Teens And Self-Esteem


  1. 7 in 10 girls believe that they are not good enough or don’t measure up in some way, including their looks, performance in school and relationships with friends and family members.  
  2. A girl’s self-esteem is more strongly related to how she views her own body shape and body weight, than how much she actually weighs. 
  3. 38 percent of boys in middle school and high school reported using protein supplements and nearly 6 percent admitted to experimenting with steroids.
  4. The top wish among all teen girls is for their parents to communicate better with them. This includes frequent and more open conversations.
  5. Teen girls that have a negative view of themselves are four times more likely to take part in activities with boys that they’ve ended up regretting later.
  6. About 20 percent of teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood.
  7. 75 percent of girls with low self-esteem reported engaging in negative activities like cutting, bullying, smoking, drinking, or disordered eating. This compares to 25 percent of girls with high self-esteem.
  8. More than 40 percent of boys in middle school and high school regularly exercise with the goal of increasing muscle mass.
  9. Over 70 percent of girls age 15 to 17 avoid normal daily activities, such as attending school, when they feel bad about their looks.
  10. Among high school students, 44 percent of girls and 15 percent of guys are attempting to lose weight.
  11. Low self-esteem is a thinking disorder in which an individual views him/herself as inadequate, unworthy, unlovable, and/or incompetent. Once formed, this negative view of self permeates every thought, producing faulty assumptions and ongoing self-defeating behavior.
  12. I think that everyone has had the experience of wanting something very badly, then being disappointed when it doesn’t happen. Today we talk about the benefits of becoming unattached to the outcome that you are desiring. This does not mean that you stop caring about things, but that because you don’t need the outcome, you can remain more peaceful and happy as you work toward your goals.
  • Do you have a list of things that you want to do or accomplish floating around in your head? Well, WRITE IT DOWN! Today we talk about the importance of writing down our goals and the things we would like to do or have in

  • Parents should take responsibly for their child's self esteem, getting involved more with their child's education and placing them in sports. music and art. It is my job as a parent to be a parent not a friend - not condoning my daughter and son that their appearance and what others think they should look like does not have an importance on how far they will go in life - Who is buying the clothes and make up, ect. where are these kids getting the money? Buying my kids PlayStation and cells phones its not the answer to good behavior but parents use this as replacement; parents do not want to spend family time with their child so the drop off is the mall or letting them run the streets is? it seems that today parents conform to society on how to raise their kids instead of focusing on education, spirituality, emotional and me.
  • To be a roll model we must love ourselves first and foremost as teens look to us as adults to lead the way. Simply loving ourselves where we are and being honest, open and willing to share our experiences provides the opportunity for exploration into the truth of who we are. Be bold, courageous and speak up for what you believe is true.
  • I believe as a society we tend to throw around words such as self-esteem, self-worth, self-respect, self-image, self-confidence and self-responsibility without taking in the very genuine and deep short term and long term effects they can have on a teenager. These terms are more than letters and words... Do what you can as an adult, teacher, parent, brother, sister, etc to be around in any positive supportive way that you can!
  • I see a lot of youth who experience feelings of inadequacy and low self-worth. Parents can help with this. 1) Work on your own self-esteem so you can model healthy behaviour, 2) Have realisitc expectations based on who your child is and his/her capabilities, 3) Accept your child as is--s/he is perfect!
  • The hardest thing about growing up is finding out who you are as a person. Society tends to suggest WHAT you should be, WHO you should be, WHAT you can't be. A journey of finding ones self has become something that teenagers are now taking a little more seriously. Being an individual is Cool! but of course only if your doing the Cool things.

Pledge to love the skin you're in. Get your classmates to do it too.

Check out: The Self Esteem Institute