Adolescence has always come with slammed doors, sharp words, and the classic declaration: “You don’t understand.” For generations, these moments were interpreted as part of a normal rite of passage – a symphony of hormones, boundary-testing, emotional volatility, and identity-searching.
Today, that landscape has changed.
We are raising and treating a generation facing pressures no prior generation has ever known. The volatility is real. The stakes are high. And the adults tasked with supporting them are navigating terrain on an uncharted map.
This is the heart of the crisis:
We must learn to discern what is development and what is danger.
The New Adolescent Reality
The research is unequivocal:
- Youth suicide among ages 10–24 has risen more than 60% since 2007 (CDC).
- Symptoms of anxiety and depression doubled during COVID (Racine et al., 2021).
- Nearly 1 in 5 teens report serious suicidal ideation (CDC YRBS, 2023).
- ER visits for suspected suicide attempts among adolescent girls spiked 51% in early 2021.
These are not small numbers. They are alarms.
And yet adolescent biology has not changed. Identity formation, emotional reactivity, impulsivity, risk-taking, and mood swings are still part of a normal developmental arc.
What has changed is the world those developing brains now occupy.
A Brain Built for One World, Thrust Into Another
Adolescence includes the most significant neurological development outside early childhood (Squeglia et al., 2014). The prefrontal cortex – impulse control, planning, judgment – does not fully mature until the mid-twenties (Johnson et al., 2009).
So when your teen becomes moody, erratic, withdrawn, impulsive, explosive, or absolutely certain they are always right and you are just not – ever…that’s development, not pathology.
But development is now unfolding inside a radically different ecosystem:
- High-potency THC increasing anxiety, paranoia, and psychosis risk (Hall, 2015; Harvard Health, 2023)
- Fentanyl contaminating even experimental use
- Social media amplifying comparison, despair, and dysregulation (Surgeon General, 2023)
- Digital overstimulation reshaping dopamine and attention (Stanford Medicine, 2023)
- Academic pressure beginning earlier and cutting deeper
- Social and emotional skill-building disrupted by lockdowns
- Identity formation delayed, distorted, or derailed
Their brains were not built for this, and neither were we. It is time to rise my friends. No rest for the wicked – nor parents or professionals if we are going to help this emerging generation reset to the find joy in the art of simply living – not scrolling and existing in the parasocial of TikTok and Snapchat.
Identity Interrupted: Erikson in the Age of COVID
Erik Erikson defined adolescence as Identity vs. Role Confusion. The work of becoming.
Identity requires:
- Experience
- Practice
- Feedback
- Connection
COVID. The Pandemic shattered all four.
Teens who lived through the pandemic became young adults who feel behind, unsure, or more that they are performing a self instead of becoming one. Devices and access to social media are only exacerbating it.
Their brains weren’t built for this, and neither were we. It’s time to rise, my friends. No rest for the wicked, nor for the parents and professionals fighting to help this emerging generation rediscover joy in the art of simply living. Not scrolling. Not disappearing into parasocial worlds on TikTok or Snapchat — but actually living.”
(Research: Johnson et al., 2009 on under-developed prefrontal cortex; Surgeon General, 2023 on social media impact; Stanford Medicine, 2023 on dopamine + digital overload.)
And let’s not forget the fracture was generational with devastating consequences for all.
Grandparents. The Silent Generation & the Baby Boomers
These generations were meant to serve as anchors of identity, passing down stories, stability, and intergenerational wisdom. Instead, they were cut off – isolated by health risks, lockdowns, and fear. Their role as emotional and cultural stabilizers was disrupted.
Parents. Gen X & Millennials
Parents were thrust into Erikson’s stage of Generativity vs. Stagnation, the life period defined by creating structure, providing stability, and guiding the next generation.
Instead, they were stretched thin, traumatized, financially destabilized, and emotionally overwhelmed – trying to parent while fearing for their own parents and their own survival.
Adolescents. Gen Z
Adolescents, in the height of Identity vs. Role Confusion, lost the developmental ingredients required to form a stable sense of self. Their worlds shrank at the exact moment the brain expects expansion. Their milestones evaporated. Their social context collapsed.
And the youngest emerging adolescents, Gen Alpha
This group entered adolescence with pandemic-shaped childhoods, digital overstimulation, and fewer real-world social experiences – altering their foundation before identity work even begins.
Screens became the vehicle of connection. Now we ask them to set them aside and it is an inane request to them.
Disconnection: The Real Emergency
The CDC identifies connectedness as one of the strongest protective factors for adolescent mental health.
When connection drops:
- Anxiety rises
- Depression increases
- Substance use escalates
- Suicide risk climbs
Right now, disconnection is widespread.
Many young people self-medicate with:
- Weed pens and high-potency THC
- Nicotine vapes
- Alcohol
Screens, gaming, and parasocial relationships replace human connection – numbing temporarily but worsening mood, regulation, and resilience long-term.
For neurodivergent youth (ADHD, autism, learning differences), the constant pressure to mask and adapt accelerates burnout (APA, 2023).
The simple truth is this:
Connection stabilizes. Disconnection destabilizes.
Why This Perspective Matters
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, 2024) and the American Psychological Association (APA, 2023), adolescence is the peak window for the emergence — not the final definition — of mental health symptoms.
Symptoms in adolescence are signals, not verdicts.
Many young people don’t need immediate clinical escalation.
Many simply need:
- A break
- A reset
- A relational environment
- A pause from pressure
- Space to be seen without being pathologized
This is where alternatives like Alter the Course (ATC Retreats) fill a long-missing gap in the continuum of care.
Not therapy.
Not a clinical program.
But a structured, immersive, relational 7-day reset where teens and young adults reconnect with:
- Passion
- Curiosity
- Nature
- People
- Themselves
And where trained mentors can observe functioning outside stress-saturated environments to help clarify what’s development, what’s coping, and what truly requires a clinical level of care.
If ATC is not the right level of support, the ATC enrollment process helps families identify if a more traditional clinical or therapeutic setting is indicated and points them in that direction.
For Clinicians: Navigating a Changed Landscape
Clinicians are practicing in a minefield.
Parents are more fearful than ever shaken by exposes of unethical, abhorrent individuals and programs that caused real harm. Those truths needed to surface. But they also created hesitation in the very families who urgently need to act.
Now, many parents are afraid to move at all.
Your role has expanded. You are not only assessing risk and development you’re also helping families distinguish unsafe programs from ethical, reputable options.
In this climate, it can help to:
- Re-anchor in developmental norms before labeling pathology.
- Consider how COVID disruption, digital overload, and high-potency substances are complicating the clinical picture.
- Differentiate THC-induced dysregulation from primary mood or psychotic disorders.
- Use relational, observation-based resets to gather clearer data instead of escalating reflexively.
A developmentally aligned pause – like a relational, immersive reset – can lower defensiveness, rebuild trust, and reveal what a young person truly needs. ATC Retreats offers a non-threatening, stigma-free environment where teens and young adults rediscover that help can feel safe. When defenses lower and authenticity emerges, buy-in increases and clinicians can make more precise referrals to outpatient therapy, psychiatric care, wilderness, residential treatment, or other supports.
These are not the adolescents of ten years ago or even five.
Our instincts, our tools, and our approach must evolve with them:
lower the heat, widen the lens, increase connection, and let clarity emerge.
For Educators: You Were Called to Teach – Now You’re Asked to Triage
Most educators did not enter the field to be frontline mental health responders.
You were called to:
- Teach
- Mentor
- Spark curiosity
- Build connection
- Watch young people grow
Yet today, you’re also expected to notice:
- Subtle shifts in mood and engagement
- Sudden drops in attendance or performance
- Social withdrawal or isolation
- Expressions of hopelessness, anxiety, or self-harm
- Signs of substance use
All while managing full classrooms, families, and your own wellbeing.
We see you. And we want to offer clarity, not more burden.
You are not expected to diagnose. You are not expected to treat.
You are expected to notice — and to connect students to the supports that exist around them.
What helps:
- Know your campus resources. Become familiar with your school or campus counseling services, wellness teams, student support staff, and crisis protocols.
- Normalize connection. Greeting students by name, small check-ins, and moments of acknowledgment are not small — they are protective.
- Create predictable structure. Routine and clear expectations lower anxiety, especially for overwhelmed or neurodivergent students.
- Refer early. If a pattern concerns you — even if you’re not sure it’s “bad enough” — loop in counselors, school psychologists, or administrators. You are not meant to carry this alone.
- Make resources visible. Encourage students to learn where help lives on campus: who they can talk to, how to access support, and what’s available to them.
Your presence — steady, observant, compassionate — can be a protective factor as powerful as any formal intervention. You may never know which moment changed a life.
The Solution: Connection
In a world that overwhelms young people daily, connection is the medicine that still works.
If you feel your teen or young adult is struggling and you’re not sure what to do next, reach out – we can help you sort through options and get to the right level of support.
Call ATC Retreats at 888.852.2201.
For adolescents at home
- No phones at dinner.
- No phones in the car when you pick them up — and that includes you.
- Keep phones in a central place at night, not in bedrooms.
- Hold a weekly family or game night. Let your teen pick the game or movie.
- Buy canvases and paint — force some messy fun they’ll pretend to hate.
- Choose one family dinner night each week. Make Sunday dinner sacred if every night isn’t possible.
- Rotate who chooses and cooks the meal.
- Ask two questions:
- “What’s one thing you’re proud of today?”
- “What’s one thing you’d do differently?”
- Share your own answers, too. Model self-reflection.
- Ask their advice about something real in your life — teens rise when they feel respected.
- Bake the cookies they loved as kids. Take walks. Expect resistance — and do it anyway.
If they say you’re “always on them” or they need space — honor what’s reasonable. Keep a private journal of the things you wish you could say: your guidance, stories, fears, hopes, love. Someday, when the time is right, give it to them. A time capsule of devotion instead of pressure.
For your college student or young adult living away from home
- Send the cookies. Don’t announce it — let the surprise land.
- Ship a board game or deck of cards with a note: “For you and your roommates.”
- Record short video messages instead of rapid-fire “How are you?” interrogations.
- Start a weekly letter exchange. Mail them stationery and stamped envelopes so all they have to do is write.
- Create a simple nightly or weekly text ritual:
- “Best part of your day?”
- “What’s your do-over?”
- Keep reaching, even if replies are brief, delayed, or slightly annoyed.
They may not ask for these gestures. They may roll their eyes.
But this steady thread of connection becomes part of their internal safety net.
They will not forget it.
Parents looking for community and support can find resources and groups here:
https://linktr.ee/oneoncampus
Crisis & Support Resources
If there is imminent danger — do not pause.
- Call 911
- Call or text 988 (988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or chat at 988lifeline.org/chat
- Text HOME to 741741 (Crisis Text Line)
- Call 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or text NAMI to 62640 (NAMI HelpLine)
- For LGBTQ youth, contact The Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 or visit thetrevorproject.org
Trust your instincts. Your concern does not mean your child is broken. It means you’re awake.
Moving Forward
Adolescence has always been intense. COVID disrupted it. Devices accelerated it. The world complicated it.
But here is the hope:
This generation can become one of the most resilient yet — if we learn how to support their development without confusing it for disorder, and their distress without dismissing it as drama.
The adolescents in your life aren’t broken — and neither are you.
References
Racine, N., et al. (2021). Global prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms in children and adolescents during COVID-19. JAMA Pediatrics.
Johnson, S. B., Blum, R. W., & Giedd, J. N. (2009). Adolescent maturity and the brain: The role of prefrontal cortex in self-regulation. Pediatrics.
Squeglia, L. M., Jacobus, J., & Tapert, S. F. (2014). Adolescent brain development and underage drinking: Identifying risks. Journal of Adolescent Health.
Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and Crisis. W. W. Norton.
Hall, W. (2015). High-potency cannabis and the risk of psychosis. The Lancet Psychiatry.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Connectedness as a strategic direction for youth violence and suicide prevention.
Harvard Health Publishing. (2023). Cannabis potency and youth mental health.
U.S. Surgeon General. (2023). Social Media and Youth Mental Health Advisory.
Stanford Medicine. (2023). Dopamine, digital behavior, and adolescent vulnerability.
American Psychological Association. (2023). Neurodiversity and adolescent mental health.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2024). Adolescent mental health trends and early intervention.
McGorry, P. D., et al. (2008). Early intervention in psychosis: Concepts, evidence, and future directions. World Psychiatry.
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