Studies show that many of those belonging to previous generations do not know how to recognize the signs of a mental illness (only 50.4% of those in the Baby Boomer generation manage to do so), preferring to believe that everything can be solved through willpower. In contrast, young people are much more educated from this perspective, but also much more stressed.
Six out of ten young people feel overwhelmed due to repeated global crises (wars, economy, etc.), but also because of uncertainty regarding their professional future, specifically the difficulty many young people face in finding a job. This fact has led to a situation where concern for one’s own psychological well-being has become a priority among youth. For many of them, mental health is at the forefront, even ahead of their careers. For example, 58.1% of young people say they prefer a flexible work schedule and peace of mind over a huge salary, and for 25.6% of them, well-being is their number one goal in life.
Science also explains why young people place so much value on healing. In addition to all the bad things happening in the world, every young person comes with their own emotional baggage, their own traumas. Trauma is not just a sad memory or a simple situation where things didn’t go the way we wanted at a certain age; rather, it is something that “rewrites” the brain’s entire biology. Studies show that a child who experiences abuse or neglect (there are about 15 such cases for every 1000 children) grows up with a brain set to “survival mode”. In these cases, the amygdala (the part of the brain that triggers the fear alarm) is always active, and logic becomes difficult to use in moments of stress. Data shows that 80% of children who go through trauma have great difficulty in forming healthy relationships. This is why Generation Z no longer sees therapy as something exclusive, but as a biological necessity to “repair” these connections in the brain. They want to be the generation that breaks this cycle and does not pass on inherited traumas, even though 4 out of 10 young people still fear they will be judged by society when they ask for help
Sources:
1. World Economic Forum
2. UNICEF SUA
3. Surface at Syracuse University
4. Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine
This article was written by Emilia Maria Sandu, student.