Ask virtually any group of adults about common teenager problems, and the chances are good that the list will come back with the standard litany: how to get your teen to clean their room, be more responsible, handling the rebellious, defiant, out of control behavior, aggressiveness, and more. Unfortunately, not much is said about problems from the teenager’s perspective.

Looked at from a teenager’s perspective, problems abound. You can help teens with relationships, help your teen lose weight, get better grades in school, and more. Here is a guide to six common problems teenagers face and the solutions to each.

Body Issues. Teenage bodies are rife with issues as they adjust to new shapes and sizes. What was once a cherubic child has morphed into a kid who is all at once, gangly, gawky, hairy, zitty, and uncoordinated.

Fixing this problem is a matter of making teenagers aware that many of the body problems they face can be fixed with diet and exercise and an acceptance of who they are.

Need for Acceptance and Community Involvement. The world can be a big and scary place. This is especially true for a teenager who is still trying to determine their place in it.

Teenagers who feel they don’t belong can end up having their whole lives being affected. Teens should be given guidance to find groups who provide them with love and acceptance for who they are.

Managing Time. Teenagers today are under constant stress from numerous external sources. These include school demands, social pressures, media, and much more.

Teenagers need to be made aware that doing everything simply isn’t possible. Further, they probably need help prioritizing the things they want to do. This provides the added benefit of eliminating things that might be bad influences.

Appropriate Heroes. It’s often the biggest bullies, most spoiled brats, music icons, and sports celebrities who become a teen’s heroes. Unfortunately, many of these are inappropriate for a variety of reasons.

Teenagers need to be familiar with heroes of more character-building pursuits.

Drugs and Alcohol. More than a third of American teenagers report using alcohol in any given month. Further, more than 40 percent of American youth have reported using some sort of illicit drug in the past year.

Drugs and alcohol can severely damage a teenager’s brain. It’s essential for parents to make their teenagers aware of the dangers of drugs and alcohol and to find out what is happening in their children’s lives that might affect the chances that they will become involved in the use of these substances.

Screen Time. As beneficial as screen time can be, too much and that which is unhealthy by its content needs to be limited. Going online can expose teenagers to violence, porn, mean people, and harmful images.

As beneficial as technology can be, there is no way to protect a teen entirely from online influences. Parents must be aware of what their teenagers are doing online and how to interact safely with the internet. If nothing else, teach them to read more.

Teenagers today often find themselves living on a very superficial level. They find themselves on the edge of their society with virtually no acceptance and very little positive affirmation. With no place left to turn, they turn to negative influences on the internet, television, and elsewhere.

Parents can make up for this by teaching by example and living for personal excellence. This will teach a teenager more than anything for a lifetime.