“Teenagers Are Not Teenagers Anymore” by Ngueyn Phuc
These days, I feel like teenagers are not teenagers anymore. I feel like they are older than their age. For example, there’s a girl who is only 13 years old — the age when she should be studying, eating, and playing — but instead, she’s looking at herself and feeling like she has to change because of what others say. That’s not good for children’s minds. Why do they have to change at such a young age, when they’ve just grown up and already have to compare themselves to others?
Why did I say that teenagers are not teenagers anymore? Because they always have to look at themselves and judge themselves for nothing. They scroll through social media and compare themselves to people who seem perfect. That’s not healthy. You’ve just started growing up, and then you compare yourself to mature people on Instagram. You look in the mirror and think, “Why am I so ugly?” and you feel stressed. You can’t live as your true self, and you lie to yourself that you’re not good enough — but the truth is, you are perfect! You don’t have to change. Just be your real self. That’s amazing.
I’m a teenager, and I understand how it feels when you think you’re not perfect. I was hurt too. When I was in primary school, I was teased by my friends. Until I graduated and went to middle school, I thought I had to change. And I did change — I changed a lot, from my skin to my hair. But my body didn’t change. I often looked in the mirror and asked, “Why do I have to do this?” I often wondered, why do people have to be skinny?
In my country, people prefer skinny women over women who have a little fat. I’m a girl who has a little fat on her body. If you look at me, you’ll see I don’t need to change anything. But when I look at myself, I feel uncomfortable and weird. When I scroll through Instagram, I always see girls with perfect bodies. I’m jealous, to be honest.
Teenage girls often judge themselves. But girls, that’s not healthy for someone so young. No one is perfect. At this age, you should focus on your studies and on eating well — not your body.
On social media, teenagers often force themselves to grow up too fast and try to be perfect. Why do they have to do that at this age? Teenagers should be focusing on learning, not on love or making money. For example, some kids get into relationships at 11, 12, or 14 years old. Why do we need to find love so early?
So maybe it’s time to stop trying to be perfect like the people you see on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok. It’s time to stop forcing yourself to be mature. Just live as you are. You don’t have to act older than your age. Live the life you deserve. Eat what you like — don’t starve yourself. Stop ruining your body. No one is perfect.
Just live and be who you really are. And one of the most important things I want to say is: smile. Just smile, because when you smile, all the good things will come to you. So smile and shine the way you are. Live the life you deserve. Do anything you want, because you are worth it.