Generation Z Is Full Of Sad Young People. Let’s Turn It Around!
A safe upbringing, a good education, and so many amazing things to try. What can we do to identify the problem and uproot it?
Stats from the CDC suggest the suicide rate among people aged 10-24 increased 56% between 2007-2017. After increasing by 3% annually, the figure shot up to 7% a year for the last four years. There’s a clear correlation, but finding a cause is nigh impossible. It isn’t just people changing, the world is changing with them.
The general consensus among most is that we simply don’t have the tough skin that prior generations formed, and there is something in that, but there may be an explanation for that which is worded a bit more tastefully.
Something I learned from immersing myself in “The Midnight Gospel”- which is a cleverly animated series inspired by the transcripts of Duncan Trussell's podcast- is that we come out of hard times in our best form. One guest spoke about the sensation of being totally liberated by the diagnosis of terminal cancer, even being grateful at the new perspective and sudden enjoyment of life. Perhaps the case with Gen Z is the lack of true life experience that changes perspective; which is lacked when treated like children for too long.
You are practically swarmed by ‘rags to riches’, Sir Alan Sugar-type stories, about how those who are brought up with so little just get that little bit more spring in that jump to success. I believe the lack of choice gave people like him the focus to excel. It sounds like a great thing, to have the choice of so many subjects and to have an equal bash at each one until you find your feet. For many it’s the tools of modern education that help people finally identify their passion. Many are left behind.
Here ties in the big one. Social media.
I’m not saying anything new when I say that the internet, used recreationally, has caused so much irreversible damage to young peoples’ psyche. Instagram have started to do something about the toxic depiction of self worth, by not displaying the numbers of likes to the outside world. Even so, the desperation and the measures you see people take to get likes on posts or comments is so daunting when you zoom out. Social media also sells dreams. The people you admire, celebrities, your idols, they post on Instagram snapping their perfect holidays, relationships and possessions. Everyone is watching, liking, commenting; they want what celebrities have.
What you don’t see is the complications in their social life, you don’t see their mind going crazy at the lack of privacy, and most of all, they cannot understand why they aren’t as happy as people think they are. In their minds, they think ‘If I can’t be happy with this life, then I'm doomed to be sad’.
Anyone reading this who has gone through any lengthy period of feeling low, I’ll bet you had great days. I’ll bet you had a great night out on Friday, followed by an empty weekend of numbness. I’ll bet you had food, a bed and amazing technology that you owned. The problem with Gen Z is that often our problems do look very miniscule up against the problems of less privileged people in this world. But our brains know nothing about scale when we’re in a bad way. We think about those who don’t have clean water or who are bullied based on race or sexual identity, and we can’t help but feel pathetic about our own difficulties. It can lead to more self resentment.
Change the momentum
You cannot start anywhere else but the basics. Salvage the little victories. You did something kind, allow yourself to feel pride. Start complimenting people and watch them enjoy your company more. Don’t worry about what people think of you, it’s none of your business, but just assume no one dislikes you.
Junk food is the hardest, exercise maybe just as hard. Depression in Winter is caused by a lack of Vitamin D, so get sunlight when you can. Don’t allow yourself 24 hours being cooped up, because it truly matters. You cannot, cannot be as happy as you can be without exercise and healthy food. Even if you’re starting with an apple a day and a 15-minute daily walk, keep adding to that self-care. Drink lots of water (I'm not joking it’s a cureall).
Delete Social Media. Okay you don’t have to, but cut down on it and maybe on the number of things that send you notifications too. Work, paid work, social media, arguments and insecurities are just far too many things to have in your head. That brings me to the bonus…
Meditation. I first came across it when I was struggling to sleep and aggressively overthinking at Uni; 5 minutes at a time. The first step is instantly becoming receptive to your senses, feeling a draft, looking at your hand in front of your face. This really helps to take you out of the state. Learning meditation and clearing your mind is like reading a book for people who don’t read books, you feel like a caveman sitting there trying. Luckily though, it is one of those rare skills that you feel yourself getting better at. Stick with it, because you’ll suck at it to start of with. It took me weeks to even start noticing little changes I had to make to make it work.
Finally, champion your successes, champion them to your friends or parents or me. Let me know if you helped someone out and it made you feel like you made a difference, tell me if you learned someone else's perspective that you couldn’t tolerate before. Write some stuff down that someone said to you that felt good. Help other people and you’ll stop thinking about your own worries.
