One thing I was on the lookout for when writing Generation Z: their voices, their lives was the much-talked-about “mental health crisis” ravaging the young. Having interviewed about 2,000 teenagers for the book, I’ve continued looking out for the phenomenon while researching my next book and planning my radio show for teenagers. But here’s the thing: I don’t think there is anything like the crisis we are constantly told about.

For sure, lots of young people are suffering with mental health problems to greatly varying degrees, but there always have been. To read all the current newspaper stories - particularly if you don’t have that much experience with teenagers - would be to anticipate that teenagers are all self-harming, hyperventilating, panicked wrecks. But that simply isn’t the case.

If you go to any secondary school, youth club, skate park, shopping centre or place of worship, what you actually find are lots of healthy, fairly well-adjusted, fairly resilient teenagers who all have up and down days (because they are teenagers), but are mostly doing fine. Moreover, there is much evidence to suggest that, in terms of mental health, this generation is actually in pretty good nick - and could be doing even better if people stopped telling them that they were in this nebulous state of crisis.

This is a generation that has grown up with the language of psychotherapy, the knowledge of what mental health is and the absence of stigma about talking about what is going on inside your head. They are very good at diagnosing their own problems and recognising problems in each other.

A teenager who is struggling with, say, eating issues, depression, identity issues or self-harm is far less likely to suffer in isolation or silence than previous generations of teenagers; there is now recognition that these are real problems, as well as an understanding of how to deal with them.

Growing self-awareness

As 15-year-old Terry, who attends a private boarding school, comments: “I was having issues about my sexuality and, as a result, I stopped eating and was self-harming a bit. My friends and teachers noticed practically before I did and got me counselling straight away, which really helped.

“My circle of friends always tell each other when we are feeling a bit off or really shitty, so you never feel alone.”

Interestingly, this generation’s awareness of the importance of looking after what is going on inside their heads has contributed to a significant shift in the attitude to getting off their heads. The consumption of alcohol and recreational drugs among the young is at a 30-year low and only 5 per cent of teenagers smoke (compared with 43 per cent in 2003).

Young people have sought chemically altered states for decades because of peer pressure, for fun, for a loss of inhibitions and, perhaps most of all, for escapism. Being drunk, stoned or high gives you a break from your head and the problems therein. Such desire has significantly diminished among this generation of teenagers; this speaks loudly of a respect for their bodies and minds, and a desire to be in control of what happens to them, both mentally and physically; all are signifiers of a healthy, savvy generation.

The problem is this blanket term ‘crisis’ for anything related to mental health

As 16-year-old Anne-Marie, who attends a state school, says: “I hate being drunk, I’ve never taken drugs and very, very few of my friends do either. It’s a bit rank to be falling down drunk or wasted on drugs. Only one of our friends does, but she has a lot of issues anyway, but the trouble is, alcohol and drugs just make her worse.

“We’ve all talked to her about it and are going to support her quitting.”

When you talk to teenagers, it is impressive how fluent they are in the language of mental health - and also recognising the symptoms. Anyone who has been involved in the educating of young people on mental health issues, whether they are parents, teachers, counsellors, advisers or experts, should be applauded for this - it’s saving lives, souls and minds.

The problem now is this blanket term “crisis” for anything related to mental health - it confuses the issue. Genuine crisis needs to be identified and dealt with swiftly, and in many cases the mental health services for the young can be woefully inadequate - a fact that this government needs to deal with urgently.

‘Mum’s worry made it worse’

Serious mental issues are not the same as feeling sad, low or confused. That’s just part of being a teenager. Young people are now so hyperaware of this supposed mental health crisis, that there is a real danger that every time they hit a natural and inevitable bump in the teenage road, they go into crisis mode and assume that things are much worse than they actually are - mainly because that’s the message they are constantly being given.

We all know that being a teenager can suck - it is often messy, painful and complex (often all at the same time). But it’s also a hugely formative and instructive period during which you learn how to deal with pain, conflict and various challenges.

The vast majority of today’s teenagers will go on to be healthy, well-rounded and well-adjusted adults who will wear the odd mental scar of their teenage years like a badge of pride - just like most of us do.

We cannot and should not crisis-manage the mental lives of our kids to the point where they become ill-equipped at dealing with problems. It is doing them a massive disservice and robbing them of the foundations they need to become healthy adults.

Jake, 15, who attends a grammar school, agrees: “My mum worries about me so much, she panics at everything, which can make me panic. I had to sit some really tough entrance exams last year and it felt like I was going to war. She revised with me until midnight, asked if I wanted a counsellor and kept trying to get me to meditate with her. I love her, but her worry made me so much more stressed and worried than I needed to be.”

Awareness of mental health is a brilliant thing and increased support for young people struggling with mental health is a must - but I think we have to be careful about the casual use of the word “crisis” when referring to young people and their minds. The majority of young people are strong and are coping well in a challenging world. Let’s not convince them otherwise.

Chloe Combi is a former English teacher and author of Generation Z: their voices, their lives, published by Random House. Her second book will be published next year. She tweets @WriteClubUK