Young adults and mental health
Gen Z under pressure: Why starting adult life can feel so stressful
How transitions, performance demands, social comparisons and future uncertainty interact, and what can help young adults without pathologising an entire generation.
Being young doesn't automatically mean being carefree. Training or university, starting a career, financial insecurity, relationships, moving away from the parental home, and the question of one's own identity can all demand attention at the same time. Many young adults experience a contradiction in this: outwardly, countless possibilities seem open to them, but inwardly they feel directionless, exhausted, or not good enough.
The term „Gen Z“ is frequently used for people born roughly between the late 1990s and the early 2010s. Such generational terms can describe societal experiences, but they say little about the individual. Not every burden is a mental disorder, and not every problem can be explained by the year of birth.
development phase
Why transitions can be particularly challenging
Young adulthood is a phase of many decisions, while important areas of life are not yet stable. Place of residence, education, career, friendships, romantic relationships and financial security can change within a short space of time. At the same time, the expectation grows to function independently and to know a clear direction.
Transitions tie up mental energy. They demand adaptation, saying goodbye to the familiar and dealing with uncertainty. This can be exhausting even when the change is fundamentally desired. Difficulties are therefore not automatically a sign of weakness. What is crucial is whether recovery is achieved, everyday life can be managed and sufficient support is available.
Internal and external requirements
Pressure to perform, comparisons and self-doubt
Many options, high decision pressure
Anyone who can choose from numerous educational paths, working models and lifestyles experiences freedom. At the same time, the fear of making the wrong choice or missing out on a better opportunity can grow.
Invisible standards
Comparisons with peers easily create the impression that everyone else is further ahead, more successful or more confident. In the process, crises, detours and support often remain invisible in the background.
Uncertain future
High living costs, temporary work, the climate crisis and social tensions can make future plans more difficult. Worries about these are not irrational, but they can drain energy on a permanent basis.
The aspiration to get everything right
Perfectionism can boost performance in the short term. However, when one's self-worth is tied to flawlessness, procrastination, overwhelm and severe self-criticism frequently arise.
Psychological stress is rarely caused by a single factor. Personal experiences, relationships, physical health, financial conditions and societal influences interact. A careful medical history is therefore more helpful than blanket statements about a generation.
digital world
What role do social media play?
Social media can connect, inform, enable creativity and create a sense of community, particularly for people with uncommon experiences or marginalised identities. At the same time, constant accessibility, social comparisons, derogatory comments and the fear of missing out can be distressing.
Research predominantly shows correlations, but not a simple cause-and-effect relationship for every individual. A major systematic review from 2024 found small, statistically significant correlations between social media use, depressive symptoms, anxiety and sleep problems. Therefore, what is particularly important is not just the minutes spent in front of the screen, but the type of usage, the content experienced, the timing, and whether sleep, relationships or responsibilities suffer as a result.
Digital strain is more than screen time
The 2025 JIM study shows how naturally digital media belong to young people's everyday lives. 68 per cent report that they frequently stay on their phones longer than planned. Around 30 per cent often feel tired in the morning because they put their smartphones away too late at night. At the same time, 74 per cent use artificial intelligence for homework or studying. These figures do not describe an illness, but they do show how early self-regulation, sleep and concentration are challenged by digital offerings.
AI chatbots as companions
Chatbots can help with learning and appear as low-threshold points of contact in stressful moments. Things can become problematic if a system replaces human relationships, encourages dependency or gives seemingly safe answers to psychological crises. Initial studies show a mixed picture. Particularly people who experience a chatbot as a friend or are prone to strong emotional attachment may report adverse psychosocial consequences. Cause and effect have not yet been conclusively clarified.
Mobile games and loot boxes
Many games use fast rewards, daily tasks, artificial scarcity and chance-based purchases. Loot boxes share key characteristics with gambling because money is staked for the chance of an unknown reward. Such mechanisms can encourage risky gaming behaviour and are particularly problematic for young people who are already at risk. However, a single use does not yet mean addiction.
Class chats and cyberbullying
Conflicts do not necessarily end with the school day nowadays. Belittlement, exclusion, embarrassing pictures or peer pressure can continue in the class chat at any time and reach a large audience. As a result, safe recovery spaces are often lacking for those affected. Cyberbullying should not be played down as mere arguing.
Online grooming and early boundary violations
During cybergrooming, adults deliberately build trust with minors online in order to initiate sexual contact, images or meetings. Children and young people bear no responsibility for this. Protection is achieved through age-appropriate education, clear contact persons and a reaction that does not cause shame or threaten blanket bans on mobile phones.
Why these offers are so difficult to limit
Platforms and games are not neutrally designed. So-called dark patterns steer decisions through pre-selected options, artificial time pressure, hard-to-find settings or repeated prompts. A study commissioned by the European Commission found such manipulative design patterns on 97 per cent of the 75 popular websites and apps examined. Young people must therefore develop their self-control in environments that deliberately compete for attention, data and money.
Later independence and self-efficacy
The pointed phrasing „25 is the new 18“ describes the observation that some steps towards independence happen later nowadays. Large time series from the USA show that young people engage in certain activities—such as going out alone, paid work, or driving—less frequently or later on average than previous cohorts. It does not follow from this that an entire generation is immature. Furthermore, the data come from the USA and cannot be applied directly to Germany.
What is important is self-efficacy, that is the experience: I can try something, endure difficulties, correct mistakes and have an influence on my life. If challenges are permanently avoided out of fear or completely taken over by adults, such learning experiences are lacking. Small, age-appropriate areas of responsibility, real-life encounters and achievable tasks can strengthen confidence.
More helpful than a blanket ban
- Intentionally limit notifications and create screen-free times.
- Unfollow accounts that regularly make you feel worse after consuming their content.
- Do not replace active contacts and real-life encounters with passive scrolling.
- Put the smartphone out of direct reach at night.
- Trying out changes and observing one's own impact, rather than demanding perfect rules.
Further reading and perspectives
- Jonathan Haidt: Generation Angst, an influential, yet scientifically debated interpretation of the transformation of childhood and youth.
- Sven Gábor Jánszky: 2035, a future scenario and food for thought, not a scientific study.
Assess workload
When is professional support useful?
Difficult days, doubt and exhaustion are part of life. Seeking support can be helpful if symptoms persist for weeks, intensify or significantly impair studies, training, work, relationships or self-care.
Possible warning signs
- persistent low mood or severe anxiety
- marked withdrawal and solitude
- sleep problems, exhaustion or loss of concentration
- frequent panic, rumination or inner restlessness
- increasing alcohol, drug or medication consumption
- Eating problems or a strong preoccupation with weight and body
Sort it out early rather than enduring it for long
A conversation with a general practitioner, psychiatric or psychotherapeutic specialist can help to classify physical and psychological factors. A diagnosis cannot be made on the basis of individual symptoms or an online article.
Recommended reading: Understanding panic attacks: What happens in the body and what can help.
Practical orientation
What can help in everyday life?
Make the next step smaller
When feeling overwhelmed, the perfect overall plan rarely helps; instead, a concrete next action is needed: an email, an appointment, a meal, or ten minutes on a task.
stabilise the basic rhythm
Regular sleep, meals, daylight and exercise do not solve complex problems, but they can create a resilient foundation.
Check comparisons
The question „What is important to me?“ is often more helpful than „Where should I already be at my age?“. Life paths are rarely straightforward.
Address support directly
Instead of just saying „I'm not doing well“, a request can help: making a phone call together, looking for an appointment, going for a walk, or structuring a task.
Self-help has its limits. If stress persists or daily life increasingly spirals out of control, professional support is not failure, but an appropriate response.
Therapeutic support
How can psychotherapy support young adults?
At the beginning there is a detailed medical history. This involves examining current complaints, life situation, physical health, past stressors, relationships, resources and previous attempts at coping. This forms the basis for an individual assessment.
Psychotherapy can help to recognise automatic self-deprecation, excessive demands and avoidance behaviour. Together, realistic goals, a helpful way of dealing with uncertainty and concrete strategies for study, work and relationships can be developed. Depending on the symptoms, anxiety, depressive symptoms, sleep problems, trauma consequences or problematic media and substance use can also be specifically treated.
A specific treatment outcome cannot be guaranteed. Which method is suitable can only be assessed after a personal consultation. In the event of physical ailments or potential medical treatment, concurrent medical treatment is important.
Questions and Answers
Frequently asked questions
Is Gen Z less psychologically resilient?
Such a blanket assessment is not professionally useful. Stressors, social conditions, language surrounding mental health and the willingness to seek help are all changing. What matters is the situation of the individual.
Do social media make people mentally ill?
They can increase stress, but are rarely the sole cause. Usage patterns, content, personal circumstances and the social environment all interact.
When should I seek help?
If symptoms persist for weeks, become more severe, or significantly affect daily life, relationships, sleep, and performance, a professional assessment is advisable.
Can psychotherapy also help with disorientation?
Yes. Therapy does not necessarily require a completed diagnosis. A psychotherapeutic consultation can clarify what distress is present and what support might be suitable.
Sources and technical classification
Scientific references
- Robert Koch Institute: Mental well-being – Results of the RKI panel 2024
- Robert Koch Institute: Psychotherapeutic care for young adults, 2025
- World Health Organization: Mental health of adolescents, 2025
- Ahmed and colleagues: Social media use, mental health and sleep: systematic review and meta-analyses, 2024
- Twenge and colleagues: Trends in mood disorders and suicide-related characteristics in the USA, 2005–2017
- Twenge and colleagues: Increases in depressive symptoms and suicide-related outcomes among US adolescents after 2010, 2018
- Media Pedagogical Research Association Southwest: JIM Study 2025
- Alliance Against Cyberbullying: Cyberlife IV, Cyberbullying among School Pupils, 2022
- klicksafe: Cybergrooming, sexual violence online
- European Commission: Behavioural study on unfair commercial practices in the digital environment, DOI 10.2838/859030
- Norwegian Consumer Council: Insert Coin, Loot Boxes and Manipulative Game Design, 2022
- OpenAI and MIT Media Lab: Affective use and emotional well-being in ChatGPT, 2025
- Twenge and Park: Decline in typical coming-of-age activities among adolescents in the USA, 1976 to 2016
- TelefonSeelsorge Deutschland: crisis support and contact options
As of September 2026. This article serves as general information and does not replace an individual medical, diagnostic or therapeutic assessment.
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