COVID-19, Social Isolation, and Teen Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many families, businesses, and schools changing rules, regulations, and way of living. The government set into place a safe social- distancing policy in hopes this would keep everyone healthy and happy. However, social distancing led to many teenagers isolating themselves from society and reality. Exciting plans they had were canceled, events were postponed for what felt like eternity, and the people they looked to in times of disbelief - parents/guardians/authority figures - had no answers for them. Teens were uprooted from their normal lives and with each day slowly slipped into seclusion, not only from their friends and family, but from the outside world in general. 

Now, as COVID-19 rules loosen and the vaccine becomes more readily available, what does this mean for teens re-entering into social settings? This transition for teens has the potential to be really challenging. Each teenager and each situation will be different, but more teens will experience an increase in depression, anxiety, and stress. Some might have seen the shutdown as an opportunity to work on their self-growth and give them a chance to catch up with life, but this was rarely the case. The lack of a social setting, for example simply being with peers in school, now puts a new pressure on teens as they return. Without the correct guidance and support from people around them, these teens will continue to struggle with social anxiety, which gives them a disadvantage for the significant years ahead of them. Now with new concerns about the Delta Variant, and restrictions being put back in place, it feels we might be stuck going back and forth . If you see your teen struggling with any of this please reach out to your local mental health practitioner.

-Caroline Stuckey