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I am seeing an epidemic of anxious, stressed out teens in my office and in my community. And I am not alone. There has been a significant increase in the number of teens and young adults with anxiety and depression in U.S. since the 1940s. As much as 25% of teens in the U.S. will fit the criteria for an anxiety disorder at some time, and anxiety is the most common mental disorder in adults, at 18% of the population (according to the NIH). The U.S. (and other Western countries) have a higher incidence of anxiety than the rest of the world, where the global prevalence of anxiety is only 7%. So U.S. teens and 20-somethings have become progressively more anxious over the last 60 years, are the most anxious age range in our society, and are more anxious than their peers in the rest of the world. What is going on in our culture and environment that is making our 21st century young people anxious? I think of our young people as the “canaries in the coal mines” of modern culture, with social, environmental, chemical, and community changes all coming to bear on their ability to function. No one knows exactly why teens are more anxious than they used to be, but I have a few guesses.
ment in which young people can feel safe, form connections with other young people, and be successful, is the key to helping them recover their peace of mind. And if you’re the parent of the anxious teen, your love, support and connection is a critical factor in their success. No matter how your teen is behaving, he or she needs your attention, your presence and your affection, if they’re willing to receive it.
Suggestion 1: Find an educational and social environment in which your teen feels safe and can be successful. Remember that “high achievement” is far less important for your young person’s success long-term than feeling comfortable and confident in her or himself. As a parent, even when it’s tough, try to stay open to communication, attention and affection with your teen or 20-something.
Insomnia and Sleep Deprivation: The impact of artificial lighting and technology on sleep is harsh for everyone in modern society, but it is particu-
larly important for teens, who need more sleep than adults, but have shifted sleep clocks, meaning that they naturally go to sleep later and get up later. The issue is that most schools start by 8 a.m. and teens can’t sleep in late, leaving them chronically sleep deprived. All artificial light has the result of reducing melatonin production at night and making sleep more difficult, but the light on computer and phone screens is a bluer light, and it has twice the suppressive effect on melatonin—severely impairing sleep in teens. A study published in the British Medical Journal reported that the more screen time teens engage in, the longer it takes them to fall asleep. Teens with 4 or more hours of screen time per day were 350% more likely to sleep less than 5 hours at night and 49% more likely to need more than 60 minutes to fall asleep. The impact of less sleep? Anxiety, depression, inability to concentrate and poor grades.
Suggestion 2: Help yourself (or your teen) sleep by limiting screen time at night and/or adding an amber filter to their phone, pad, or laptop to limit blue light exposure (see getflux.com).
Loss of community connection and support: In my book BodyWise, I write about the challenging mismatch between our physiology— which was designed for humans living thousands of years ago—and our culture and environment. And this is a more pronounced problem in Western countries than in more traditional cultures. Specifically, Western countries, like the U.S., have lost much of our communal connection. We often don’t even know our neighbors. The lack of religious and social community, the loss of family farms, and the increasing isolation of our nuclear families create environments which are less friendly to the happiness and relaxation of teens and adults alike. In the U.S., more social connections (at home, at work, in your softball league) lead to less depression and anxiety. Teens need social connections even more than adults, and not just through Instagram or Snapchat. Face to face interaction with friends reduces stress and fuels healthy development. My sister Lisa, who is a 30-year veteran educator specializing in anxious teens, suggests that creating an environ93
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