Mental health within the youth is a relevant issue that continues to spread and spread. In many cases, there are clear signs of mental issues and potential decline. You might have a friend that becomes aggressive at the slightest inconvenience, or a friend that seems deprived from their environment around them, restless, and paranoid. And with harmful stereotypes aside, many cases of mental decline can differ.
In most cases, those in the youth that have mental issues can come from years of cause and effect. Neglect, abuse, and traumas are common attributes to the problem, unfortunately.
Sometimes mental health problems can occur immediately, rather than a build up of years of stress and torment. Teen pregnancies tend to provide extreme isolation and paranoia, especially to the mother that bears the child. Sometimes teens can become stressed and burn out from work, resulting in a depressive state that can last. And a lot of these cases of decline aren’t seen from the outside eye. And sadly, these can lead into deeper situations. Self harm is a common problem within the youth, and the thoughts of suicide come along. Some of these people in the youth struggle, and sometimes aren’t seen. And in the case of the bullied, they are left to struggle. The topic of mental health isn’t entirely a controversial topic within society, but it is downplayed with the pressures of masculinity in men that it impacts everyone. Some uneducated parents don’t believe in mental health, and chalk it up to phases. Some kids and teens most likely don’t understand the way they are feeling, and it can dwindle into loss of self identity and further prone issues of invalidation and self hatred.
Fortunately, as of 2025, rates of mental health awareness in the youth have risen, especially within social media and the stories that are told in regard to mental health. Entertainment media plays a great role in mental health awareness as well, depending on how effective and communicative it is treated in the media. For example, many people find comfort in characters that share similar to how they feel, which can validate themselves and gain a sense of self. Depending on the scenario, this is a great way to expand the horizons of open mindedness to help aid a teens mental health. We’ve all had a moment in our lives where we pictured ourselves in fictional characters or are positively influenced by characters that impact their mental health. Some characters that are known for their influence can be Goku from Dragon Ball Z, Ellen Ripley from Aliens 2, Ryan Gosling from Drive, and Sidney from the Scream franchise.
This is important because entertainment is a form of comfort for people. And creating stories that bring awareness to issues such as mental health is a very beneficial way of bringing awareness to mental health.
People tend to see the details on a wider personal and relatable scale, and for some people, it means a lot to them as a way to reflect on themselves. Maybe those people can understand themselves somehow and resolve it with self motivated improvement or with outside help.
