One would think that the majority of teens have good mental health and are looking forward to their futures, but recent studies have shown that the number of teens reporting poor mental health is increasing. Many people believe that mental health is just about whether or not a person is happy or sad, but it is far more complicated than that. Although mental health relates to your emotions, it involves a whole lot more. For example, mental health encompasses psychological and social well-being. It influences cognition, perception, and behavior, and determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental health can impact many areas of a teen’s life. Teens with poor mental health may struggle with school and grades, decision-making, and physical health. Finding solutions to help teens with their mental health is a major issue that needs to be solved. Mental health problems in teens often go hand-in-hand with other health and behavioral risks like the increased risk of drug use, experiencing violence, and having a higher risk for sexual behaviors. Since many health behaviors and habits are established during adolescence, those habits are likely to carry over into our adult years. So our society needs to help teens develop good mental health early in their youth.