Inside the teen mind: what’s happening to mental health?
Podcast Series: The Health Foundation
Episode 8: ‘Inside the teen mind: what’s happening to mental health?’
Rating: Entertaining 1/5 | Informative 4/5 | Inspiring 3/5
The Health Foundation is an independent charity that works through different avenues to improve health in the United Kingdom (UK). This podcast series is one such avenue where high-profile guests discuss issues concerning the future of health and healthcare in the UK. This particular episode, however, discusses an issue that potentially transcends national boundaries.
Globalisation is frequently discussed on different forums, and all sides of the debate agree that it is neither good nor bad. Nevertheless, it is important to look at the new world that is unfolding before our eyes, through the lens of the generation that is growing up in it—today’s teenagers. For them, mental health must come to the forefront. The world today is changing so rapidly and people must adapt to keep up. Everyday, the frameworks defining relationships, success, and culture change and interchange so quickly; yet unlike machines, humans cannot just be ‘updated’. So how will adolescents carve out their identity amidst so many conflicting influences? What will the effects of growing up now be and how will young people cope?
This episode’s guests are Jean Twenge, a professor of psychology and celebrated author whose work focuses on generational differences; and Yvonne Kelly, a professor of Life course Epidemiology. They discuss how the world is setting up young people for excessive pressure and uncertainty in many spheres of life. Social media plays a big part, but there are other factors that contribute to this stress as well.
If you are interested in the life course approach to public health, or if you know a teenager, you might want to give this a listen. How do we ensure that we build a new normal without cracks that young people could fall through? And if they do fall, is our health system a reliable safety net?