A Child of the 80's

Being a teenager in the 80's had it's similarities to teens today. Teens experiemented with sex and drugs. Drama was a daily occurance - "I think I'm in love with him. He likes who? Will you talk to him? She's trying to go out with myboyfriend? Who does she think she is?" Talking on the phone was a right of passage for a teenage girl. But the phone was the family phone in the kitchen and privacy was non-existant unless you were one of the lucky girls who got their own phone in their room. Teens then also wanted to fit in and be part of a crowd.

Today's teens, however, face these same circumstances just much more intensely. Today many teens are desensitized to sex, drugs and violence thanks to the media. Almost every show on prime time today would be shows on at 10pm in the 80's - even shows like Scrubs or 2 1/2 Men. Teens take drugs and drama to an extreme - drugs aren't just cocaine and marijuana. They are sniffing sharpie pens and concoting cough syrup cocktails to get high. Drama is much more immediate as it unfolds across an instant broadcast text message to everyone in their cell phone address book. But I think one of the biggest differences is the drive for material things teens today desire. They want the latest and greatest of everything and feel like they don't fit in with their crowd if they don't have it.

Teens may have changed, but parenting has changed as well. I don't parent the same way my parents did. My parents didn't have immediate access to the interent every time a child development issue arose like I do. I have the benefit of posting to an online forum and reading comments from other parents on how they solved their potty traning issues. I like to think that I parent a little more wisely thanks to today's technology.

A societal trend that could negatively impact child development in the future is one of the diagnosis of behavior and learning disorders. These are diagnosed at a much higher rate with children today. And more children today are medicated for them. We don't know how or if the medications that children and teens today are taking will have long term effects on them or their future children. As these kids become parents, how will the medications they took in their teens affect the children the produce? Will there be long lasting side effects that impact their children? It will be interesting to watch this unfold.