The truth about teen mental health

New research shows almost half of British girls aged 17 to 21 have suffered with mental health problems. Here, 24-year-old doctor and Girlguiding leader Emma Gees explains why. Mental health is the top health concern facing young girls today, according to Girlguiding’s Girls’ Attitudes Survey.

It's found that 62 per cent of girls, aged 11 to 21, know a girl or young woman who has experienced a mental health issues. While almost half of 17 to 21 year olds have sought help for their mental health needs.

I'm not at all surprised.

In today’s world, girls feel under pressure to have it all: perfect grades, perfect body and perfect social life.

The last ten years have seen a revolution in the digital world. Now, when young people go home they can no longer escape or switch off from the pressures that surround them.

Social media is a constant presence that makes young people even more vulnerable and brings with it a new set of anxieties. Is it any wonder that 82 per cent of girls feel adults don’t understand the kind of stresses they are under?

I recently qualified as a doctor and have seen first-hand the high prevalence of mental health issues among young people. Many feel it is an awkward or taboo issue, and feel uncomfortable talking about it.

Young people are bottling up their feelings until they reach crisis point - and it’s only once they arrive at A&E that they finally open up to someone about their depression, eating disorders or anxiety.

Common notions that mental health isn’t as important as physical health, or that people with mental health problems just need to ‘pull their socks up,’ act as barriers to many seeking help.

But it's so important they do.

As a senior section leader for Girlguiding UK, I have seen girls struggle with the stresses of exams, social media and body image.

In the run up to exam results day - GCSE and A-level results were both published this month - they put huge amounts of pressure on themselves.

I kept reminding them that grades don't define you as a person. It seems easy for me to say, having already finished my education, but I remember spending the summer leading up to results day in a state of constant stress and panic.

In the UK, we are also obsessed with weight.

We're bombarded with images of unrealistically thin models and celebrities, making many people question their own bodies. If someone lacks confidence about the way they look, these images often make them even more self-conscious, lowering their self-esteem and affecting their mental health.

I have seen first-hand what can happen when someone has poor body image. I have seen friends shrink in personality and become shadows of their former selves, missing out on opportunities and not achieving their potential.