Peer Pressure 

By Braelyn C.

You’re in a pickle about fitting in. But did you know, it’s not just you? In fact, it’s a very common issue in our world today. But did you know that fitting in isn't as good as it may seem? It can become dangerous in minutes. Two words… Peer Pressure.

 

       What is peer pressure? Peer pressure is when friends you decided to trust force bad habits against you in harmful ways. Here is the definition of peer pressure: when your own brain forces you to make bad, even sometimes precarious choices. Young people face peer pressure all the time. Why?

Teenagers are not done developing! “A teenager’s brain is only about 80 percent developed,” says Gurinder Dabhia, M.D., a pediatrician at Scripps Clinic Rancho Bernardo. “Teens have extra unconnected synapses in the area where risk assessment occurs, and this gets in the way of judgment. In addition, the prefrontal cortex is underdeveloped, which makes teens more sensitive to peer pressure and risky, impulsive behavior.” Impulsive behaviors eat away at a teen's opportunities and push them out of line. Think of a time you couldn't quite get rid of something, for example maybe a childhood toy. You love that toy, and getting rid of it would affect your emotional state. Now imagine that toy is a peer forcing peer pressure against you. You not only want to get rid of it, but you also need to get rid of it, before risky behaviors swallow you whole and it's too late. But how could you? You're as stuck as a mouse in a mousetrap. That's peer pressure, and it doesn't feel good. How are you going to get out of this sticky situation? Maybe it's time to walk away from those negative peers and search for some new ones.

Mike, age 16, wants to warn you about the dangers of peer pressure. He states, “I smoked my first cigarette when I was eleven. I didn’t want to, but all my friends were smoking, and I didn’t want to be out of the group. Once I’d started I couldn’t stop. I was addicted… I wish I hadn’t started. I knew it was wrong, and I didn’t want to.” Clearly, Mike didn’t want to smoke the cigarette, but in his own mind and thoughts, his peers were forcing him to smoke that one cigarette; that made all the difference. That's an example of peer pressure with long-term effects. How so? Well, he got addicted. That one cigarette made all the difference.

Don’t get sucked into this loophole of misfortune that’s full of deep, dreadful sadness and isolation. Just say no. Saying no could make such a big difference. The brain is the culprit to blame. Most of the time you get tied up in your own thoughts. What if that’s not cool? Would he do this? No, she wouldn't do that. Most of the time those people will understand, maybe even open their eyes, to realize what they're doing is not acceptable.

Be prepared! According to the site Study.com, 90% of kids will in fact experience peer pressure before graduating high school. That’s nine out of ten kids! If there are 7.753 billion people in the world, that means 6.978 billion people have or will experience peer pressure in some way shape or form. You should prepare yourself for peer pressure. Think, what would I say? How would you keep yourself from harm? The best-known way is to say no. Fairfax County Public Schools website says, “It should be okay to say ‘no’ without needing to apologize or give an explanation.” This information is absolutely correct. Nobody should ever feel uncomfortable saying no.

As you have read, peer pressure is a serious problem. The list of bad results is greater than the list of good, and that is just common sense. Knowing that peer pressure is common among teens, be aware of the dangers and avoid them at all costs.