I am a teenage girl. I am baptized, but I struggle with masturbation. I feel guilty and I imagine things in my mind, and I am very bad at academics. I feel as a failure both spiritually and worldly. I am lonely and I need help.
- First, thank you so much for reaching out to TeenCentral! You seem to be struggling with some intense feelings of guilt and loneliness. Just know you are always welcome here at TeenCentral—our goal is to lend an ear and provide tools that hopefully improve your situation.
- Just know if you’re ever feeling unsafe with yourself or like there’s no one to talk to about how you feel, please reach out to the Suicide Prevention Lifeline. They are available 24 hours a day. In order to reach the National Suicide Hotline you DIAL or TEXT 988 or CHAT at 988lifeline.org.
THINGS YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
- You seem to have a strong desire to connect with people and form positive relationships. If you haven’t tried joining a club at school, or picking up a new hobby, those are great ways to meet new people with similar interests and form friendships!
- WRITING/JOURNALING—Many of the emotions you’re dealing with are things a lot of adolescents experience. If talking about these emotions with close friends or family isn’t something you’re comfortable with, we encourage you to write down how you feel or what you’re thinking. Journaling can help organize our hectic and potentially negative thoughts. This can give us more ability to work through these feelings as we make sense of them. Writing in a creative way or looking for other fun, artistic outlets can also help improve your mind and spiritual health!
- Looking after our mental health and self-esteem are so vitally important for feeling our best. There are excellent ways to improve your mental health using some tools on our site. The Daily Positive Reminder as well as the Self Positive Talk are both great places to start shaping your thoughts into a more positive space. You are worth it, you matter, and you are undeserving of guilt and defeating thoughts.
- To help with your academics, you should try asking the teachers in your problem subjects for some extra guidance. Or you could ask a peer that does well in that class if they wouldn’t mind helping you out. This is also potentially a great way to strengthen your social circle and make a new friend!
Thank you again for reaching out to TeenCentral! Best of luck to you and feel free to write again.
