Most people believe that Generation Y lives in a bubble. A bubble that surrounds them with selfishness, laziness, ease. A bubble that only includes them and their social lives.
The millennials are perceived to be living their lives on social media, updating the world about their whereabouts every second, sharing their happy moments in real time. What gets lost amongst these picture-perfect moments is the reality which most youngsters, and even adults, live through each day. While social media may give us a platform to celebrate our lives on, it also constantly keeps us anxious and stressed. To constantly be beautiful, to constantly be connected to the world outside of ourselves, to constantly be available for others, to constantly match the progress of another person. While we may be working 9 hour shifts on paper, we are almost always online and available on our phones, even when we get home, our electronic devices keep us occupied.
For students, the stress load isn’t any less. There is increased competition and pressure. To perform better, to cram pages of knowledge into our minds, to maintain a certain GPA to land a great corporate job, to meet your parents’ expectations.
Yet, we see these students and professionals being labeled as carefree, being mocked for not having seen enough of the world yet, blamed for being self-centered. What most of us do not understand is that the youth needs to breathe too, it needs to escape the stressful situations that they constantly live in, they need to cope with their lives in healthy ways. So maybe we should come up with alternate explanations for their behaviors. Maybe the kid who is always posting on social media is struggling with problems that the digital world does not see, maybe the person who hasn’t been able to give time to their family hasn’t been able to take time out for themselves either. Perhaps the friend who is always easily available is exhausted from being there for everyone else, perhaps the friend who does not meet up in months has run out of fuel to constantly socialize.
What we need now is to live in the present, be truly aware of how we are surviving in the moment, and not stress about the future, not compare our lives to anyone else’s, build healthier relationships where each person has their own space and the ability to be themselves, build healthier environments so we do not need to run away from them. Hopefully then, we can build healthier individuals, healthier souls, and healthier societies.
The author Farheen is currently working as a content writer at The Dawood Foundation, but wishes to remain connected to the world of mental health, and spread awareness about the stigmas attached to it. Having struggled with mental health herself, Farheen found her refuge in words and hopes that others may find inspiration in those words also.