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This
summer, the BBC asked teenagers for their opinions about their
lives.
Here's a roundup of what Bristolians, aged 11 to 19 and from
all backgrounds, said when we asked them to reveal their feelings.
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to the survey were anonymous |
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When
we asked you what was the hardest thing about being a teen,
peer pressure and mood swings were high on the list.
"PEER
PRESSURE!" wrote one girl. "The fact that everyone
is smoking & doing drugs & drinking & having sex & you feel
like the odd 1 out if you don't too...... but doing drugs is
pathetic & sex @ my age (14) is bang out of order too."
The girls singled out spots and periods as a particular hassle,
along with issues of weight and image: "Looks are everything
when your a teenager and I think I'm too fat and wish to be
skinny and trying to get boys." one 13-year old told us.
The
journey towards adulthood was also a concern: "You have
to pay adult prices on some things but don't get in to other
places. Make your mind up whether I'm a child or not,"
confided one 13-year-old.
| All
grown-ups think that teenagers are ALL bad and they don't
give them enough room and time to themselves. |
| Talking
Teenagers survey |
While
a 13-year-old boy said: "You always get blamed you can't
do a lot for your age cause your parents won't let you".
Lack of money came up as did stress from exams and lack of things
to do.
Bad press
Guys and girls were concerned about the negative way they feel
young people are portrayed - one boy talked of it being a "stigma"
to be a teen today, while another said "Teenagers get a
bad press - not all of them are muggers or take drugs".
"Everybody expects you to be a rebel and graffiti everywhere,"
added one 13-year-old girl.
"The bad reputation we are given by the media and fat ass
politicians who think they know everything when clearly don't
have a clue bout anything," was one 16-year-old girl's
summary of the situation.
One teen girl feels they are mistrusted: "When you are
in a shop everyone watches you like you are going to steal something",
she observed.
Relationships - of all types - were highlighted in this section
(but they also appear in "best bits of being a teen"
too).
One 15-year-old girl summed up the hardest part of being a teen
as "Life, friends, school, boys, relationships, love".
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