The pandemic hit global mental health hard and the fallout isn’t over. A major international study released last week confirms that disconnection and overwhelm are still rising, with Gen Z and Millennials struggling to flourish like generations before them. Here is my June 2025 blog post.
The New Normal Is Breaking Us — Here’s How to Stay Whole
Feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or stuck in tough relationships? You’re not a snowflake and you’re not alone.
In the past, we had a U-shaped curve of well-being where people felt happiest in youth and older age, with a common dip in life satisfaction during midlife. That U is now looking like an L.
The recent Harvard and Baylor University Global Flourishing Study that evaluated 200,000 adults in 23 countries reveals worrying trends:
First, young people aged 18 to 29 report much lower well-being than older generations, especially in countries like the UK, US, Germany, and Australia.
Second, adults in their 30s and 40s show relatively flat scores instead of moving up and flourishing as previous generations did.
This is just the latest of studies that show showing increasing rates of:
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| Therapy isn’t weakness — it’s strategy. |
- Anxiety and burnout
- Loneliness and low motivation
- Lack of meaning or direction
- Strained relationships at home and work
It’s not clear what is driving this, but many studies point at: ‘always on’ culture, social disconnect, increasingly toxic social media, a poor global economy, and more.
While there’s no magic fix, studies show that regular therapy offers a clear, proven path to relief and resilience.
What Regular Online Therapy Can Do For You
You can read these recent large studies, 2019 journal paper, 2020 journal paper and 2021 journal paper or skip to my handy summary:
Manage Stress and Anxiety. Therapy helps you understand your triggers and build real-world coping skills, leading to less overwhelm and more calm.
Improve Emotional Regulation. Instead of bottling things up or burning out, therapy gives you tools to stay balanced and in control, even under pressure.
Relationship Clarity. People are tricky. If you struggle with work, family, or partners, you can use therapy’s safe space to untangle relationship stress, communicate better, and set healthy boundaries.
Define Purpose and Direction. If you’re stuck or drifting, therapy can help you uncover meaning, refocus, set goals, and connect with what really matters to you.
Therapy Isn’t Just for Crisis Anymore; It’s for Growth
There is a perception still that therapy is for huge problems, like a divorce or recovering from abuse, or that it’s strictly for CEOs and founders.
That may have been true for previous generations. However, current global instability and change suggests it’s time we rethink this.
You wouldn’t wait for your engine to seize before seeing a mechanic. So why wait for a breakdown before seeing a therapist?
If you want to:
- Stress less
- Communicate better
- Feel more emotionally grounded
- Build a life that feels like yours
regular therapy could be one of the best investments you make this year.
Therapy isn’t weakness — it’s strategy. Make space for your mental well-being and flourish. You’re worth it.
