failure to launch anxiety opi

Failure to Launch due to Anxiety

failure to launch anxiety opiIn my experience as a licensed marriage and family therapist at Optimum Performance Institute, I have seen many young adults struggle with Failure to Launch Syndrome due to anxiety. It is not surprising that these two issues are related and even interconnected. When people think about anxiety, they often think about excessive worrying and irrational fears. What people don’t always understand is just how severe and debilitating anxiety can actually become. For some of the young adults that we treat, anxiety is the root cause of their failure to launch because it stops them in their tracks, paralyzing them and creating a sense of “stuckness.” This makes the transition to independent adulthood not only seem challenging but nearly impossible.

The anxiety that I am referring to is often associated with symptoms of extreme worrying, irritability, overwhelming feelings of panic, fear and uneasiness, disrupted sleeping problems, self-doubt, and self-consciousness. It is this type of anxiety that makes getting up in the morning and getting through the day extremely challenging. As a result, many young adults choose to deal with their anxiety by avoiding any and all anxiety provoking situations. It is not uncommon to see young adults with anxiety that have failed or dropped out of school, lost a job, lost relationships, or failed to make new ones. All of these losses or “failures” further impact their already low self-esteem and further fuel their tendency to avoid and stay stuck. To add icing on the cake, these young adults are at a point in their lives where they are being asked the million dollar question of “What do you want to do with your life”? When you have little to no motivation to get through the day, how could you possibly answer a lifelong question like that?

We take a collaborative, team approach at OPI, where young adults work with a Therapist, Life Coach, Education Department, Extra Curricular and Career and Volunteer Departments to explore and pursue interests and passions, because we believe that it is through passion and joy that change occurs. We do not just treat the diagnosis but rather treat the whole person. We want to help our participants experience small successes to increase their self-esteem, experience joy, learn healthy coping skills to manage their anxiety, build relationships, and create a healthy life balance that will allow them to become “unstuck” and smoothly transition into independent living.

For more information on OPI’s residential and intensive outpatient (IOP Day Treatment) programs and our measures to help young adults overcome anxiety related Failure to Launch issues, call us at (888)-814-5985 or click HERE to submit an online form. We want to help and will be in touch promptly.

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