Youth and its Peculiarities: 10 Popular Troubles of Young Adulthood
Youthfulness is a blessing but it could also be a burden. Young adulthood is generally the period between one’s late teens or twenties and their thirties. It is a period characterized by numerous life changing phenomena ranging from physiological changes, to taking up responsibilities and building meaningful long lasting relationships.
In this peculiar stage of life, one is overwhelmed by a myriad of novelties. It is how the individual manages these new realities of life that determines how well this period of their existence would be spent.
Human development is a process that lasts throughout one’s lifetime and it involves physical, behavioral, cognitive and emotional growth and change.
In the early stages of life (which youth is a part of), many metamorphoses happen. In this process, each person develops behavioral patterns and values that guide choices, relationships and understanding. Youths therefore are often advised to strive to make the best out of this sensitive stage of their life.
Aspects Of Development In Youths
As earlier implied, every stage of development encompasses specific markers. Those which occur in our youth are quite prominent. Even though every young person is unique and matures individually, there are certain experiences one is bound to have. Here are some of them:
1. Physical Development
In this stage of life, many people usually complete the process of physical maturation. Biologically, the person is said to have attained full adult height.
2. Emotional Development
It is at this stage of life that relationships are built, certain friendship ties are severed for different purposes, and greater intimacy skills are developed. Also, one begins to feel empathetic and develops the feeling of being impenetrable.
3. Cognitive Development
Young people usually move into adult roles. They might decide to learn a trade or certain skills. Also, they begin to get a grasp of abstract ideas, discover their career paths and make life transforming decisions.
4. Sexual Development
Many young adults tend to enter into romantic relationships, identify their sexual orientation and generally shift attention from themselves to others.
10 Troubles Of Young Adulthood
Young adulthood is considered the healthiest time of life and young adults are generally in good health, subject neither to disease nor the problems of old age. In spite of this, young adults are often bedeviled with a number of difficulties. Some of these challenges persist for a long time while others are usually surmounted before they move into the next stage of life.
1. Dealing With Change
A lot of youths find it difficult to adapt to new realities in their lives. They become so overwhelmed by these changes (especially the negative ones) that if the necessary skills to contain them are in want, the end would most likely be disastrous. For example, a young person who changes neighborhood would find it difficult to adapt to the new environment, especially as it concerns making new friends.
2. Loneliness
During young adulthood, hormones are usually heightened. This leads to a variety of emotions being exhibited by youths. For example, there is generally the urge to be with and around others, especially friends and family. Usually, when one is devoid of any form of companionship, one tends to feel lonely and unwholesome.
3. Economic Status
Young people are in a stage of their lives when they need to have a level of financial security. It is usually a source of concern when their financial security is not guaranteed. At this stage, they desire to be independent and begin to take on certain responsibilities. Many leave their parents’ houses and begin to fend for themselves. Therefore, in a situation wherein there is a want of resources to meet these numerous needs, it is usually disturbing.
4. Drug/Alcohol Abuse
This is one common phenomenon among youths of today. Young adults take drugs and alcoholic drinks excessively for a number of reasons. To some, it serves as an escape from a particular chaotic or depressing situation. For others, they could indulge in such acts as a result of peer influence. In one way or another, the majority of young adults abuse drugs and alcohol and it has become a menace in the society.
5. Incessant Use of Social Media
The advent of social media has brought in its wake both evil and good to the society and the youths are its most patronizers. One of the many disadvantages of the social media can be seen in the way youths of today relate with the world around them. Online chats have become so normal amongst them that physical conversations now rarely contain meaningful content.
Also, a lot of youths have been depressed in one too many ways as a result of continuous use of social media.
6. Unemployment
Unemployment is a recurrent plague in the world. In some countries, it is on a relatively low level while in some others, it is so prevalent that it has become a societal bane. Being that young adults make up a sizable amount of any country’s workforce, it is not out of the ordinary to have them as the worst hit of this unfortunate phenomenon.
7. Crime
The society is filled with a lot of criminal elements that if not curbed in the long run would create immense havoc. Youths are major perpetrators of these criminal activities and this is so for a number of reasons, ranging from poverty to negative peer influence and unemployment. Many young adults have lost their lives in the process of engaging in some nefarious activity.
8. Fear of the Future
Being young adults that they are, they tend to worry a lot about what the future holds for them. They put in a lot of effort in all that they do to secure a nice future for themselves. However, as a result of numerous limiting factors ranging from societal to environmental and familial, many youths worry a lot about how their future would eventually pan out.
9. Family Issues
Sometimes, young adults are caught up in the web of family problems such as having divorced or separated parents, poor finances and a host of others. These issues tend to disturb them emotionally, psychologically and otherwise.
10. Depression
Youths get depressed for a variety of reasons. It could be as a result of heartbreak, being victims of bullying, low self esteem and a whole lot more. Some of them might even be depressed to the point of having suicidal thoughts. It is a major source of concern among youths.
Dealing With The Troubles Of Young Adulthood
In truth, there is no straightjacketed way to solve problems that arise during the stage of young adulthood. However, certain measures can be taken by the young adult in question which would go a long way in helping them out of unfavorable situations at this precarious stage of their life. The following are some useful tips in dealing with the troubles of young adulthood:
1. Spill it Out
Many young adults tend to be secretive and introverted. In most cases, it is as a result of the lack of trust for others which have been built over time and which peaks during this stage of their life. This is not surprising as it is a time when they need to make huge decisions about their life’s focus. At this point, it seems as though it were the world against them. However, this is not the best way to go.
Young adults are advised to speak out, no matter what they might be passing through. If they feel they cannot trust the people around them with confidential information, they can seek the services of a trained therapist.
2. Focus on Hobbies and Activities That Bring You Joy
Youths are usually genuinely enthusiastic about one thing or another. And since they are filled with so much energy, it would be really great if they could channel their exuberance to activities that bring them immense joy and a sense of fulfilment. This is one veritable way to scale the myriad of hurdles that come with the period of youth.
3. Make Friends With People of Like Minds
During the stage of young adulthood, most persons are usually particular about having friends and belonging to a sort of clique where they are accepted and have a place of pride. It is therefore pertinent to make friends with people who share common interests, ideals and philosophies of life.
When things are not really going smoothly for one, apart from consulting one’s parents, one can also easily share their current predicament with their trusted friends. Even though it’s not always advisable to do so as one’s friends might not be as experienced as one’s elders, it’s still a way to go.
4. See the Brighter Side of Things
As a young person, one terrible thing to be is to be pathetically pessimistic. Life is filled with numerous vicissitudes, true. However, it’s too early a stage to not be optimistic. Sometimes, youths feel so depressed they get tired of life and living. In fact, it has been reported that youths are more prone to being afflicted with mental health diseases than any other age group.
It is therefore imperative that they see the brighter side of every unfavorable situation they might be faced with.
Conclusively, it is important we state here that none of the above mentioned challenges are insurmountable. There are a lot of ways to solve these different problems bedeviling young adults and some have already been proffered in the course of this write-up. The person in question need only consult the right channels. All the best in your youthful struggles!
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