09/15/2021 - idk
how much yall get paid dealing w annoying people all day??
FROM TESSA
Hello, thank you for reaching out! As a volunteer TeenTalk, I do not get payed. I really enjoy talking to people, and being a friend to people who want to reach out :) I do not find anyone annoying who talks to us! I am so glad to be able to connect with youth in the community, and it is something I enjoy doing so I do not need to get payed. This can be a common misconception, but volunteers do not get payed. -Tessa FROM LESLIE
hi! we actually don’t get paid, it’s all volunteer work :) but the people aren’t annoying at all! we get a bunch of different types of calls and messages and some of them are just fun/chill convos that genuinely make my day better haha, but even with the serious ones it’s really rewarding to be there for someone so we choose to volunteer here even though we don’t get paid. feel free to reach out sometime! i promise we won’t think you’re annoying :) - Leslie 06/07/2021 - ive been angry
hi, my name is ***** i'm *****. i recently went through a nicotine faze where my parents caught me on numerous occasions smoking and vaping. i was going through a hard time feeling like my parents didnt treat me like a person amongst my 4 siblings, when i got all of my things taken away i took my sadness and turned it into anger and the longer i went keeping it all inside the more angrier i got, now i resort to anger when im in a bad mood or im upset, i cant stop lashing out and my family constantly tells me its an attitude, when i try to talk to them they brush me off and say im being selfish, im ***** whats ur name?
*****Some identifying information was removed from this message for this person’s privacy FROM JOSEPH
Hi. Thanks for reaching out. It sounds like you’ve been going through a lot and I have to say how incredibly impressed and proud I am of you for being aware of your feelings and where they’re coming from. It also sounds like your nicotine faze is over and I want you to know that I am also super super proud of you for quitting. That isn’t easy and you should know how great it is that you quit! I know what it’s like having a lot of siblings so it must be really hard when you feel like you’re being treated differently from them. Between that and having all your things taken away, it makes sense why you were sad and then turned that sadness into anger. I’m sad to hear that your family doesn’t see it the way you do because it sounds like you’re trying your best and really just want to be heard. After all, I think that’s what we all want … to be heard. Sometimes when we’re hurt and are having a hard time expressing it, it can be helpful to turn that energy into something positive? What do you do to cope? Do you write, paint, draw, create music, or do something else? If not, do you have someone you’re able to talk to about what’s going on, like someone at school (assuming you’re able to go to in-person school), a coach, a family friend, an aunt or uncle, a therapist or someone else? It’s hard to keep our feelings bottled in and maybe they can be a good person to help your parents understand what you’re going through. If you don’t have any of those people—and even if you do—know that we are here for you, that we will listen, and that we believe in you. We got your back. 😊 I’m going to ask my amazing friends who volunteer on Tuesdays to also respond because they are so smart and so kind and you deserve to hear some other perspectives and know that even more people are on your team! 😊 If you don’t see their messages with this one, check back tomorrow. 😊 Joseph FROM VANESSA
Hi! My name is vanessa :] thank you for reaching out and letting us know what you’re going through i really appreciate that but yeah I get you sometimes when you make mistakes people will use that as kinda your “defining factor” but its hard to not get angry with people if they dont give you a chance to defend yourself i totally get that. I understand how you could get even more frustrated when you do try to defend yourself and no one listens but there's always ways we can try and help! Maybe if you try taking out your anger on objects like pillows or stuffed animals it would help you get rid of that anger and it might help you not lash out or even just trying to talk with yourself whilst its happening to calm down might help. Sometimes bottling things up can end in us lashing out because we feel helpless and have no one else to rely on but maybe finding a way to destress might help you get rid of some of those fillings before they overflow your bottle :] again thank you for reaching out im really proud of you FROM ASHLEY
Hi! I’m really glad you reached out! It sounds like you’re going through a lot right now. I wish that your family were better at listening to you. I would be angry too if that happened to me. Anger can be a lot easier to cope with than sadness sometimes. As for the nicotine use, I hope you can reach a healthier coping mechanism. What do you think some good options for that would be? -Ashley |