11. All We Got: Collective Trauma and the Impact on Generational Mental Health

An article that I really enjoyed “Understanding the Impact of Collective Trauma on the Mental Health” by Tiffany Hall comments on the ways in which Millennials have had to bridge the gap of trauma between two generations now. She starts the article discussing how confusing the term millennials is for most people. Therefore, it is significant that the author clarifies that the oldest millennials are currently in their 40s, while the youngest are around 25 years old. This definition of the age range is essential as most people wrongly use the term to describe people younger than them (Hall, 2021). I have been wrongly using it to describe the age groups consisting of people younger than me, other than Generation Z, which is easier to identify. I agree with the author that millennials are an interesting group because they are the last generation to have, at least most of them, witnessed a life pre-internet. This point brings up a nostalgic feeling of life before the internet, where things seemed much more straightforward, and the sense of community seemed more meaningful (Hall, 2021). Ironically, the internet is meant to bring people together, but it sometimes does the opposite. In addition to the strong influence of engaging with computer technology at a young age, when computers were starting to have a higher priority in everyone's lives, other external influences that have shaped millennials involve growing up in a post-civil rights movement era. Millennials were lucky enough to grow up in a society striving for a more ethnically and racially integrated society (Hall, 2021). However, while many Millennials only had to deal with racism in retrospect, it is still a major topic and experience of today. The different goals of millennials in adulthood are primarily driven by the changing middle-class goals that now require higher educational attainments (Hall, 2021). I agree with the author and find that most millennials are non-traditional. While this is sometimes frowned upon, it’s necessary to understand that society as a whole isn’t traditional anymore. Millennials have learned how to prioritize themselves and for American society (which is built on capitalism) that is threatening. Most millennials desire financial independence and safety, but want to do it in ways that are foreign to most baby boomers.

With Millennials living through many traumatic events including the Great Recession, the September 11th bombings, the Iraq/Afghanistan war, various school shootings, and the recent COVID-19 pandemic, Millennial trauma is at an all time high. Despite school shootings happening previously, they have become more rampant in the millennial age, making the schools that were once a haven become associated with terror and unsafety (Hall, 2021). This has various ramifications in millennials' lives, particularly their mental health, as many recollect these traumatic events. It is concerning that the author further highlights that the long-term effects of some of these traumatic events are yet to be studied thoroughly. However, Millennials have taken their mental health in our hands. Millennials are more open to many treatment methods, including traditional medical interventions, and embracing other nontraditional methods such as meditation, yoga, reiki, and other nontraditional and holistic medical practices. It is extremely heartwarming that millennials are more comfortable seeking treatment, openly discussing issues and making space and opportunity to dissect “taboo” topics such as mental health and neurodivergence. This is something that precious generations struggled with and didn’t have the space or tools to do. One thing that is pushing the rhetoric of mental health is social media. Social media significantly impacts folks' lives, especially those who use it to develop and maintain connection with their peers and communities. A key point to note is that while social media helps people feel less isolated, it also has the negative consequence that it can cause people to start drawing comparisons to others based on their posts on social media. For many, this creates a sense of worthlessness and insecurity. Thus, researchers agree that social media is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it allows millennials to express their thoughts freely, self-express, connect and engage, but on the other hand, it can lead to several negative mental health issues and problematic behaviors such as internet addiction and psychological distress (Keles et al., 2020, p. 80). What we find now is as millennials, we are working to find answers to some of the most meaningful questions of our lives. These questions revolve around who we are, how we identify, whether we have a meaningful career and financial stability, can we have the work/life balance we desire and what it means to be an actual adult. Understanding the uniqueness of the millennial group is essential for helping social workers and therapists understand the culture that clients are navigating and integrating into.

References

Hall, T. (2021, April 1). Understanding the Impact of Collective Trauma on the Mental Health of Tiffany Hall. Continued Social Work. https://www.continued.com/social-work/articles/understanding-impact-collective-trauma-on-91

Keles, B., McCrae, N., & Grealish, A. (2020). A systematic review: The influence of social media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 79–93. Taylor & Francis Online. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673843.2019.1590851