Where have all the teenagers gone?

[Aridane]

Since lockdown, I have been out daily for exercise (and food shopping), taking different routes for variety.

And during this time, I have not spotted a single teenager.

Where have they all gone?!? It’s like a plague has wiped them out.

Pre lockdown - even in school holidays - there were plenty of teenagers around (you couldn’t miss them).

Are they now indoors, online? (I know my nephew was).

Is this dearth of teenagers unique to my area (south east London)?

Other age groups are reasonably well represented

They are all living their nocturnal best lives.

Mine has also become noctournal, and won't stop eating. I'm expecting him to emerge at the end of all this like a beautiful butterfly.

Yep mine too are nocturnal now

They are in the fields and by the canal near me...all of them. Every single one

They are all living their nocturnal best lives.

The truest thing ever said.

The times I've argued with DS that he's not staying awake all night gaming and sleeping all day.

Now it's yeah #live your best life 😂

On their bikes and skateboards around here but not in big groups. I’ve seen a few on runs too.

Most of them seem to be in my house.
(Not visiting - they are all related to me and have been here for about 8 weeks).

On the xbox

Yes. As others have said. Sleeping, eating and gaming in the house. One of mine has gone out now to meet a friend but this is rare! He is, as ClassicCola brilliantly put it, living his best nocturnal life!! 🤣🤣

I think they naturally prefer groups too - the only see one person thing is a bit unnatural - even now I hardly see any

Not many in evidence here in fairly rural Essex. Something has swallowed them up.

I find it a bit worrying, but then we did have a Fortnite Summer when a lot of children were consumed by screens.

I see an occasional pair or trio of vitamin D deprived 16-18 or so old males occasionally.

I hope they are OK. From friends and relatives there seems to be a hikikomori-isation going on with many teenagers.

Thank god. Thought it was just mine being a nocturnal eating machine. I’m forcing him to take vitamin D tablets now. I’ve tried to get him out of the house but it’s been a firm
No.

Lol. I suspect they are all in the woods here. Doing what teenagers do. It might not involve being 2 metres apart!

Some of them have been hanging about near our Sainsbury’s in their souped up cars of an evening. Perhaps they go in for their ‘breakfast’ pringles and crap etc there at 6pm, have a chat in the car park, rev off, and return home to their gaming until the middle of the night.

It will be a bugger of a job to get them back to being in school at 9am, they’ll only have had about four hours sleep until their body clock adjusts and they get to bed at a normal hour!

In my house they can be found in the bedroom or stood by the fridge. Sometimes hard to spot under massive hair. You will know they have been active by the lack of snacks left in the pantry & the huge amount of your favourite shampoo/shower gel thats missing. Approach with caution bark is worse than bite.

The socialising is for many through gaming. Ds and his friends never shut up constantly laughing and shouting at each other - the gaming is just part of it

He is very happy. I told him he could meet one friend he didn’t show much enthusiasm as chats with him for hours a day

Nocturnal here also.

I’m not happy about it but there are no GCSE’s, no prom, no seeing friends. They are all finding their own ways to cope with all this I suppose.

Are any of you worried that your teenager may never want to actually meet another teenager again, you know, in real life?? My 16yr old games with one actual real friend, or with randoms online (Warhammer, its harmless but still). Before lockdown he'd go out mountain biking with a group of lads, now he has no interest whatsoever. I mentioned he could meet one friend for a bike ride but he wasn't keen. I'm worried he's turning into a recluse

Ever so slightly horse. In the olden days if I wanted to tempt him out of the house I could tempt him with a pizza express but I don’t even have that in my arsenal anymore.

My NT one is nocturnal, living her perfect timetable.

ASD one is running to normal timetable and yesterday declared he wanted to live to 158 as life is magnificent, very happy in lockdown.

Wobbling along the cycle path on their parents bikes looking unfit in groups of about 6 round here.

Karon its a worry. I'm really hoping he can go to College in September and, you know, socialise...

Are any of you worried that your teenager may never want to actually meet another teenager again, you know, in real life?

Mine was pretty close to that pre lockdown! I would ask if he fancied going out and seeing some friends and he would say he’d just seen them in his room. On his phone or tablet. weird creatures.

I saw some of them doing a drug deal outside my house about 2 hours ago. So they're all into drugs, if you see them out and about in foot or bikes then they're dealing, if inside then consumers. I'm assuming on downers rather than uppers

I saw some of them doing a drug deal outside my house about 2 hours ago. So they're all into drugs, if you see them out and about in foot or bikes then they're dealing, if inside then consumers. I'm assuming on downers rather than uppers

Are you implying all teenagers are either dealers or take drugs?