The emotional struggle experienced from middle school through high school is partly biochemical. Our bodies change very quickly during these years. For some it is a more rapid change than others. We are also caught between two distinct stages of our lives: childhood and adulthood.
We are no longer children and we are not adults. We are dependant and we want to be independent. At times it is expected we be more independent and we want to be less responsible. Often how we want to be in not how the adults in our lives want us to be.
When I attended my 50th high school reunion, I had an experience that opened my eyes. A man with a microphone approached me and four other women who were standing nearby. He asked if the five of us would answer a question. A photographer videotaped as we spoke. The man asked, “How did you feel when you were in high school?” I was the first to respond. I said, “Sad and inadequate.” The other women said, “Ditto.”
I had not been alone in high school though, at the time, I thought I was.