"The period of life when the body undergoes certain changes, leading to reproductive maturity, is called adolescence, or teenage."

At least that's what the books say. The definition is pretty accurate and on point if you ask me. I mean, we do go through changes in our appearance, but that's not the only thing, is it? There are a million more changes that occur during teenage that are not taught us.

So, I, a teenager, am here to make you familiar with how a teenager's life works. In some ways, being a teenager is the hardest chapter in your life. This is the part of your life where you're trying to define who you are not only to everyone around you, but also to yourself. We teenagers struggle with image, gender identity, self confidence, and tons of emotional issues.

Like, the books will tell you how we have mood swings, one second we are the life and soul of a party, and the next, someone boring and sad to hang out with. But let me tell you, it's not about just the hormones. It's about the silent judgement that every single teenager has to go through. We are judged on the basis of our clothes, our way of talking, our grades and even our friends. You can't expect a person to be all roses and sunshine when that person is going through a perpetual pressure regarding everything, can you?

Well yes, the hormones do contribute. We get angry or annoyed easily or regarding little things but the adults have to understand that it can't be helped. That's how everyone is at this age, not just a particular child. Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to shade adults, but that's just how it is.

Yes, being a teenager is difficult. But being a gen-z teenager? It's like being hit with a bona fide amount of assignments without any prior warning. We don't need things, but we want them because that person has it. It's greedy though it can't be helped.

Another problem, we teenagers just aren't capable of settling on a particular hobby.
"I need to learn how to play a guitar."
But a month or two in, the interest is gone. Poof.
"I want to swim! *A month later* Maybe swimming is just not my thing."
"I... I want to dance! I always had a passion in dancing! I am gonna join dance classes right away!
...dancing is not really my forte. I will just drop the classes..."
But you have to understand, that it is hard. People ask us about our hobbies or ambitions all the time, when we are still trying to figure them out ourselves. Again, the constant comparison to our peers, the pressure to be better.

Not every teen is like that, some of us do have our life sorted. Sorted as in, they, the "perfect" teens, know what they are gonna do when we grow up, they have a schedule of the whole week, their assignments are completed, they get straight A's and the works. But they aren't "perfect" either. You never know, that this teenager could be going through depression because of the constant bullying they tolerate for being a "nerd" (apparently, being a nerd isn't cool enough) or they could have family issues which others don't know about, or anything really.

Though, teenage is not just about the cons, there are pros too, like, our parents or adults don't treat us like delinquent anymore, we are not just foolish children. Our opinions matter, they are taken into consideration and not just brushed away which is nice because one should always have a strong opinion and be confident about it. Teenage is also the age when we are called in on conversations or debates and our allowed to express our thoughts.

Then there is the whole "fitting in" thing (definitely not a pro). Every teenager needs to be "cool" to be able to blend in. The being 'cool enough' thing I mentioned above? That's more difficult than JEE exams, no exaggeration. You aren't cool enough if your clothes are not upto date. You aren't cool enough if you don't wander on Activas in the evening. You aren't cool enough if you don't own a cell phone. You aren't cool enough if you are not active on social media apps. I mean, it's downright frustrating sometimes! How can someone be defined as "uncool" if they aren't doing something that majority of their peers is doing? Why can't people be "cool" if they are interested in studying and reading? Why can they be "cool" only if they party most of the evenings? Why is there a standard which is to be achieved to be "cool"? The thing is, us teenagers are treated like children, but we are expected to act like an adult which is so messed up.

Anyway (yes, this is also a teenager thing, a short attention span and can't-stay-on-the-same-subject-for-long), was that enough insight to understand a teenager? No, it wasn't. We are much more complicated than your hardest level sudoku. But no worries, you can figure out an adolescent (huh, fancy term) if you TRY to figure us out instead of expecting us to open up and vomit all of our feelings out.

Guess I have said enough. I bid your farewell, then. Adios.

(I didn't add swear words and *whispers* sex education stuff because I need to submit this article in my school. I just needed to share it with you guys! I hope you like it! And please please tell me if there are any mistakes or stuff! Love you all!)