Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Everyone goes through life with some degree of hardship, especially teenagers because the mistakes they make affect their physiological and social lives.
As I am preparing for an exam that concentrates on teenage problems in regard to alcohol and drugs and the excessive use of tobacco, I cannot help but notice that there is a recurrent connection between all three issues: the influence of peer pressure.
I myself have witnessed the effects of peer pressure. It is really hard to 'fit in' with friends and in groups, both at school and outside, when smoking and drinking is all a particular group does during social occasions.
What strikes me, that many adults tend to forget, is the amount of temptation a teenage boy or girl is subjected to as he or she stands in a circle of friends who all seem to be smoking or drinking; at the time it does seem harmless.
What I mean to say is that even though we are educated and taught from a very young age that certain things all come in their right time, be it smoking or drinking, it is hard to remember this while your are surrounded by alcohol and nicotine cancer sticks.
We all make mistakes in our lives and the presence of peer pressure does not help in certain situations. William Shakespeare once said: "'Tis one thing to be tempted, another thing to fall."
Therefore my message for you this week is to think twice when in stressful peer-pressure situations.
One does not need to join in with bad habits in order to make friends. On the contrary, friends will appreciate you more for who you are and the uniqueness that makes you who you are if you do what feels right for you.
