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Pressures we don’t talk about: how high school effects teenage years

By: Mariella Spina, Editor • January 8, 2026

A group of freshmen pose together during a football game in 2022. This is before the group eventually split up.

Teenagers are told that supposedly high school is the “best years of their life.” While that could be seemingly true for some, others can see high school as a period of pressure, comparison, and doubt. Finishing each day feels like an achievement, and then the cycle starts over the next morning. With the new year ringing in, let’s take a dive into teen peer pressure, mental health, social cliques, and identity.

The pressure we don’t talk about: how high school effects teenage years

Peer Pressure

When entering high school, teenagers start to feel a need to belong. They see how upperclassmen act, and they want to mirror those behaviors themselves. For students who have an older sibling, they already have an “in” when it comes to fitting in with their peers.

Most of the time, students are pressured into things that they know they shouldn’t be doing, but comply to regardless. For example, vaping in the United States has been at an all time high the past couple of years. In 2020, around 15% of high school students were reported to vape around the country. Since then, the number has almost doubled to 29%.

Underage drinking is also a factor in peer pressure around the United States. While underage drinking has been a trend for multiple years, it is a huge factor in students becoming alcoholics once they become older. Teens who start to drink before the age of 15 are 4x - 6x more likely to develop drinking problems. Underage drinking can also lead to bad grades, mental health issues such as depression, and injury.

Yet, these dangerous habits all tailor around fitting in. Teenagers will always find a party to go to, where they see drinking and want to do the same as their peers.

Mental Health

When you’re in high school, it starts to become overwhelming. Work adds up very quickly, fitting in with peers takes up space in your brain, and bullying haunts those who are targeted everyday.

Schools always say they are looking out for their students when it comes to how they feel and their emotions. As I’ve been at Colonia High School, we’ve gone to doing a mental health check in every other week to not doing one at all. While some schools in some states do offer mental health days, New Jersey is not one of them.

Marisela Cardona, a former student at Colonia High School, believes the school can do a better job with handling mental health after a previous altercation she has had. "I think Colonia High Schools does the bare minimum. This is in the sense of attempting mental health outlets but nothing further. They push the concept of mental health services but if aren't one of their favorite students, they dismiss you to a mental hospital and leave it. No follow ups, nothing. Only the teachers that actually care check in. Otherwise it's radio silence."

In 2023, 42% of high school students have reported sadness or hopelessness which, in other words, is depression. In the past 10 years, there has also been a 35% increase in diagnosed mental health conditions.

It’s not easy to work when you’re so worried about getting a nasty text from someone harassing you or worrying if your friends are still mad at something you didn’t do. It’s even worse when teachers decide that these aren’t valid excuses on why a student didn’t finish their work. With these complications, along with social media on the rise, how are most students expected to get good grades and balance good mental health?

Social Cliques

The movies don’t always seem to lie. Many groups of friends seem to veer off and form due to their interests and how similar these teenagers are to another. For example, a group of girls who are seen as “fast” are always seen with the particular group of guys who play sports. Teenagers who are interested in the arts are always labeled as “band kids” or “theater kids.”

Then there are the group of kids who feel like they don’t fit in, and sometimes go unnoticed. These students take note to their position and where there peers see them, and they try to change themselves completely due to that.

The more teenagers feel that they fit in, the more accomplished they see themselves as. But, if you’re only changing yourself to feel a sense of belonging with certain people, do they really care for who you are now or the person you used to be?

I’ve previously changed myself to fit in with a group of friends who were the worst influence on me. They changed who I am, what I do, and it started to show. Other friends I had didn’t want to be around me, I was at an all time low mentally, and there was always drama. When you have friends, there should never be so much drama where it feels never ending. They weren’t real friends, and unfortunately I had to learn the hard way.

Identity

Identity can go along hand and hand with social cliques. Who you are with can shape your identity. But, your hormones change and puberty hits at that weird stage in middle school where you don’t know anything about yourself anymore.

Teenagers start to notice each other in a different light. Who you’re attracted to, who you’re not. It starts to get confusing. Your beliefs start to change, what seems right and what seems wrong. Your personality can also take a turn, for what you deem better or worse.

Rudra Shah, a senior at Colonia High School believes his identity has changed. "My identity has changed for the better over the years. I've progressed and learned from my mistakes which has ensured my greatness."

Over the course of jump a few months, even a year, you are told that you are supposed to know who you are. Teenagers can struggle with this, whether its gender, sexual, or socially.

With these issues, professionals need to wake up and see what’s wrong. As of 2025, teen suicide is the second leading cause of death for those aged between 10-14. With that, it’s also the third leading cause of death for those between 15-19.

“I believe high school was stressful for me because of grades and fitting in.” Avery Evangelista, a high school senior states, “But I believe with the right people around me, I was able to overcome those issues and I am excited for the next part of my life.”

While teenagers like Avery had people to fall back on, others don’t have the same support system. Those who don’t have one often face anxiety, loneliness, and low mental health. These also have a negative impact on the “high school experience”.

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Others also fall into the trap of social media, where social standards influence them to change their identity. These can include constant comparison, unrealistic beauty standards, body image, eating disorders, and spewing hate speech to others. About 47% of teenagers are addicted to social media, and they feed these different standards into the algorithms each day.

With that in mind, teenagers should focus on the things that make them happy. Stop worrying about peer pressure or what clique they fall under. Accept who you are and appreciate who likes the real you. Stop worrying about what others think, and do what makes you happy.

About the Contributor

Mariella Spina, Editor

Mariella Spina is a 18-year-old senior at Colonia High School. She enjoys playing softball, reading, writing, and seeing her friends. She has lived in Woodbridge Township her entire life, previously attending Oak Ridge Heights Elementary School and Colonia Middle School. After graduating, she is playing softball at Kean University, and majoring in communication sciences and disorders. After college, Spina would like to become a speech language pathologist and work in schools to help children with speech disorders. In her free time, she enjoys reading YA books and keeping up with the Yankees. Her favorite artist is Morgan Wallen.

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Pressures we don’t talk about: how high school effects teenage years

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