Cry Baby

According to Greatist.com the average female cries 3 times a month, but high schoolers may be the exception. The pressure of being a high school student has reached catastrophic levels. Between soccer practice, school plays, homework and college applications, the workload has become nearly unbearable. These added stresses combined with the normal moodiness of an adolescent is leading to mental breakdowns and unhealthy behaviors. This November, Harborfields students were given a survey on how often they cry. The average HF girl cried an average of 6 times in the last month. This is twice the normal amount.

Here at Harborfields no more than 3 days go by without seeing a student crying in the bathroom or shedding a tear in class. According to HF junior Amanda Blitz, “Stress levels have been skyrocketing in teens over the past couple years and crying appears to be their outlet.” But, is this outlet effective? Times are tough junior year and emotions tend to run high, but sobbing through the school day just to get by? It doesn't seem right. At age 16 a poor grade or friend group drama appears to be life or death. Although these things are not important in the large scheme of things, the stress of the moment is enough to leave teens broken down.

“Some emotional or tearful times are not unusual at this age,” according to Schonert-Reichl from Todaysparent.com, but is crying numerous times a week affecting mental health of teens? Only 30 percent of all teenagers with depression are diagnosed and treated. Most experts would agree that there is more stress today than in previous generations. This statement makes sense when looking at the data from the Crying Survey, in which it is clear just how often teenagers have stress induced crying episodes.

It is also known that stress triggers depression and mood disorders. This explains the “teen angst” Generation Z is always referring to. Within the results of the survey, when asked, “how often do you think a female cries each month,” many responded sarcastically saying “too much” or gave an exaggerated number. These witty remarks show how sardonic kids these days are. They’re dark, cynical, and make jokes at their own expense.

These personality traits likely correlate to the pressure they are constantly under. “Everyday I hear students say I want to die in some way, shape, or form, but I would never take it seriously. I guess It’s just a way of saying you’ve had a bad day.” says junior Danielle Roy. If what Danielle says is true, shouldn’t more people be alarmed?

This is not healthy and although these remarks are not often made while students are in tears it all relates back to each other. The crying, depression, angst and jokes are results of our teenagers being overworked and overwhelmed. Being a teenager is no longer about the freedoms and fun times but is constantly about what’s next and how they will be successful in life. It has become the norm to be sad and stressed out, instead of young, dumb, and careless.