National Teen Self Esteem Month: How to give your teen powerful tools and habits for life

 

When asked to describe what confidence is, it can be a difficult question to answer. Each individual will have their own thoughts on what confidence is and how it impacts their life. Confidence is something that everyone has to learn, and no matter how much we might wish to be able to give someone the confidence they deserve, it has to come from within them.

 

The month of May is dedicated to Teen Self Esteem. From dedicating time and effort to understanding one's own abilities to learning how to trust themselves, the month celebrates and encourages teens to build an important relationship. Although it can appear that some have an easier time establishing this connection with themselves, nurturing and learning an understanding of this is a crucial part of growing up and providing a grounding for a happy and healthy future.

 

In this article, we’re going through all the things you need to know about National Teen Self Esteem along with helpful ways that you can help support your teenager or a friend in building their self-esteem.

 

 

What is National Teen Self Esteem Month?

 

May became the month of awareness for teens and self-esteem with many returning to schools, colleges and universities during this month. With the growing world of the internet, very little detachment from digital communication and exposure to such a quantity of information, more and more teenagers have begun to struggle with their self-worth and self-image. The month has been put in place to provide a time to invest more energy from teachers, parents and communities to allow teenagers to speak up about how they feel, their perspectives on important topics and let people know what they need to keep progressing in a healthy, positive and successful future. All of this is in aid of teenagers building a positive outlook for themselves.

 

What is Self Esteem?

 

Self-esteem is how one perceives themselves. This comes from a combination of thoughts, personal beliefs and external factors that can influence the feelings of individuals. The difficulty of self-esteem comes from the ability to change it. If someone has a negative outlook about themselves it can take a lot of hard work to change whilst fighting the original feelings in regards to worth. Self-esteem has a direct impact on feeling good about who you are as a person, and everyone has the right to feel good about who they are. The teenage years are some of the most crucial years to building a positive relationship with oneself.

 

What impact can low self-esteem have?

 

Some things can affect someone’s self-esteem and each person can be impacted by things in different ways. Low self-esteem can have a negative impact on multiple aspects of a person's life. From attending school, making friends, applying to universities, making the decision to not go to university, getting jobs and many other things, a low self-esteem directly impacts their confidence to do the things that they want to and deserve to do.

 

What is likely to rock teenagers' self-esteem?

 

Life experiences that cause difficulty and/or stress can make the relationship a teenager has with themselves unsteady. Some things include bullying, prejudice and discrimination, the way that others are treating them including relationships with both family, friends and romances. Also stressful things like struggling to find a job or losing one and other issues in the workplace or when studying. Teenagers who have developed concerns about their body image or struggling with their mental health can also struggle with their self-esteem because of this. Like adults, housing and finances can have an impact too.

 

 

What are important habits to encourage our teenagers?

 

Healthy habits can build a strong foundation for teenagers and they learn to be able to rely on themselves and most importantly can trust themselves. These things can provide the starting building blocks for a healthy view of themselves.

 

Studying and jobs

 

As two of the biggest parts of a teenager's life, they can also be the most stressful. Learning a strong work ethic and independent learning are habits that can provide an important base for teenagers to rely on in the future as well as keeping them progressing and pushing themselves for greater things. This drive and desire for more ensure that they are always working on their confidence.

 

Friendships and family

 

Relationships can be complicated to navigate. Learning what a true relationship between people should be like will help them make positive future decisions about who they spend time with. This ensures that they value themselves and therefore how they are treated by others. Leading by example shows them that they don’t need to settle for any other treatment and gives them confidence in changing things if they realise a decision later wasn’t the healthiest for them.

 

Health, fitness and nutrition

 

There have been numerous research studies on the impact fitness and nutrition has on mental wellbeing. All of the things that go into building a healthy routine have to be learnt. A healthy relationship with regular activity and understanding how nutrition affects the way we feel sets teenagers up with the tools they need to get through moments of difficulty whilst establishing a confident relationship with themselves.

 

Meditation and Aromatherapy

 

Meditation practices along with well-being routines are all-encompassing in helping teenagers to understand the importance of looking after themselves, spending time with their feelings and bringing them strength to be positive about the future. There are things that can be introduced or gifted to teenagers to show that you care about their well-being and encourage them to take their first steps to take more time for themselves in a healthy and productive way.

 

Not only can aromatherapy choices be ideal for general mood-boosting properties, but they can also easily be tailored to personal preferences further securing the importance of being true to oneself and how individual every person is. Other choices involve the promotion of things like focusing. The Made By Coopers Focus Range is a specific blend that helps to energise and focus the mind making it ideal for study sessions. Creating a routine around these things to get in the correct mindset is a great way to get the most out of the sessions and build further confidence.

 

As an essential oil

 

The essential oil Focus Blend is a versatile version of the scent blend that can be used in a variety of ways. Being disseminated through diffusers can allow great control over how and where the scent enters the space. Our favourite use is after spending time studying with this blend it can be applied onto a tissue or sleeve when entering an exam, interview or stressful situation to bring back and remind them of the positive and calm experiences that have gone before when studying with the scent.

 

As a room spray

 

When first getting into using aromatherapy we love offering the Focus Room Spray for its simplicity. It can easily be introduced to a routine of getting ready to study and sitting down. A few spritzes around the room and the energy changes to be a place of quiet and focus. The calmness will completely uplift the desire to get the work completed.

 

 

Why is it important to learn well-being routines at teenage age?

 

The sooner that well-being routines are introduced the more boosting of things like self-esteem and confidence. These routines are fundamental for having a good relationship with oneself. Learning to understand who we are and what makes us tick only can occur by spending time nurturing our inner beings. If we can introduce this to others at a younger age, but an age where someone is starting to take their most independent steps, we can help give them the foundation that will help them remain grounded, strong and confident as they embark on their future.

 

 

Another choice for helping to gently introduce well-being routines are items such as the Lavender & Flaxseed Eye Pillow. This beautiful piece emits a relaxing aromatherapy scent and provides a warmth that brings the ultimate feeling of stillness. Simply by using this, an individual has to take time out and this can help to easily bring a continual and committed well-being routine into their lives.

 

Opening up conversations

 

Most importantly, this day is about asking those questions and opening those conversations. Letting people know that it's okay to have worries and concerns but promoting the learning of trust within oneself. These things are important to learn and by finding these open lines of communication and the right support, more teenagers can have a happy and healthy transition into adulthood.

 

We hope that our article has given you food for thought and inspired you to take the next step with a son or daughter or friend to help them create healthy habits now. The more we are open about these things, the healthier the world will become and the less we will see of teenagers struggling with self-esteem.