Millenials are a demographic of people who were born between 1981-1996. The stress of finding a job and being able to afford a place of their own is different than what previous generations before them went through. By making sure that you eat right, exercise, and use social media to help with career growth, those in the millennial generation will feel more at ease.
Anxiety is how we respond to the stress that we face and affects our everyday routine. Anxiety is not a mental health condition that should be ignored or belittled. Physically, our breath and heart rate quicken, pupils dilate, and blood flow redirects away from digestion and mobilizes adrenaline, cortisol, and blood sugar to help combat our fears. A small portion of the brain called the amygdala kicks off our fear which run a series of signals throughout the nervous system. The medial frontal cortex and the hippocampus help distinguish the safe and dangerous fears we experience so we do not get into a panic over nothing. The problem is that the amygdala tends to go off whenever we sense danger either from experience or because that is how we automatically respond to moments of discomfort.
According to a survey by the American Psychological Association, over a thousand millennials are the most anxious overall out of all of the other generations. It recorded that millennials have been worse off than their parents with lower employment rates, larger student loan debts, and being less likely to own a home. The criteria fit for women, people of color, and four in five Hispanics who worry about paying their bills. 12% have an anxiety disorder which is twice the percentage of Boomers. A 2014 American College Health Association study reported 61% of college students had anxiety which affected their academic performance.
One reason that millennials have anxiety could be a lack of sleep. The University of California in Berkeley said a lack of sleep affect the brain regions that contribute to excessive worrying. It could be because of going to bed at different times of the day. It can also be that sleep is no longer a priority if you are taking care of your kids or working long hours at the office. You could also be checking your social media or emails on your phones or laptops before bed. It is best that you try to go to bed at the same time every night until it becomes a normal routine. You can even try setting an alarm fifteen minutes before it is time to sleep as it takes about fifteen minutes to fall asleep. Keep a journal to record your worrying thoughts so that you can sleep with a clean slate. Exercising regularly will help wear yourself out.
Eating can also affect your daily performance. If you are skipping meals or barely eating at all, you can have unsteady blood sugar levels which cause shakiness, dizziness, confusion, and having trouble speaking. Always eat three meals a day as well as small snacks in between. Bring granola bars, fruit, or nuts with you to work that you can carry with you. Have a glass of water within reach or a water bottle that you can bring with you on the go. Technology also plays a role in our nerves. A 2014 Baylor University study said millennials spend nine hours on their phone on screen-based entertainment which increases central nervous system arousal. Being on social media for long periods at a time can lead to being in a bad mood and depression. Try your hardest not to play on your phone to fill up your minutes of boredom. You should instead use for phone for useful purposes like making a phone call or checking your email.
According to The Atlantic, many millennials are struggling with paying their student debt at an average of $26,000. It does not help that, according to the modern parenting app Winnie, 90% of millennials are parents which adds more to the cost when taking care of children. CNN says that it costs $12,350-$14,000 a year to raise a child and this number will increase as the child gets older. Buying a house is also not so easy as millennials, according to CNN, cannot save up enough to make a down payment or keep up with mortgage payments. Barkley research said that only 37% of millennials have owned a home in 2016.
It also helps not to be around others who make you just as nervous. They will just add onto your anxiety instead of being a nice source of comfort. In the past, it used to be that having a degree would guarantee you job employment whereas for millennials today, it is a different story. The College Investor said that the largest starting salary for a millennial is a little over $43,000. For those that are having trouble finding a job, many millennials are using social media and online marketing to better brand themselves. They are building their own communities, coming up with new ideas for startup companies, and setting their own career paths. According to Bentley University, 66% of millennials have started their own businesses. If you feel like your worries are becoming too hard to handle on your own, it is best to seek professional treatment so that someone can give you hope that everything will be okay.
Located in Tacoma, Washington, Bayview Center’s mission is to offer clinically-driven programs and services to treat a number of substance abuse disorders along with anxiety and depression using cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, trauma therapy, yoga therapy, and more for a successful recovery. For more information, please call us 888 570 7154 at as we are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
