Let's face it, there's a tonne of pressure on teens - media messages promoting a false sense of perfection, pressure from parents and teachers to study hard, get good jobs, excel in after school activities - and so it's no wonder that this pressure to be the best can lead to feelings of inadequacy and low self esteem.

Ever felt down about the way you look, sporting ability, academic achievements or even how many friends you have on MySpace? Feeling down on yourself about these and a myriad other things is a symptom of low self esteem.

As a teen you've also got all the stuff going on with your bodies as you morph from girl to woman and you're desperately seeking acceptance from your peers. Add it all up and the teen years are fraught with feelings of insecurity. So, what can you do about low self esteem?

• First up, pretty much everyone suffers from low self-esteem at some point - even the most famous celebs and the most popular girl in school.
• Try focusing on the positives rather than the negatives. Every time a little negative thought about yourself enters your head try turning it around by thinking about something positive about you - could be how you aced your maths test, helped your little sister with her homework, or made your bestie feel better about herself.
• Give yourself little mantras everyday about something you like about you. Here's some we've thought of but they could be anything! "I feel good about me." "I am happy being me". "What you think about you bring about." "I am me and proud. "
• If there are things about your or your life that you want to change, take a long hard look, see if they are things that can be changed and go about making changes one small step at a time.
• Remember to only make changes if they are important and if you are making changes for the right reasons.
• Create goals for yourself and write them down and be sure to set out to achieve your goals in a realistic time frame.
• Do things that make you feel happy and surround yourself with people who make you happy.
• Whatever you do don't be too hard on yourself because you are never going to be perfect - no one is!
• Find someone to talk through any worries or doubts you may have. Make sure that person is a good listener with your best interests at heart - mum, an aunt, sister, brother, teacher, bestie.
• Remember you will go through many changes in your life and there will be good times and not so good times but most importantly enjoy your journey because it is what makes you extraordinary.