Fitting in is hard to do, especially when you look around and realize that you don’t match anyone else around you. It’s hard to not feel that there must be something wrong with you and that you have to change or try to hide your true nature. This is especially how so many kids can feel at any age or stage of their development.
Some kids are the sour patch kid in a box of chocolates. It doesn’t mean they don’t belong there, since it’s all candy, but it means they definitely feel that they don’t fit in. However, what if you imagine that there are a whole bunch of boxes of chocolates out there in the world and there are always a few sour patch kids mixed in with each box. Does that mean the sour patch kids should try to appear like chocolate? No, not at all. First of all, it probably wouldn’t taste very good. Also, it’s already unfortunate enough that the other pieces of candy feel the need to have a chocolate coating to hide what’s inside just so they can match everyone else, instead of celebrating their unique differences.
Some people like sweet and some people like sour, it doesn’t mean that anyone is better than the other. So, I encourage all the sour patch kids out there to stand up proud and seek out all the other sour patch kids that are hiding in their own box of chocolates trying to find a way to appear more like all the other chocolates around them. They might not be easy to find at first, but they are well worth the discovery.
As the director of group therapy services here at Specialized Therapy Associates (STA), I’m very proud to say that our teen group is its very own box of sour patch kids, and are always in search of others that might exist. If you feel that you’re ready to seek out the other sour patch kids around you, feel free to call Specialized Therapy Associates at (201) 488-6678 to schedule an intake. Fitting in is hard to do, but STA can make the journey easier!
