• Do you feel overwhelmed by constant change in all areas of your life?

• Do you feel directionless or falling behind compared to peers?

• Do you want to try all the things but feel like you need to “settle” on a direction?

• Do you feel lonely or missing out?

The Problem

Learning to “adult” is hard. Learning who “you” are in the midst of these new experiences is also overwhelming. If you are an 18-29 year old, you fall into a growing demographic called emerging adulthood (Trible, 2015). This era is marked by:

• Identity Exploration

• Instability

• Self-Focus

• Feeling “In-Between”

• Possibilities

With your first taste of independence, you may move to a new town, go on a solo international trip, develop your own worldview/belief system, or even start a new family.

With exploration comes discovery, but it can also lead to discouragement, self-doubt, and heartache along the way. Unresolved wounds may begin to surface in romantic relationships. Anxiety may cripple you from going out to make new friends. Experiencing failure may discourage you from continuing to pursue your dream job.

The age of emerging adulthood can feel chaotic, which in turn can make you feel the same way internally.

The Path Forward

The cool part of being a twenty-something (or a human of any age) is that you have the freedom to grow and evolve and reinvent.

In therapy, taking your path forward includes [1] exploring what you want for your life, [2] identifying what holds you back, and [3] learning how to move through these barriers.

Emerging adulthood is a season of developing your identity and personal value system. Throughout your upbringing, you were informed by family, peers, community, and culture. Your twenties is a time of exploring whether or not you want to continue adopting those values or not. In therapy, you are able to workshop these thoughts and ideals. Who do you want to become?

You may have many aspirations, but at the same time may feel like something is holding you back. It may be anxiety, self-doubt, loneliness, or burnout. There may be practical factors like family dynamics or finances. Whatever it may be, you can process these burdens.

Over time, you can grow enough trust in yourself to put yourself out there into scary situations — asking someone on a date, moving to a new city, or getting on stage for a karaoke song. The unknown is inevitable, but you can step into it and come out the other side unscathed.

Life is about living and feeling permission to live it to the fullest. The age of emerging adulthood has many twists and redirections, however, you don’t need to let these hardships deter you from pursuing the life you want to live. You don’t need to have answers right away; just an openness to “be” and experience and take the next step forward.

References:

Trible, Hannah B., "Emerging adulthood: Defining the life stage and its developmental tasks" (2015). Educational Specialist. 2. https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/edspec201019/2