Adolescent Emotional Development
Adolescence is when you're building your secure self-concept - basically figuring out who you are and feeling confident about it. This can be pretty stressful because your self-esteem often depends on how well you think you're developing your identity.
Body image becomes massive during this time. You might find yourself overly worried about your physical appearance and how your mates view and accept you. This focus on how you look becomes a crucial part of your self-esteem as a young person.
As your self-concept gets stronger, it can actually lead to more anger and conflict. Your friends start replacing your family as your main support system, and you begin comparing yourself to others constantly. Poor school performance, behavioural issues, bullying, smoking, drinking, drug use, and depression can all stem from these emotional struggles.
Key Insight: The shift from family to peer support is completely normal - it's part of developing independence!
Divorce impact brings both positives closerrelationshipswithindividualparents,lessarguing,potentialstep−siblings,moreexternalsupport and negatives emotionaltrauma,grieving,loweredself−esteem,depression,increasedresponsibilities.