ADOLESCENTS AND YOUNG ADULTS: SOME MAJOR CONCERNS THAT MAY GO UNNOTICED

Adolescence and young adulthood are one of the most significant phases of an individual’s life. The impact that a person has upon himself/herself during this time may have long lasting impressions on that individual. It is this phase that may make or break an individual.

Adolescents and young adults, by and large, face many problems, such as emotional problems and problems related to adjustment, in this earlier phase of their life. This becomes troublesome when they are unable to recognize them. They know that something is wrong or improper, but they do not have much of a clue about it. They do not know what do about it or whom to talk about the things that they experience.

It is in adolescence that an individual leaves the safe environs of their home and family and go out to explore the tough, competitive and challenging outer world. During this time a good, satisfying relationship can do wonders for the person. Being in such a relationship can be very helpful in coping with many of the problems he/she may face, in more ways than one. However, due to various reasons this may not happen.

The individual maybe having problems of social skills deficits that may interfere with having an intimate relationship with his/her peers. The person may also have social anxiety, which makes him/her anxious in a social situation. Likewise, loneliness is also a major cause of concern for adolescents. Although loneliness is found among people of all age groups, it is most prevalent in adolescents and young adults. There may be some individuals who are introverts. Introversion is of course not a problem, but it can be one if the individual does not know about it and is unable to recognize the benefits that he/she can derive from being an introvert. All these issues are, in some way or the other, related to each other. This leads to a feeling of being left out or not fitting in. Due to all this, the problems of inferiority complex and depression also arise.

Unable to form relationships is obviously a big concern, but this does not mean that relationships are always good and pleasant for an individual. Many a times, people are involved in friendships and other relationships in which they may face disagreements, difference in opinions, or even certain things that may be disliked by them. If not resolved they can be really harmful for that particular relationship. Here, conflict resolution and reconciliation become very important, which the individual may be unable to do so. This may become a big hindrance in the maintenance and enhancement of a relationship, which is highly important for the overall personality of the individual.

Apart from this, the person may also get into bad company. He/she may associate himself/herself with the wrong kind of people. Rather than being satisfying, the relationship may become extremely dissatisfactory and lead to inhibiting the abilities and potential of that person.

All these problems and issues arising during adolescence, if not resolved, are carried forward into the phase of young adulthood and, thus, have a greater negative impact on their psyche. These problems, gradually, begin to eat out the person right from within. Without realizing, the person might get stuck up into these problems, which may follow him/her throughout his/her life.

These problems do not remain to themselves. They also have a deep impact on the other aspects of their life. They may badly affect the individuals’ life style as it hinders him/her in identifying his/her own interests and abilities. The collective affect of all this also becomes harmful for the education, career as well as wellbeing of the individual.

Therefore, the problems of adolescents and young adults, if not looked into properly, get exacerbated and spread out causing further disturbance to their life. These problems function as a parasite for the whole personality of the individual.

Saif Farooqi

A PhD in Psychology (from the University of Delhi). I have been blogging about psychological issues for more than ten years. I am extremely passionate about teaching psychology. I'm a writer, podcaster, and TEDx speaker. I also conduct workshops and awareness programs in schools and colleges. Currently, I'm also working as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India

15 comments:

Karmasura said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
reflections said...

good blog ,and gud topic to write about.what I feel is that besides adoloscents their parents are more confused about the whole thing .rather everyone is around here is confused .WHY? Things are changing way too fast for anyone to understand ,be it society ,be it culture or be it people themselves .no one knows what they want ,life has become just a game of survival at some point for most.
anyways u r the expert ,u know it better.carry on the gud work.

Saif Farooqi said...

@ kumpal madrasi
thanks :)

@ lonely inside
you're right, but what you're talking about is a separate issue and a more prominent one, whereas I talked about issues that are lesser known, usually ignored, and more importantly are in the context of social relationships (friends, peers, romantic relationships, etc.) ... thanks for the appreciation and keep visiting :)

Brenna Murphy said...

I am 16 years old, and i have a lot of problems with depression, anxiety, and relationships and i feel like your blog is completely 100% head on. I really enjoyed it.

Saif Farooqi said...

@ brenna
glad to know that you enjoyed my blog ... keep visiting, I'll be writing about somewhat similar topics later also, which might be of your interest :)

ßry™ said...

that is why a good upbringing by parents and influential environment are crucial elements that shape up the being of young adults.

Shiva said...

nice blog...
nice posts...
nice writting...
what else?


CrAzYbLoG
v.CoL

Saif Farooqi said...

@ ßry™
that's true, but its not that simple, because usually others don't have any awareness about such issues ... in fact, people mostly even fail to recognize and identify these issues as major concerns for adolescents and young adults

@ shiva
keep visiting, you'll get the answer :)

Natalie said...

Accidentally found your blog through BlogCatalog! And very happy I did so :o) Interesting and very important discussion topics. I write about some of the issues you mentioned in this post (You can almost you me as a "case study"! Joking ;o) I'll visit again!

Hugs,
Natalie

Saif Farooqi said...

@ natalie
thanks, that's quite nice of you ... i really appreciate it :)

Anonymous said...

I think at that point of time,if the person has a good relationship with his/her parents,then that could help to a great extent....sometimes parents are not even aware as to if anything like that is going on with their child....liked the way u right :)....

Anonymous said...

write**

Saif Farooqi said...

@ Smriti
many a times a good relationship with parents does not help also. it is more about the lack of awareness about such issues. they don't even know about the existence of such issues. some of those who know about them don't take it seriously or they are ignorant to its severity. so, more than a good relationship with parents, i would say that parents as well as teachers should have awareness about such issues.

Unknown said...

sometimes it happens that nobody knows about ur issues or might don't want to know about it. what could be the solution which can help us??

Smile said...

What a relevant blog you have written. Could relate to ever word because either observed or had it myself. The part where you wrote that people dont even recognize they are introvert and hence not able to enjoy its benefits. That was thought provoking. At the same time, could you bring light to some of the benefits, introverts can enjoy or have. Thank you.

Instagram