Quarterlife Center - Counseling for Young Adults

  If you’re in your twenties or thirties and feeling uncertain or stuck in your life, you might be experiencing what’s often referred to as a  quarterlife crisis . This term reflects a deep exploration of the life you’re building–an internal shift that invites growth, clarity, and more authentic alignment with who you truly are. It’s a moment when many of us are exploring important questions about identity, work, and relationships. It’s when many of us feel uncertain about which paths to take. The job that looks good on paper, but feels hollow. The relationship that checks the boxes, but doesn’t spark our soul. The life that seems perfectly fine, except for the quiet voice inside whispering, “Not this.” In therapy, I often hear clients express a quiet but persistent feeling that something isn’t right. Life might look successful on the surface, yet internally, it feels unfulfilling. If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “I should feel happy, but something feels off,” you are ...

  Are you a parent, grandparent, friend, or loved one of an adult quarterlifer? Quarterlifers are individuals who are in their twenties or thirties. They’re the millennials or Gen Zers in your life who you may notice are struggling right now. Whether they’re back home living with you, suffering from unemployment, generally lacking motivation, sleeping a lot, socially isolating themselves, or just not opening up to you about it, then you may wonder… What can I do to help? If you think someone you know is having a quarterlife crisis, you can help. Here’s what we suggest. What should I do if I think my loved one is having a quarterlife crisis? If you know a quarterlifer who is struggling, you’re not alone. We often hear from family members or other loved ones who believe that their child or friend is suffering. This is what you can do. 1. Recognize the symptoms Symptoms of a quarterlife crisis include: Lack of motivation Irritability Tearfulness Anxiety about the future Difficulty mak...

  If you’re a parent of a quarterlifer, you may be looking at your son or daughter in distress. These 20- or 30-something Millennials and Gen Z-ers are at a pivotal point in their lives, and along with everything else going on, the last couple of years haven’t been easy on them. Yet, as much as you want to help, sometimes your actions may be making the situation worse (doesn’t every parent love to hear that!). In this blog, we’ll discuss the top 3 mistakes that parents of quarterlifers make and how you can redirect your energy and actions to actually improve their situation. 1. You offer too much help We all know these types of parents — and you might be one of them. Those that are overbearing and micromanaging. Of course, they mean well and want to help their child. It’s difficult to see your child struggling, and as a parent, you want to do anything you can to help them. However, now that your children are emerging adults, they’re developing independence and autonomy. This is the...

  If you’re new to therapy, you probably have some questions about how it works. One of the  most common questions   we get at  QLC   is “what should I talk about in therapy?”  Here are 5 helpful ideas to get you started. 1. Talk about how you decided to begin therapy. Did something happen recently that led you to seek counseling? What have you been struggling with? Have you been thinking about doing this for a long time? Did a friend or family member encourage you to begin therapy?) 2. Share your feelings about beginning therapy. Are you excited, nervous, ambivalent, angry, distracted? How does your body feel? Are you thirsty, hungry, tense? 3. Share how you feel now that you’ve arrived to your counseling session. Were you stressed out trying to find the office? Did you arrive on time? Where you rushed? Is the appointment how you thought it would be? Are you feeling more nervous or less nervous now that you’re there? Are you physically comfortable in the o...

  The quarter-life crisis is real .  It is an identity crisis (experienced by some as an existential crisis) that occurs as a quarter-lifer (in their twenties or thirties) struggles with the transition to adulthood. If you are facing a quarter-life crisis, here are 3 things you need to know. 1) It’s ok not to have life figured out as a quarter-lifer. If you are unclear about who you want to be and how you want to live your life, try to see this as an opportunity to explore options and experience new adventures. You may feel pressure to have more certainty about where you’re headed in your life, but it’s ok not to have it all figured out–too much certainty can be a bad thing, if it prevents you from taking appropriate risks to grow and move out of your comfort zone. 2) You are not alone. Often, the quarter-life crisis is exacerbated by a perception that your friends have it all figured out already. You may worry that friends are moving forward with their lives while you’ve gott...

  Congratulations! You just graduated, and that’s a huge accomplishment. If you have a job lined up after graduation, that’s spectacular. You’re probably feeling a mix of emotions and trying to process it all. If you don’t, then that’s still spectacular. You’re also likely feeling a mix of emotions and trying to process it all. Society preaches that graduating seniors should have it all figured out by the time they walk across the stage, but it doesn’t happen that way for everyone. This can create a confusing, stressful, and exhausting mindset for a graduate just trying to figure out their life. Here’s what we recommend for the next few months if you just received your diploma, but you’re still finding your footing. 1. Maintain a positive mindset A job search can be a true test of confidence. If you’ve been job hunting your entire senior year without much luck, then you may be losing some momentum. However, it’s more important than ever to maintain a positive mindset. While it may ...

  Are you in your twenties or thirties and grieving the death of a loved one? If you are, you already know that this is a particularly difficult time of life to grieve the loss of someone you love. Grieving a loss as a young adult is challenging for several reasons: 1) Experiencing grief during the quarterlife phase of life is an “off-time” life event, meaning that it is not expected to occur during that phase of life. We do not expect that young adults will have to experience the death of a friend or sibling, so it’s a non-normative event. It is expected, however, that a quarterlifer would experience the death of a grandparent, and this expected event is called an “on-time” or normative event. Off-time events have been found to be harder to cope with because they often feel unjust and unexpected. Because grief during the quarterlife stage of life is non-normative, quarterlifers who are mourning are likely to feel alone because peers don’t share and understand their experience. 2) ...

  When you graduated from college, moved out of your parents’ house, or took that other next big step into adulthood, you likely heard the following from someone in your life: “This is the most exciting time in your life! Make the most of it. Live every day to the fullest. I wish I could go back and do it all over again.” And yet, maybe it didn’t feel as exciting as it should have. In fact, your 20s and 30s, despite being the rumored “most exciting time of your life” can often be the most disorienting. It involves so many big decisions and new experiences that you’ll find yourself wondering, “What am I doing with my life?” or “Am I doing this right?” more often than you’d probably like. As you go through these transitions, you may experience a quarterlife crisis. This phenomenon is incredibly common for quarterlifers. Keep reading to learn the signs and symptoms below. What is a quarterlife crisis? A quarterlife crisis is a period when someone in their 20s or 30s experiences overwh...

  Lifelong learning is critical for personal and professional growth, but outside the demands of life and career, it may be challenging to carve out time in order to pursue learning opportunities. If you are committed to moving forward and designing a context that is meaningful to you, you want to integrate learning into your day. One relatively easy way to do so is to listen to podcasts, which can help you gain insights about your career, strengthen your commitment to a decision you have made, or inspire you to pursue a direction you hadn’t even considered. No matter how busy you are, if you commute to and from school or work, run errands, walk your dog, exercise, clean or prepare meals, you can make these activities more exciting – and educational – by listening to podcasts. With a variety of existing platforms and no shortage of content, there really is no excuse not to try. Even as I compiled this list, over thirty podcasts came to mind. Ultimately, I decided to focus on eight ...

  Congratulations! You just graduated, and that’s a huge accomplishment. If you have a job lined up after graduation, that’s spectacular. You’re probably feeling a mix of emotions and trying to process it all. If you don’t, then that’s still spectacular. You’re also likely feeling a mix of emotions and trying to process it all. Society preaches that graduating seniors should have it all figured out by the time they walk across the stage, but it doesn’t happen that way for everyone. This can create a confusing, stressful, and exhausting mindset for a graduate just trying to figure out their life. Here’s what we recommend for the next few months if you just received your diploma, but you’re still finding your footing. 1. Maintain a positive mindset A job search can be a true test of confidence. If you’ve been job hunting your entire senior year without much luck, then you may be losing some momentum. However, it’s more important than ever to maintain a positive mindset. While it may ...

  If you’re a recent grad seeking a job, there are a few ways you can prepare for this transition. It’s not easy being a young adult, but just a few tips and tricks in your toolkit can make you feel even more confident as you walk this path. Here’s what you should focus on in the coming months, if not everything is set in stone (and trust us — no one has it all figured out!). 1. Create a strong resume Every time you walk into a career center, enter a job fair, or take a coffee meeting with someone, they’ll likely ask you about your resume. Your resume is the most important document you can have during your job search. It’s a clear, concise, formal document that provides an overview of your professional qualifications. Unfortunately, most job seekers falter when it comes to creating their resumes. Employers only look at resumes for roughly 6 to 7 seconds. Yes! You read that correctly. If you don’t write your resume correctly, then you’re less likely to receive positive feedback. He...

Lifelong learning is critical for personal and professional growth, but outside the demands of life and career, it may be challenging to carve out time in order to pursue learning opportunities. If you are committed to moving forward and designing a context that is meaningful to you, you want to integrate learning into your day. One relatively easy way to do so is to listen to podcasts, which can help you gain insights about your career, strengthen your commitment to a decision you have made, or inspire you to pursue a direction you hadn’t even considered. No matter how busy you are, if you commute to and from school or work, run errands, walk your dog, exercise, clean or prepare meals, you can make these activities more exciting – and educational – by listening to podcasts. With a variety of existing platforms and no shortage of content, there really is no excuse not to try. Even as I compiled this list, over thirty podcasts came to mind. Ultimately, I decided to focus on eight that w...