New Heart New Life Analysis

One theory, argued by Peter Gray, a research psychologist at Boston College, is that the rise in adolescent depression is due not only to the adolescent’s feeling of lack of control over his or her life but also a shift from intrinsic goals to extrinsic goals. Gray explains that teenagers in our modern society do not feel as if they have control over their lives even though it may appear that we do have more control over factors such as disease and wealth. Julien Rotter’s questionnaire is used to measure a person’s sense of control, and Gray points out that the scores of modern day indicate that the average young person in 2002 was more “external” than were “80% of the young people in the 1960’s.” This means that teenagers today have the attitude that what is supposed to happen will, indicating a sense of lack of control over a situation, which is one of the main reasons depression and anxiety occur. (Gray, Dramatic Rise) Along with this idea, Gray references Jean Twenge when he argues that there has been a shift from more personal goals to more worldly goals in teenagers. Twenge found that more adolescents are forming extrinsic goals, or “those that have to do with material rewards and other people’s judgments” rather than intrinsic goals which have to do with “one’s own development as a person.” Because

…I’ve become convinced that there are some clear and powerful measures that can be taken during this crucial time in a young person’s life. Some of the ones that helped me come to mind, from finding strong mentors to being entrusted with responsibilities that forced me to get serious about my behavior. (Moore 179)

My story deals with heavy topics that teens may relate to. One of my closest friends, Alaska, suffers from depression. When she dies in a car accident, my other friends and I can’t help but wonder if the “accident” was actually a suicide. Many teens out there feel the same as Alaska and could, perhaps, find comfort in reading about her.

In the fall of 2012, my mother almost succumbed to her illness. I had just begun my freshman year of high school midst angry conversations between my parents and the threat of separation. It would seem as if they bickered about the most irrelevant things, almost as if they had no other reason to fight other than the fight itself. Those moments were excruciatingly lonely, my father worked until the dead of night and my mother would come home exhausted from treatment. I now know that there was no one who felt more unvalued than my mother. I wish I had the ability to iron away this blunder that destiny had fabricated, however foolish this desire is.

Although some people may think this book overexaggerates the stress in a teen’s life, , the author just tries to show the perspective of one teen’s life. The book shows that everyone has their own story and every teen experiences different things, rather good or bad. The book educates readers on teenagers and what some may experience, as well as provides solutions for the hectic lives teenagers may face. Whether a teen uses poetry, like Gabi, to challenge emotions or other activities, teenagers can all relate to each other with the stressful, hormonal life they all

Teenage years are, without argument, the most confusing and difficult years of a person’s life as they

Choice – Young people often feel powerless to control their lives and fall into a self-defeating cycle of

Every day we all make decisions that have lasting implications. Sometimes those decisions are harder to make than others and require some time to think about the results. Many times we end up making a decision that has bad results and other times the decision we make produces excellent results. Throughout my time in high school, I have made many tough decisions and sometimes the choice paid off. One of the choices that I made towards the end of the tenth grade was applying for an officer position in the healthcare club HOSA.

Across the country there is 16 year old Najah. For a few years now her life has consisted not of living but of surviving. Unlike your average teenager who worries about getting an A on a test , updating their

The book, “The Romance of Risk: Why Teenagers Do The Things They Do,” by Lynn E. Ponton talks about different adolescent going through tough times in their lives. Doctor Ponton is the main character who tries to help each individual overcome their obstacles or realize that the way they are acting is affecting them and their parents. The book consist of 15 stories of different adolescents acting out which lead to their decisions. Each chapter focuses on an individual’s case. It explains the patient, the reasons she is working with he or she, and their background that might have led to their decisions. The only thing in common between all the adolescents was that they were all engaging in risky behaviors. Dr. Lynn Ponton gave them advice on how to take healthy risk instead of unhealthy risk that might change their lives forever. Not only did she give advice to the teens but also to the parent(s) on how to deal with their kid’s actions and communicating with them as well.

Generally, life can be separated into two phases: the first being the “coming of age” where people transition into adulthood and realize that there is not as much good in the world as there first appeared to be. The second phase is the aftermath, where people either learn to cope with the cruelties of life or simply fail. Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures, by Vincent Lam, follows a group of medical students as they train to become doctors and how they learn to deal with different social pressures that accompanies the profession. At the beginnings of the characters’ medical journeys, they are all ecstatic to get into medical school, each having their own reason, such as “good intentions” or to appease their parents (Lam 10). However, as the characters begin to ease into doctoral life, the

Growing up, parents are your biggest fans and worst critics. My parents have loved me unconditionally and have tried to give me the world. As their child I tried to give them what they wanted in return. I keep my good grades and excel in athletics. I’ll also be the first person in my family to go to college.There’s a point in your life when you realize that you can’t give them the perfect child. Yes I’ve made mistakes and done things that I shouldn't have. I understand the anger, the hurt, and the disappointment that I’ve caused throughout my upbringing. In the end, some parents are more critical than others, and I got the short straw. Making your kid feel like they’re the reason you’ll leave one day kills. This most recent disappointment might be

Looming in front of me was something new, a fresh start. Despite being this, it seemed cold and trying, something that sent shivers down my spine. Mixed emotions of uncertainty and optimism had filled my first day of middle school; and as my final year is drawing to a close, I realize that this place-this transitional time in my life- is something that I never want to leave. I created a home away from home, and a family, over the short three years spent learning here. Each school year, from first to concluding, brought new experiences in which have altered my life. These are the things that I am hoping to carry over into high school-my next chapter. Every experience in which middle school has brought leaves me changed indefinitely, shaped for the future ahead.

It was 2016, and I was finally a senior in high school. Being a senior in high school was something that I had dreamed of since my early middle school days, and at last, I was there. It was the last year in one of my least favorite environments, and I couldn’t wait to graduate and move away from the only place I had ever known. I had lived in the same town for seventeen years, and I had gone to the same school with the same people for thirteen years. I was looking forward to something new in my life. I was most excited for my senior year because it was the year that I was going to choose where I wanted to move away to and what school I wanted to spend the next four years of my life at. As the year moved along, I slowly realized that I wasn’t moving away and that I’d be staying home to attend college, which was one of the most difficult decisions that I ever had to make.

Life is something that is much more complex than anyone can imagine. No matter who the person is or how old they are, everyone faces various obstacles and challenges that make their lives difficult. Some people are faced with physical limitations such as not being able to pick something up or walk up a flight of stairs while others may be faced with mental limitations such as being unable to comprehend something that’s going on. Two of the toughest points in an individual’s life come during the years of adolescence and late adulthood. These points of a person’s life can be overwhelming and stressful as a person tries their best to grasp the changes occurring before their very eyes.