Many people know what a midlife crisis is. Starting in their late thirties the whole way through their fifties, some people might experience a lapse in their life that can include the feeling of loss of purpose in life, regrets, being sad, and lack of confidence. However, not many people talk about what the teenage life crisis is. 

While the older generation may look at what the teenager is going through and consider it insignificant or part of growing up, at that moment for the teenager it may feel like the world is literally ending around them. It could be something as simple as getting a bad grade or going through their first breakup. It may seem like something small, and be considered something that can be forgotten quickly, however, that may not be the case for the person going through the experience. 

One of the bigger and more terrifying experiences that teenagers go through is having to figure out what they want to do with their lives and dealing with the things that come with college. Class of 2022 Bellefonte graduate Evan Braughler has experienced this first hand. 

“While college hasn’t been terrible, the finals have been really stressful to study for,” Evan said.

Like every adult, teenagers have to make decisions that will impact their lives. This stage in their lives is crucial, as they will be making decisions to help set up if the person will fail or succeed in life. These decisions include if they plan on going to college, which college they plan on going to, what they want to major in, what they want to do for their career, and if or if not they are going to crack under the pressure.

This kind of pressure can eat  away at a person, especially a teenager. This is because teenagers have multiple people as role models, including parents, teachers, and friends breathing down their necks pushing them to give answers to these life-changing decisions.

It is this persistent nagging and hounding that leads many teens to have their first teenage crisis. Once someone finally realizes they don’t have to keep on trying to please the people around them, they lose purpose and motivation. 

Teens grow up wanting to please the ones around them and make them feel proud. Once it finally snaps in the teenagers head, they realize there will always be more and more things one needs to do to truly please someone. What is the point of trying if you will never actually succeed? 

“I remember always trying to make my mom feel proud of me. I would do my homework and help her cook. I felt like it was never really making her happy though,” a current BAHS sophomore said. 

It typically starts with one small simple thing, like missing one homework assignment. Then comes the domino effect. The loss of motivation moves from not wanting to do homework, to not wanting to clean your room, to refusing to get out of bed for school and just continues to spiral from there. People tend to begin to feel physically unwell when they are at a loss of motivation. This can make it even harder to get out of the trap of the teenage crisis. 

Once someone reaches the point of carelessness, it can be quite difficult to get back to that full of life motivation. It takes time and lots of patience. The revival process needs to start small. It is unwise to jump in too much or one may relapse. It is advised to start with something such as cleaning one’s room, going to the gym, or turning in missing assignments. Then, move on to bigger things.

To truly be able to get over the teenage crisis, to actually beat it is a small, simple secret. Stop trying to please the people around you. Learn to love and focus on yourself. Want that good life for yourself and go do the steps to get it. It may be hard at times, but you make yourself strong. Go break that cycle and succeed.