HSE 7

1

DRAFT OF ANALYSIS

4-2 FINAL PROJECT MILESTONE TWO

T’ERICA HUFF

SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY

In our current age, young adolescents who are of between ten to nineteen years of age, have a lot of needs that need to be addressed as they develop. As adolescents develop into adulthood there is a lot of conflict in between. This is because they are trying to discover their personality and also understand themselves from a much deeper perspective. 

Having a negative or positive environment, will either contribute positively or negatively towards their growth. Some of the needs that adolescents require are self-identity and good mental health. Many adolescents suffer from a lack of self-identity or awareness when they are developing (Kieling, 2011). This makes them get involved in so many things such as drug abuse, fornication, they get depressed, simply because they are confused and do not know how to handle the new person they are developing into. 

Therefore, adolescents require guidance so that they can be able to understand the different changes they are experiencing. These are physical, emotional, mental changes. Physically they become different; some parts of their bodies develop more. Emotionally they want to feel accepted. And mentally they are fighting between what is right and what is wrong while being influenced by their fellow peers. Having a negative environment also adds to the causes of poor mental health issues. This is because as time goes by many teenagers get into depression due to what experiences they have involved themselves in. Also, mostly adolescents do what they see other people who are older than they do, therefore if they are not aware of themselves it was easy for them to be swayed or influenced. 

Different practices can be used to address these needs that occur in adolescents. For example, when it comes to self-identity one of the things that can be done is taking personality tests. There are different types of personality traits. One can only be able to discover their personality type by taking a personality test. It takes them a step ahead towards getting to know exactly who they are (Williams & Chapman, 2011). Writing down their weaknesses and strengths helps them understand who they are and what they need to do for them not to be swayed by other people.

  As for good mental health, the youths need to have mentorship programs that will help them in gaining direction when it comes to their lives. Having a mentor that they can talk to when in times of confusion or when faced with challenges will come a long way in helping the adolescents. This is because they will not get advice from their peers who may not offer more help to them or they may end up misleading them. 

Getting help from someone who has been there and has experienced the struggles that come with being an adolescent is more suitable to help them maneuver the same struggles they are facing. 

Some of the risk factors that will be addressed by the above approach include drug and substance abuse depression and suicide. Most adolescents when they are not in control of their lives or are not receiving any guidance tend to abuse drugs, others get depressed with others to commit suicide. They look at these as a haven for them when it's not. Getting to help during this stage of transition in their lives is very important.

REFERENCES Kieling, C. (2011). Child and Adolescent Mental Health Worldwide: Evidence for Action. Retrieved from Science Direct: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673611608271 Williams, K. A., & Chapman, M. V. (2011). Comparing Health and Mental Health Needs, Service Use, and Barriers to Service Among Sexual Minority Youths and Their Peers. Retrieved from Academic.OUP: https://academic.oup.com/hsw/article-abstract/36/3/197/718918