[ichigo]

Mar 19, 2007
Parents, beware the emo kids

In following angsty fad, teens cut themselves and write about suicide
By Sandra Davie, Education Correspondent, The Straits Times Interactive

IF YOU have teenage kids and have not heard of the latest teen fad 'emo', it is time you looked it up.

Shops catering to teens say this angst-filled youth sub-culture, called emo, short for 'emotional', has been gathering a following here.

It has also left youth counsellors worried if the fad is behind the increasing incidence of teenagers cutting their wrists.

Emo fashion is characterised by teens wearing dark T-shirts, a little undersized or deliberately worn down to look old.

Their choice of sneakers is Converse canvas shoes. Look closer and these might have words like 'pain' scribbled in red ink or a drawing of a broken heart.

But the defining trademark for emo kids has to be the heavily lined eyes and long fringed hair which covers half their face.
The point of that, said emo teen Mervyn Lee, 17, a polytechnic student, is because 'we are tortured souls unable to face the world'.
Another tell-tale sign - they listen to angst-filled music from bands like Hawthorne Heights, Aiden, The Used, My Chemical Romance and Fall Out Boy, which performed here earlier this month.

Youth counsellors interviewed say they are worried that the fad, carried to extremes, can lead to self-mutilation or even suicidal thoughts.

As it is, some emo teens have penned poems about suicide and death and slashing their wrists to 'ease their pain'.
The trend may be behind the increased incidence of teenagers injuring themselves.

There have been no studies done on how prevalent self-injury is, but five youth counsellors interviewed said they have seen an alarming increase in their young charges cutting themselves.

Anecdotally, it seems more common among girls, and they are getting younger.

Just last month, The Straits Times reported that a group of 12-year-olds in an all-girls primary school made a collective pact and slashed their arms with penknives. The incident came to light after teachers discovered the scars the next morning. The girls were counselled and are being monitored.

Said Dr Carol Balhetchet, Singapore Children's Society director of youth services: 'It is okay for kids to follow a fashion. That is very normal. What is worrying is if they start blindly following the other things like cutting themselves and writing poems glorifying their suicide attempts.'

Eight of 12 teens The Straits Times spoke to, who follow emo fashion, admitted as much.

One, an 18-year-old girl from a junior college, said she started cutting herself out of curiosity after listening to songs by an emo rock band.

She said she now does it weekly, but hides the scars from her doctor father and accountant mum.

Another emo teen, an 18-year-old polytechnic boy, said it is part of the fashion.
'It's a form of expression, just like the poems I write. I will go mad if I can't, don't have these forms of release,' he said.

What is surprising is that most of these angst-filled teens come from stable homes, where their parents are professionals.

When pressed, they admitted there were no issues that were really depressing.

Parents seem clueless. One, Mrs Daisy Lim, 48, a businesswoman, said she had heard her daughter using the word 'emo' but never realised it was a teen fad.

Her 16-year-old daughter wears under-sized, worn-out tees over tight black jeans. On weekends, the Secondary 4 girl also wears two lip rings and six earrings on one ear alone.

Mrs Lim recently discovered that her daughter cuts her wrists with a razor. She is trying to get her to seek help.
But counsellors say parents should not overreact.

Said Dr Balhetchet: 'They should talk to the kids to find out the extent of it.
'If the child has taken the fad to the extent of harming himself, they should not panic and scream at the child. They should be open to listening him out.

'Then they will find it easier to persuade him to seek counselling help.'

This article was published in the straits times. a little long ago, yes i know, but just wanted to know what you guys think. personally i feel that the author has grossly misinterpreted the definition of emo... it's not a fad and not every emo slits their wrist.

what do you think?

[RED.ADEN]

emo doesnt means that u have to cut urself.
emo comes from the word emotional.
emos dun always cut themself.
those who cut themself, some are for trend, some are for fun, challenging.
it doesnt means emo..
no link.

[illusionx]

i actually don't really get the word "emo" myself. haha

emotional it mean? not really sure, why?

[silencedreamer]

this article might have been over-generalising this "emo" thing, but we can't ignore the fact tt ppl are using this "emo" thing and making it into a trend. there're many students out there who cut themselves, with or without "emo" fad. i guess wad we need to be aware of is tt there're still ppl who can't find other ways to express themselves or relieve their stress, n they're choosing self-mutilation as a way.

if u've met frens who have done this, or are prone to do this, perhaps its best to offer them more companionship n help.

[finaldust]

I think this one quite common bah just dont know why kids nowsday getting like that lor always do weird things sia cut themself for wat -.-

wan solve problem just say out instead of keeping themself ma wonder a bit small problem wan to cut themself if big problem i think go sucide liao -.-

erm i think they refer to emo kids that cut their wrist de bah? lol think there is no specify defination for emo bah so everyone got different view on it bah?

[Ican]

Its not what it means, its how the general people perceive it. You can defend its meaning till the cow comes home but its a fact that 'emo' is associated with suicidal thoughts and cutting one self.

For example, the word 'sex'. Do you know its actually an emotion? And if used probably , this emotion is one powerful emotion? However, most people in general perceive sex as lust.

I guess irregardless of its meaning, its no longer important, what is important is what kids associate it with.

Another example is Rap. Its actually an art form....but many associate with blacks, vulgarities and hoods. So ya, some how or rather, we ought to be aware of it. :biggrin4:

[Shyraiiyann]

Emo fashion is characterised by teens wearing dark T-shirts, a little undersized or deliberately worn down to look old.

Their choice of sneakers is Converse canvas shoes.

wears under-sized, worn-out tees over tight black jeans.

i wear that sometimes,
get pretty emotional at times,
BUT WHO SAY EMO MUST CUT WRIST?
siao bo,
now the fashion IN ma, so everyone wear that lor. and i think its crap that they say worn out tees, more like branded clothes lor. who will wear worn out tees nia.

[Fool]

those youths that slit their wrists in the pursuit of 'fashion'... they will regret it when they grow older. sometimes its okay to follow trends, but not when there are such dire consequences to it.

[davidang]

Thanks for sharing!

[burgerboi]

emo...
is this how we really generalise emo?
cutting ourselves, writing about our own deaths
those are emo?

i dun think so... hm...
people can be emo, but dun do silly things, dun show anyone, dun say anything
they will just submerge themselve into depression

this article, thou interesting, and true to a certain point, i still find that it categorize the word "emo" abit too much

just my thought that's worth a penny =)

[tear]

yeah...i think so too...i think everyone are emo..but just whether they would show 2 others...and how would they show...mayb cutting themselves is just a methos that they feel will make them feel better?

[restless]

i think emo fashion looks cool. but the actions that real emos take is crazy. from what i understand, real emos do self-mutilations and all kinds of stuffs a person diagnosed with depression will do.

those who dont are normal people who are simply following the fashion trend or posers.

i find the culture of emo very funny, if there's nothing to be depressed about, why find things and make them look as if its end of the world? then again, its because we dont understand them that they choose this path..:speechless:

[Louis EX]

Being a metalcore person. I'm anti-emo in my school along with alot of my friends.

So the trend now is anti-emo.

[dandan.]

the cut wrist trend i quite long ago eh . ?

[Louis EX]

yeah it is, now its ANTI-EMO!!!! ;D

[Kaoru]

so stupid
why cutting waist and suiciding has to do with emo.
emo doesn't mean had to hurt oneself
hurting oneself mean they want to die , no longer emo, have gone pass that level .
LOL