From young ages society is taught to always be thinking of the future, children are asked what they want to be when they’re older instead of teaching them that sometimes it is okay to live in the moment, nurturing the part of the brain which leads to intense feelings of anxiety, hopelessness and the indescribably feeling of your life leading nowhere which can only be described as “lost”.
Obviously, this has not come out of the mouth of a pre-teen but modern research has shown that neurons within the brain do not multiply, meaning that it is extremely common for people to feel the same way from childhood all the way into adulthood, except adulthood plays host to the non-stop expectations of society and the forceful stripping of “childlike wonder/joy” within a teens formative years for a level of maturity.
This is because of the outdated desire to be viewed as superior or ‘better than’ by the rest of society who are struggling to portray the same things, the festering anxiety of being the “other”.
Not only within modern society but any form of a somewhat civilised society which can date back hundreds of years has portrayed these innate needs and desires to be seen as successful or superior, there is a distinct correlation in the state of mental health that this has on people. even if it wasn’t a commonly researched theory, it is clear to see that children who grow up with supporting families who do not force the idea that you have to consistently be thinking about your future from the youngest age possible to maximise the possibility of success usually are subject to a more stable and healthy mental state.
People who grew up with the opposite of this form of the family usually portray increased levels of anxiety and depression, growing up with a family who is image-obsessed and concerned with a future in the far distant years of the teens life has become increasingly seen as normal and deemed as the simply caring about how they may be perceived but it runs far deeper than that; as a society, we should be trying to actively break what is quickly becoming the norm and instead emphasize the idea that success is not measured by the financial aspect but the emotional and mental aspect of life, and to show life isn’t future-focused, to live your life at the moment is not a negative thing as society would want you to believe. living in the moment does not mean ignoring all responsibilities or not caring about education, instead, it is to be aware of what you want at that moment, what you need for yourself in that moment – more so promoting personal care over what may happen in the future.
it is impossible to know what you will want in the future, humans are growing consistently, and even if we may feel the same from childhood to adulthood, there is still adaptation and growth. Humanity cannot be measured by what may have been successful in the past.
-Lucy Taylor
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