Cultural transitions can be particularly challenging for young adults and teens, especially for first-generation or international students. Navigating new societal norms and customs while reconciling their own cultural identity in a new cultural environment can be overwhelming.

First-generation teens or young adults may face the pressure to succeed while balancing family expectations and responsibilities. Similarly, international students may struggle with language barriers, homesickness, and the daunting task of adapting to an entirely unfamiliar educational system and social landscape. It’s not unusual to experience feelings of isolation, confusion, and cultural dissonance. Therapy can provide an essential support system and resources to help young adults during this transition.

As young adults and teens navigate the shifts in their beliefs and religious identity, they can experience a myriad of emotions (and outside pressures.)

Many of us experience faith deconstruction, where we begin to question or reevaluate our long-held beliefs. This can lead to periods of uncertainty and existential introspection, where we struggle with doubts and question our faith's teachings. This is a period when many young adults redefine their relationship with spirituality.

Converting from one faith to another, such as transitioning from agnosticism to Islam, can be an incredibly huge transition as well, one that may provoke resistance from family members and the community. These transitions are often profound searches for meaning and authenticity; you’re trying to reconcile your evolving spiritual journey with your sense of self and your place in the world. That’s huge!

Therapy can provide a supportive community and a safer space for open dialogue, where we can offer teens and young adults understanding, guidance, and acceptance.

Loss, and emotions of grief and pain that often accompany it, is one of the most difficult (and universal) transition periods in our lives. Losing friends or family members to suicide, illness, accidents, or any other circumstances can disrupt young people’s sense of stability, security, and sometimes even sense of self. Coping with the sudden absence of loved ones leaves a hole where feelings of shock, sadness, anger, and profound emptiness creep in. The loss of a beloved pet can be equally devastating for teens and young adults, as for many of us, pets provide us with that unique companionship and unconditional love that we so often need and crave.

For young people who are still developing, processing these losses may be especially difficult. Therapy can help empower us to express ourselves and navigate the complexities of grief. It can also help us find support groups that help us connect and heal with others.

Education and vocational transitions can include the transition to high school, college or to the workforce. These transitions are often significant milestones in a teen's life. When a young person graduates middle school or high school, they leave a familiar environment and enter a new and often larger one. This transition often involves making new friends, adjusting to a more rigorous academic workload, and navigating the social dynamics of a larger peer group.

Many teens and young adults have also grappled with difficulties following the pandemic. Transitioning from an online or masked and separated learning environment, to an in-person, unmasked, and busy school can be jarring. It’s not unusual to have lasting social, emotional, mental, or even physical struggles as a result of the pandemic.

Leaving home for college or work is another major life transition for many young adults. This is typically the first time we experience increased independence and responsibility. Young adults may need to adapt to living in a dorm or apartment, managing their finances, and balancing their academics or job with their personal lives.

Life transitions therapy can help build new support systems and essential life skills, so that teens and young adults can more confidently face their futures.

Social transitions can sometimes be the most difficult. Starting or ending relationships (both platonic and romantic,) the death or sudden absence of loved ones, changes in living situations or family dynamics, and forming your own identity are some of the more common social transitions we experience as young adults.

Friendships evolve and change due to differing interests, values, or life circumstances. We also navigate challenges such as peer pressure and conflict resolution. Romances flare and fade, and we learn about intimacy and communication. We assert our independence, reconsider our relationships with family members, and seek greater autonomy while still relying on parental support and guidance.

Therapy helps young people understand that sometimes these changes (and connected emotions) aren't just black and white; sometimes we can want both independence and support, experience grief and happiness.

Common economic transitions that young adults and teens may experience include financial independence (or dependence,) housing transitions, employment (or unemployment,) and financial responsibility. Life changes like disability or medical diagnosis, divorce or marriage, and the death of loved ones can also affect us economically.

These shifts in our finances and lifestyles can trouble us greatly, especially as young people who are starting to gain more independence. Therapy can help adolescents understand their underlying anxieties, build a toolbox of coping tools for future periods of change, and gain a network of support that will help them thrive in their communities and lives.