to do differently compared to what I have been doing. I find it easier to talk to friends due o they typically are outside people looking in rather than actually being in the situation.
“But not everyone thinks that teenagers fans or should take calls from people in crisis” this is a blanketed statement because sometimes teenagers are the only people who can help other teenagers. Sometimes adults don’t think about everything the teenager might be saying and just focusing on the wrong thing in the moment. Yeah, teenagers may have bad decisions but who knows us better than ourselves is the question we should be asking. We might feel more comfortable with speaking to some kids who are going through the same issues as most other teenagers rather than adults who had gone through something completely different than teenagers.
Some adults may be surprised that teenagers can do a better job of helping rather than adults, `` the 15-year-old ...did a better job than she did.” this was a teenager helping another teenager over an adult helping. I believe that most teenagers can help many others because they went through either the same or similar problem that the other is going through and thrived.
During a crisis I don't turn to my parents. Most likely I would turn to my friends first if i can't seem to solve the issue myself but if the situation is serious and I need to get help from an adult then i would go to my friends parents. Even if i really did need help unfortunately i probably wouldn't feel comfortable going to my own parents.
The article titled “It Takes a Teenager to Help a Teenager in Crisis” talked about a program where teenagers got to work on a suicide crisis hot-line. Some adults are worried it will cause trauma for the young people answering the calls and I understand why this is a concern but most likely these young people will experience or already have experienced a trauma in their lives.
For example at the beginning of the summer someone I know was having a crisis like this we tried to work things out ourselves, the situation became too serious so we had to get help from adults, but emotionally the adults didn't help much and I think talking to another person their age ended up being more helpful for the person, because they didn't feel like their parents were understanding what they were trying to tell them.
So i think this article and having suicide hot-line where the operators are teenagers is a very good and important thing and hopefully it will help a lot of people.
I am not a very crisis-prone person, but I’d like to say I’m someone people feel comfortable going to in a crisis. I’ve heard stories of things my friends’ parents have said, things like “just don’t be depressed,” “just don’t cut,” “you’re doing this for the attention,” “you’re just stressed out.” These parents show me that adults in this age don’t know nearly enough about mental illness to help teenagers. In addition to this, the adults not knowing much about mental illness is indicative of teens’ unwillingness to talk with adults while teens are an option.
I agree with the doctor when she says that expose teens to crisis lines could be traumatic, and I feel that any teen-run crisis line needs to be sufficiently prepared for if that does happen. However, crisis lines, especially through text, are absolutely vital and would make many teens feel more comfortable reaching out in bad spots.
Teens can also be more empathetic than adults, at least with other teens. Teenagers can understand what other teenagers go through, they understand the pressures, and they have been through similar situations. Adults helping teens isn’t communication between peers, and we need to make that kind of communication more accessible to teens in crisis.
I tend to turn to my two best friends whenever something happens as well as my mom when they can’t help. Every time something happens I turn to them first, i’ll text my friends and they’ll almost immediately answer. They talk to me and give me advice, helping me with what they can. I talk to my mom as well, if I need something she’ll come talk to me in my room, just her and i.
Recently my girlfriend began to have a lot of family problems at home. She confides in me many times and I just get so frustrated with the situation. My friends will help me when I come to them in tears, so worried and concerned about her. They comfort me. Where as my mom will give me advice. She talks to me and analyzes the situation. Trying her best to help me work through the problems with her.
After reading the article I can say adults can be judgemental and patronizing at times and peers can relate a lot better. There’s something about talking to someone your age who understands what it’s like to be a teenager. They seem to connect more and an instant click seems to form. Teens give great support and they listen. They want to help and give good advice.
Adults don’t relate to our generation as well and it’s sometimes harder for them to sit and listen without interjecting their thoughts. But with their experience they can sometimes give better advice. Adults and teens can help a teen equally but based on my experience, many more people are more comfortable talking to a peer.
I feel that I often turn to my peers in a crisis. And when it comes time to confide to people, I go to my peers as well. It's easier to me because they will say up to date things, and look at it how I would. As im typing this im thinking about my peers judging me at times, depending on the situation.
But when my uncle died I definitely turned to my friends, it hurt my mom more than me because it was her brother, so it was no turning to her, I had to turn to people I trust other than my family, who wasn't going through what I was.
The article starts off talking about suicide, ive been through the same thing Taylor has. The girl wasn’t my bestfriend but we was friends, and she committed suicide, because she was getting bullied. I didn’t sign up to talk to people who need someone to talk to, but I do feel that people should. If you’ve gone through a traumatic experience that you wouldn’t wish on anybody, let people know you they can talk to you, that your here, friend or not.
Why shouldn’t teens be able to council other teens. I understand the worry that it might traumatize the children to be speaking to people/teens in crisis. I just think that people in general might not understand that we have some of the same pressures whether it be school or parents or social life pressures or a feeling of inadequacy. Most of us have those feelings or pressures and I don’t think that just spans to us being able to talk to teens. Adults have the same feelings we do just about different things. Pressures from work or being a provider for the family. It’s all along the same premises.
We deal with many people in our daily lives that are upset and stressed about things whatever they may be. So I think it would be a stupid excuse to say that it might traumatize us. We see it almost every day.
I don’t really turn to anyone if I’m having any problems, mainly because I feel as if there isn’t really anyone who I can trust or turn to, and I would rather just deal with things myself. The same goes the opposite way, no one really turns to me either. I feel like adults could be a good source to go to when you’re having a problem, because they are probably better equipped to deal with important issues than you are. However, they might not agree with you, and try to understand your perspective on things and be too judgemental. Because of this, people would usually go to their peers when they’re having issues, because they might relate better to you. But the downside is that they don’t really know how to help you and now you’re putting them into a situation where they have to make a choice. When it comes to being a teenage counselor, I would not want to be one because I’m not qualified, and I don’t know how to react in these types of situations. However, I believe it is important to have someone to talk to, even thought that kind of makes me a hypocrite, because then you’re not dealing with things alone anymore, and someone else is trying to help you.
1
I love to turn to my mom in most of my crisis, I feel like she has the most reasonable responses and the best thing in mind for me. She also is very smart on how to avoid drama. I also love turning to my friends because I can go to them for most everything and some things I can't to my mom. I am grateful for having people to turn to that I trust, and being able to let things go and be open about how I feel.
Reading the article about teen suicide makes me think about how teens dont do anything about their depression. I, gladly, don't have depression. However, I feel that if I did I would be so uncomfortable going to counselor, a stranger who I am expected to tell every personal thing about myself to. I think that teens should have a suicide educated teen to talk to. Someone who goes through the same thing as them so that they feel safe, comfortable, and open to talk about the things that they need.
When I am angry or sad I go to what is always there for, basketball. Playing basketball can be very therapeutic, playing basketball helps me cool off and get away from what is bothering me. When I play basketball it not only helps me get out of a bad situation, it can also make me happier. When I play basketball I become happier and more focused.
1
When I’m in a crisis, I usually don’t talk about it and just keep it to myself. I like to hide my feelings more often than I like to share them. Most of the time, when I’m around my friends I act really happy, but when something goes on, I just try to ignore it or move past it. I find that it might be because I don’t want to make it a big deal, or I’m afraid of embarrassment. If I were going to talk about it with someone, I would talk to my friends or my sister because my parents would make it really awkward and they wouldn’t understand. I personally don’t really have a certain person to talk to, because my friends would probably make fun of me or make me really embarrassed and my sister’s really busy, so I like to keep my feelings to myself.
2
I feel like in today’s society, kids like me experience judgement or embarrassment when we have to talk to our parents. In many situations, the parents are the issue, whether they are homophobic, have some sort of addiction, or are neglectful towards the needs of their children. A lot of parents these days cannot give proper advice on today’s depression, anxiety, and other issues teens experience across the globe. Often the parents will get angry, and will not be able to sympathize with their children because they did not go through the same thing. Sometimes parents will be dismissive when it comes to a child’s mental health issues, resulting in self-harm or suicide. I think a teen crisis hotline will be better for teens who have issues concerning their mental health, because it will allow a child to talk to someone who may have experienced the same thing. The person on the other end of the phone will be able to empathize and it is a safe place for a teen to talk about their problems if they cannot talk about their issues at home. It is important for kids to know that they are not alone, and that they have an outlet in which they can talk about these things with someone like them, and maybe feel less isolated.
3
I think that these teen hotlines are really innovative and inspirational. I especially like the quote from the text, "Teenages have a lot of black and white thinking, and so it can be really hard to have an adult, who has more of the gray area thinking, to point out the gray area." This really speaks to me, because when you have a problem and someone points out something that you weren't even thinking about, and don't really understand what they're saying, it can be really confusing and frustrating. Teens can listen well and think about it in the same terms that you're used to, and so you can share your problems and emotions with them- it makes them easy to talk to.
2
I think this question can be hard to answer as many adults have different experiences and we can’t always assume they have all the answers. I tend to stray away from adults around the age of 25-40 to talk about my problems with because I think they themselves are stressed but not for the same reasons teenagers are. They’re also harder to talk with in my experience, as they make it feel like a chore just to sit down and have a conversation with you, and also are not the best listeners. They also make it feel like some topics are off limits. You’re always left wondering what to say next when really you should be able to talk freely about your problems to get the best advice. I think adults can be a good source of advice most times, but they just aren’t my preference because it’s easier to develop strong and trusting relationships with people your age who will most closely relate to your problems and be able to provide comfort or give good advice.
3
When I am feeling down or I’m stressed out I usually rant to my close friends. My friends always comfort me. I don’t like talking to adults about my problems because I feel like they can’t really relate to me. I rant a lot to the kids in my class because they give pretty good advice. Over the past year I’ve been more vocal about my feelings and I think that is a good thing. Before I didn’t really like talking about my feelings. I try my best to always be there for my friends because I want them to enjoy their life.
2
I think it is important for teens to have many ways to get help, if they can. I, for instance, juggle between my friends and mom for advice. I turn to my friends less often than I do to my mom because I am so comfortable talking to her. I realize I am extremely privileged to be able to confide in both my friends and mom freely. When I was in 4th grade, I struggled with anxiety and still do today, especially when I am about to go to sleep. I think there are benefits to getting help in different ways and everyone should try to. Sometimes, talking to an adult can be the right idea in order to get a wise, experienced point of view. But, sometimes, talking to your peers who are going through the same thing as you can feel easier and safer. The hotline mentioned is a great resource but, I think it would work best alongside other resources. That way, teens have a diverse and varied support group.
2
For most of my life I have usually never went to anyone to talk about how I feel, instead I have been used to just bottling those emotions up and possibly letting them out at a later time. Usually I wouldn’t and instead I would just let them sit there trying my best not to think about them, but lately I’ve changed how I deal with my emotions. I still am not too comfortable to go to my friends and talk about them because I don’t know when a good time to talk about it would be so I don’t usually bottle them up forever, I just wait until home to let it out and think a little and then I feel a little better. I know that I can’t do this for most of my life, but this is what I am comfortable with right now and things are starting to get better and change especially with my friends around me.
2
@Theodore Loshi I think that it's good you're trying to make improvements in yourself and your emotional stability. It's something a lot of young people need to work on, as stated in the article. Sometimes when you have no one else to turn to, it feels like you can only depend on yourself and that's how these kinds of habits develop. I can definitely relate because sometimes you don't know who you can and can't trust, or maybe the right people just haven't come into your life.
When I am mad or have a problem, I usually go to one of three people. My best friend that doesn’t go to school with me, and two of my friends who go to school with me. They are all around my age and I’m really comfortable with talking to them. I know that they won’t argue with me but that they will also give me good advice. When my friends have a problem, I am probably not the first person that they want to talk to. I can be judgy or talk too much, but I still listen to them and comfort them and give them advice.
Whenever I have a big crisis, I talk to my parents. However, I think that when it comes to less pressing topics, my parents are less helpful and sometimes even make the situation worse. In situations like these I go to my close friends. My friends normally know how I feel and can help me feel better faster than my parents or other adults can. My friends can normally help me better than my parents when it comes to school related issues because my friends have the same classes I do.
1
It really depends on what the problem is to determine who you turn to for help or just to share your thoughts with. Most of the time I don't talk to my parents about my problems because I feel like they already do so much for me they don't need the extra task of helping me deal with stress, ect. I also feel more comfortable talking to my friends about these things because in my family we don't really talk about our feelings and I feel like it would be awkward.
2
When I’m having an emotional crisis, I usually turn to my friends and peers as opposed to my parents. I haven’t had a friend come up to me yet and tell me about their problems and ask me for help, but I think that as I get older the odds of that happening get significantly higher with more people feeling depressed and hopeless. If I went to adults to tell them about my problems I think that they’d usually be patronizing instead of helpful. Most adults will think that your problems aren’t that bad and they won’t take your problems as seriously as people your age will. I don’t trust myself to be a teenage counselor but I’m glad other people are doing this and I think this is a really good thing.
2
For most of my life I have usually never went to anyone to talk about how I feel, instead I have been used to just bottling those emotions up and possibly letting them out at a later time. Usually I wouldn’t and instead I would just let them sit there trying my best not to think about them, but lately I’ve changed how I deal with my emotions. I still am not too comfortable to go to my friends and talk about them because I don’t know when a good time to talk about it would be so I don’t usually bottle them up forever, I just wait until home to let it out and think a little and then I feel a little better. I know that I can’t do this for most of my life, but this is what I am comfortable with right now and things are starting to get better and change especially with my friends around me.
5
I would say that there are two people who I talk to about life and those are my parents. My parents are some of the most understanding and compassionate people that I know. Any problem I have I go straight to them. Although I do go to both of them I think my mom is my go-to. This is mainly because my dad gets home later than her and most of my anxieties come from school so I go right to her the minute I get home. When deciding whether to talk to a friend or my parents, It all depends on how big the problem is. Everyday problems I take more to my friends because they can calm me down a bit and reassure me, but my friends don’t know enough about me to help me with the big stuff. Those things go to my parents.
1
Adults are a great source of advice, but sometimes I’m not really sure if that is always the best way to go. I often go to my friends because I know they will never tell my parents and anything I tell them they will keep it quiet. They also will give me some of the best advice I can ever receive because a lot of the time, they have gone through the same thing too. I go to my parents, but not all the time because sometimes I think that for them they have trouble understanding exactly what it is that kids go through nowadays. Of course they have good advice, but the problem with going to a parent's they always say, “I promise you, I won’t get mad.”, and then, the second you’re done venting, they blow up and you end up grounded for a month with no access to your phone or a tv. I guess in the end friends are sometimes the better option because they go through the same things you do, and really understand how to deal with them.
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The people that you turn to depend on what kind of crisis you are having. Crises occurring in the family and those at school are very different, as the people who are needed vary. Recently I have been very stressed due to a various amount of reasons. My older sister is someone who I can turn to in a time of need, so that’s where I usually go. When speaking to her, I never have to worry if she is going to tell others about my problems, she rather will just help me with working or talking out the situation. Everyone needs someone that they can rely to help them through the toughest of times.
After reading the article about the problem of teenage suicide, my eyes were opened. I knew that depression affected a lot of teenagers but I didn’t realize that youth suicide is climbing faster than any other age group. The crisis-line organizations such as Lines for Help are great for teenagers who need to talk about the problems in their life. Teenagers can easily reach out for help by just sending a text or calling the organizations. I believe these organizations to be the first step in lowering suicide among teenagers.
In a crisis, I’m comforted more with adults than my friends because adults have a lot of advice and past experiences to relate with me. I first turn to my mom because I know she really cares and is trustworthy. Along with being extremely empathetic and a wonderful listener, she shares her stories and knowledge to help me through it. This being said, I do think teenagers using Youthline is beneficial. Some teenagers, the kind who sign up for a crisis line, have a unique perspective and can easily relate to what other teens are going through. I usually go to my close friends as a second option, or if the situation is not as serious. I don’t think teens should be held back from working a crisis line because of the risk of “vicarious trauma”. The trauma would have the same effect on a teen as it would on an adult. Like medical professional Ms. Farmer said, teenagers can be just as smart, if not smarter, than adults in crisis situations.
I agree with the title of this article “It takes a teenager to help a teenager in a crisis” however I don’t think having a group of 14-16 year olds sitting on the phone with possibly suicidal teens. I think teens offer the best insight to the issues that modern day teens have to cope with. The stress of being liked and approved. The constant anxiety of getting validation on social media. All the while balancing school and having adults shove the idea of college and “the future” an ominous duo of words that sends me into full panic mode every time I hear it. Adults see us as hyper sensitive snowflakes and having an adult with these views on the phone with a teen in crisis could be overwhelming and worsen their crisis. I think modern day teens know how to best help other teens suffering from current day problems.
“Youth-line is one of six youth lines across the country that have demonstrated how teenagers can relate to their peers over the internet or the phone in a way that adults are sometimes unable to do.” Clearly, this cooperation is doing something right and teens helping teens in a time of need is a great solution to providing teens insight when they may not trust an adult to not cast judgement.
When I’m in a crisis, mostly, I just box everything up. I know I shouldn’t, but I have several deep seated issues , be it a fear of embarrassment, a fear of rejection, a deep sense of shame, or just not wanting to bother anyone, that prevent me from talking to others about my problems. I try to move through problems myself and keep my real emotions inside, and don’t let anyone else help. I really need to open up.
If I WERE to talk to somebody, which I should really start doing, I would talk to my mother, because she always knows what to say to cheer me up, and my friends, because they understand me. My friends relate to my, shall we say, unique way of thinking. They are, plainly put, just as neurotic as I am, and that really helps them to relate to me. This shared issue helps us to stick together, and that would really help, I think. That is, if I actually talked to other people.
I prefer to deal with many of my problems myself; a lot of the time, it isn’t worth other peoples’ time to listen to my minor frustrations and worries, when I could deal with it on my own. But when there is a serious issue, there are several people I feel comfortable turning to, including several close friends, my parents, and several other adults.
Adults are a good source to go to with their experience and knowledge, such as my parents, but given our rapidly changing society our problems may be different than those when they were younger. Peers are younger and more relatable, but they may lack the experience and maturity to relate to others’ problems. However, there are organizations like YouthLine that help troubled youth relate to others their age, helping teenagers cope better emotionally than they would with their parents. Ms. Farmer, chief executive of Behavioral Health Link, states that the 15-year-old she was paired with at the YouthLine orientation did a better job in a reflective listening exercise than she did.
It is important to listen when someone is in crisis. Being able to confide in someone else prevents all the emotions from being bottled up in him or her. Taking action to intervene in teens in crisis can prevent tragedy.
In a true crisis, I turn to adults. If there is a truly life threatening thing happening, I turn to adults. However for anything else I need to talk about, I turn to my friends. Most commonly it’s ranting about stress, but my friends and I talk to each other about many things.
Reading this made me want to volunteer as a youth counselor; the only thing holding me back is my schedule. It’s obvious to me that youth can better relate to other youth, and I have to disagree with Dr Turner. Organizations like YouthLine aren’t forcing teenagers to do this, they’re volunteers. The teens volunteering know what comes with being on a crisis line, and they choose to help anyway. Like Taylor Harrison, many of them are probably volunteering to help cope with a loss of their own. I am grateful that I have not lost a friend to suicide, but I met someone this summer who lost his best friend. He shared with me that he wants to become a psychiatrist to help save people from that fate.
I think it’s obvious that teens can relate to each other better than adults. As Ms Farmer found, the 15 year old she was paired with did better at reflective listening than she did. Of course some teens are naive and just not a good fit for mental health counseling but the same is true for adults. Overall, I think peer-run crisis intervention is a good idea.
In a crisis, I typically turn to different people depending on what the crisis is. It may be my parents, and then other times it may be some of my best friends who I know I can trust. Though sometimes I have trouble sharing how I really feel with my friends, so with more personal things I would go to my parents- but anything else I would typically go to my friends, because I feel like I can relate more to them.
Reading this article about suicide happening within my age group, is an eye opener on what teens really can do to help. This quote from the article, “...some limited studies show that teenagers experiencing the stress of adolescence cope better emotionally when they are with their friends than with their parents.” shows that with some certain problems, a teenager might just naturally vent better to kids their own age- like the Teenage LifeLine experiment.
Granted, with teens working for a LifeLine there is always a chance they could encounter serious trauma hearing other stories- but if the adults and teenagers worked together, a successful LifeLine could be made.
During a crisis, I turn to my five closest people- my mom and my four closest friends who are basically my sisters now. It has taken me a good amount of time to confide in my mom but I have realized she has lived through many of the same things I have. Most adults are anything but out of touch when it comes to giving advice, but it is sometimes embarrassing and frightening going to them. I find it a lot easier to confess my troubles to my closest friends just because they are my age and are having the same troubles I am having right now.
Due to the fact that when you’re a teen and you’d rather confide in teens, I think having a youth-run hotline is an amazing idea. Teens tend to be more up to date on the most current and troubling parts of life and can offer the best advice and ears in times of need. More importantly, the teens calling will be more likely to confide in someone their own age and who is surviving with similar troubles. Ms. Farmer, a trained medical professional was originally skeptical towards the idea of having teens run the hotline and be exposed to “vicarious trauma.” Later, during an exercise, she learned, “the 15-year-old she was paired with for an exercise in reflective listening did a better job than she did.” Teens have learned how to listen and connect on a personal level with other teens better than any other generation. The youth-run hotline could also teach teens to improve listening skills and give better and more personalized advice.
When I'm in a crisis, I don't turn to anyone but myself. For example, if I am really struggling with school or the pressures of life, I don't go to my parents, I don't go to my friends, I tough it out and push forward by myself because I never let myself down. Some people might have fears, anxiety, or depression. I have none of those, and if I did, they wouldn't bother me because I don't pay attention to any of that. I've found that the best way to get through life's hardships, is just to shrug them off and keep moving, because if you stop moving and fall apart, who's there to pick you up afterwards?
This may be unhealthy but it's worked for me so far. I just feel that I don't have anyone to help me when i'm in a crisis. Other people have their problems and don't have time for mine. And I'm fine with that, life for me is pretty good so far and on top of all that, I don't really trust anyone with knowledge of all my crises and problems; they usually just sort themselves out anyways. Some people might say “Don't you want someone to turn to?” I don't even know how I would go about it and it just seems like a waste of time when I can just talk about it in my head with my conscience and sort it out faster.
In my lifetime I haven’t faced many huge crisis, but the ones that I do deal with, I usually go straight to my twin brother first. My brother and I are identical twins, and we share almost everything we have. There is really no way I can hide anything from him, and he understands me better than anyone I know. I don’t feel under pressure when I talk to him, and he gives me good advice. We are sources of support for each other at almost all times, and personally I think it is a very helpful thing to have. When it comes to talking to an adult or my brother, I would much rather talk to my brother than adults, because I feel that he understands me much better than they could.
After reading the article, I realize that my situations of ‘crisis’ aren’t anywhere near as serious as the situations of some other teens. I have never had to deal with teen suicide, and I consider myself lucky. It is amazing what some teens do, the lengths they go to when trying to keep their peers away from suicide. Personally, I don’t think that I could be a teen counselor. Seeing the situations that they deal with, the high stress-level situations, I don’t think I would be prepared for a job like that.
When I'm in a crisis, I don't turn to anyone but myself. For example, if I am really struggling with school or the pressures of life, I don't go to my parents, I don't go to my friends, I tough it out and push forward by myself because I never let myself down. Some people might have fears, anxiety, or depression. I have none of those, and if I did, they wouldn't bother me because I don't pay attention to any of that. I've found that the best way to get through life's hardships, is just to shrug them off and keep moving, because if you stop moving and fall apart, who is there to pick you up afterwards?
This may be unhealthy but it's worked for me so far. I just feel that I don't have anyone to help me when i'm in a crisis. Other people have their problems and don't have time for mine. And I'm fine with that, life for me is pretty good so far and on top of all that, I don't really trust anyone with knowledge of all my crises and problems; they usually just sort themselves out anyways. Some people might say “Don't you want someone to turn to?” I don't even know how I would go about it and it just seems like a waste of time when I can just talk about it in my head with my conscience and sort it out faster.
Depending on the crisis I will turn to different people. The people I turn to the most are my friends, but more specifically I turn to my best friend of ten years. I would turn to my parents more often, but I don’t believe that they know what I’m going through at the time because they aren’t with me throughout the school day. It’s not like I won’t turn to them ever, but my crisis’ seems very small and almost joke-like to an adult which is why it is easier to turn to friends; they know what school is like. It is also easier to confide in someone closer to your age who may have recently gone through what you’re going through and have a solution to your problem.
As a teenager the ending paragraph didn’t shock me at all. Wendy Farmer said that she was “really blown away” when she met the younger people who wanted to volunteer because she didn’t think that teens would be the best people to answer crisis lines. However, when she was paired up with a 15 year-old for the reflective listening exercise, Wendy Farmer said that she did a better job than her, a trained medical professional. Teenagers get overlooked and underestimated a lot, so it wasn't surprising that the teenager was a better listener than Ms. Farmer because, in my opinion, teenagers listen to each other more than adults.
I turn to different people depending on the crisis. Recently, my niece’s daughter was diagnosed with a heart disease. I don’t talk about it with my family because they are dealing with it and can’t really help me. I’m afraid that I just make the situation worse because if I told them all my fears they’d freak out even more.
There’s a group of people (my community group from The Bridge) that are my go to people. I don’t even have to talk to them face to face. I just go to GroupMe and put it out there-my fears, my crisis without any embarrassment or shame and they do their thing that helps me the most.
Reading the article about teenage suicide reminds me of how much my students carry on them. As I read about teens helping teens with these kind of problems, I was doubtful just like the medical officer from the organization. She found, though, that when she talked with one of the trained volunteers, a fifteen year old, that the teen did a better job of reflective listening than she, a medical professional, did.
As long as the teens are supervised, it’s a good thing. In my years of teaching, I’ve listened to teens’ heartbreaking stories. It’s good that teens can pour it out to an adult at school, but wouldn’t be even better if there were a place where adults and students could work through things together?
@Leslie Lucas (teacher)
Ooops...grammar mistakes:
I’m afraid that I just [would]make the situation worse because if I told them all my fears they’d freak out even more.
A person I turn to no one really because i think the best counselor you can have is yourself. I you have a problem in your life, no one can know what it's how it feels like you do so even if your asked someone they won't get it they might think they do but they don't. Everyone is different and they way they live is always going to be different so no one can understand what your thinking or feeling. If you just need to talk about something then thats not really a crisis i think, and you can talk to someone then just to get it off your chest.
This article was very eye opening and even though this would not be a job or something icall because i wouldn't want to kill my self because I've learned that it's not worth it. Also i think this should be a thing because I know that not everyone sees it like me.
But instead of only this line i think we should educate kids of what happens and the repercussions of what happens when you kill your self and how people get hurt. Also how most of the time people make these allegations about dying just for the attention and we should teach them that it's not a joke and can really hurt people even if you never do it that thought of you might is always there.
Until we start doing this the teen to teen i think will work and I would know because I have talked to people who want to and I've helped them and can relate to them more than an adult.
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