#3

#3 Disapproval by a person's peers can cause a teen to have a mental breakdown


Most people have heard of the recent suicide of a 19 year-old college student named Raymond Chase. His death was all over the news and incited alot of activism against homophobia and hate. Raymond Chase killed himself after material which proved him to be gay was posted on the internet. He did this out of humiliation since he was now, unwillingly, "out of the closet." This is an example of a teenager having a mental breakdown from his peers and shows the fragile mindset of many young people. Often adults dismiss the crisis of teens as silly but they don't understand that at our age we don't have the perspective needed to dismiss problems as petty. Somehow, things like popularity can mean alot to us. We can't see far enough into the future to know what won't matter in a few years and what will. When I refer back to my past I remember times that I thought my life was over and times when problems didn't phase me at all. In the end, the things that seemed to matter didn't and vice versa. This lack of perspective is especially inhibiting to us because what we choose to do now is more important than any other point in our lives. High school may not matter and definetly doesn't include the best times of our lives, but it's important to stop and consider what a student like yourself will get out of it. When you step out of Fremd with a diploma it won't matter how you looked or when you lost your virginity (if at all). Your grades and general acheivements will be the deciding factor in your future. Still, with a certain lack of experience, most of us don't look further than Friday when making plans.