By Sadie York
The term “crashing out” is used recurrently to put a name on that inexplicable, overwhelming sensation of despair and frustration. However, the normalization of this phrase often overlooks the genuine decline in teenager’s mental health these days, and utilizes the facade of a “crash out” to conceal how self-destructive these feelings actually are. In pop culture, to “crash out mentally” refers to feeling overwhelmed and responding impulsively or irrationally, often in a harmful way, due to intense emotions. The normalization of “crash outs” in teenagers’ lives conceal the fact that humans were never wired to be in these exasperating mental states, to the point of an “exhaustion overload.” In this age, students pile up their plates with extracurriculars, jobs, advanced classes, sports, etc. which in retrospect, is far too great for humans to manage—both mentally and physically—prior to adulthood, in a healthy manner. The decline in teenagers’ mental health over generations is clear, in fact, as of 2024, it’s been proven 50% of all lifetime mental illnesses begin at 14, and a whopping 42% of teens have experiences persisting feelings of hopelessness or sadness. Due to the high stressors of these environments, teens thus resort to unhealthy coping mechanisms—substance abuse, self harm, eating disorders, etc.— which keeps them trapped in an even unhealthier cycle, proving much more difficult to escape from once they become reliant on those coping mechanisms. “Crash outs” look different for everyone, but they all signify the same message: the mind is overloaded, and the situation has become far too drastic to keep contained. While the juggling of multiple stressors may seem manageable for many teenagers, the tension of the situation begins to eat away at both your mental and physical health. Feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, and distraught most commonly arise, as your physical body begins to wear down from the stress. Signs of this are most commonly seen with lack of sleep, frequent headaches, stomach aches, and generally higher susceptibility to illness.
For the well being of your minds and bodies, to avoid a daily, weekly, or monthly “crash out”, maintain balance in your lives! While it may feel like you carry the weight of the world on your shoulders, find time to breathe, let loose, and cope with your stress in healthy ways. This can include napping, journaling, hiking/walking, drawing, watching television, etc. Let’s denormalize “crashing out” and strive for keeping our minds at ease.