Dear teenager,

Let’s talk about Obstacles. As youth we are easily perceptible to face more adversity and endure more obstacles than the average person. I know in today’s day and age it’s easy to face obstacles in regards to body image, social anxiety, and social media influence. We live in a society that’s heavily influenced by social media and we allow it to dictate many large parts of our lives. But we need to learn how to distance ourselves from such a heavy influence that social media has on us. Don’t get me wrong, I love social media as much as the next person. But I can’t let it dictate what I look like, or how I look at myself. For a while I did allow social media to do that, I allowed it to dictate what I should do, how I should act, or even the people I associate with. But I had to stop because I started to see it negatively affecting my personal identity. We can’t allow the obstacle of social media to dictate who we are, but it starts with the action we take to acknowledge how it is changing us.

• Mya Gutierrez – SYC Peer Mentor Intern