Peer Pressure
Peer Pressure 
Peer pressure is when you
think you should do something because other people your age say you
should, or because everyone else is doing it too. This could mean
wearing certain clothes, or maybe smoking, skipping school or even
having sex for the first time.
Sometimes people do
things because they want to be liked, or they worry that they’ll
get teased if they don’t follow the crowd. It’s normal to want to
fit in with everyone else, but in the end people will think you’re
a lot cooler if you learn to make your own decisions.
What to look out
for:
- When people try to get
you to do or try something they might say ‘everyone else is doing
it, so why aren’t you?’
- If you don’t want to do
something but you do it anyway, you’ll probably regret it.
- Nobody should be made to
do anything they don’t want to.
Are you feeling peer
pressure?
It’s hard if you’re the
only one saying no to something, but be brave.
If your friends want you
to do something and you’re not sure, ask yourself how you really
feel about it and stick to what you believe.
If you say
no to something, real friends should respect your
decision. If they don’t, maybe you need to find new friends.
It’s better to have a few
friends who want the best for you than lots of friends who try and
make you do things you don’t want to do.
Is a friend of yours feeling peer
pressure?
If your friend doesn’t want
to do something either, back them up by saying no
too.
This can really help them and it’ll make peer
pressure easier to resist.
Help them make their own choices – they will
gain confidence.
Be careful not to put pressure on your
friends.
Contacts:
NHS Website
Like it is Website
Kids Health Website
Keeping Children and Young People safe is everybodies
business.