Deaths of Despair are hitting Millennials

Millennials have been hard hit in their young lives. For those born between 1980 and 1997 (or 1999), the world has been full of tragedy, financial crosses and a changing economy that has left many behind, no matter their background. Indeed, wealthy has often been the only bulwark against the headwinds faced by the largest generation in US history. However, those headwinds are also becoming deadly. It is important to remember that most of the people in this generation are 30 or very close. The oldest Millennials (sometimes called Xennials) are almost 40. This issue is not angsty teens with issues. The deaths of despair are happening to real, adult, people.

Deaths of Despair

According to the CDC, From 2007 to 2017, adults ages 18 to 34 saw a 69% increase in alcohol-related deaths; 108% increase in drug-related deaths — largely fueled by the opioid crisis; and a 35% increase in death by suicide. Most of the deaths had to do with overdoses from the opioid crisis but other drugs contribute as well and the 35% increase in suicide is probably the most troubling figure from that data. A Death of Despair occurs when someone’s life is so broken and so troubled that they see no other escape and no other option but to commit suicide. Sometimes it is the intention and sometimes it is simply death by attrition due to addiction. Doctors have even coined the phrase “shit life syndrome.” The physical health of this generation has been hurt by the way in which the modern economic and social system has robbed them of the promise and hope that seemed to be a birthright.

Stressors

Some of the increase is also due to the fact that young adults are in more stressful environments like the military and in correctional facilities. Contrary to the idea that Millennials are lazy and so on, it is been this generation that has fought in America’s long wars over the past 18 years. They have come back missing limbs and sometimes their sanity and sense of normalcy. The school-to-prison pipeline has adversely impacted this generation. The advent of police officers at school has turned routine behavioral offenses into criminal offenses. This has left young people trying to start life with a criminal record and trauma from the corrections system. All of these things taken together has left Millennials hopeless, hapless, and helpless in the face of a system that seems to have been determined to not let them in.

Economic Changes

This generation, the greater portion of it, came of age and was looking for their first jobs right when the financial crisis struck. This is combined with the way in which the gig economy rose at the same time companies essentially eliminated any position that could be called entry-level and did not allow employees to train on the job. This was combined with the fact that many low-skill jobs have been eliminated or automated away. These trends have never reversed since the recession if anything they have only gotten worse.

This is the first generation to enter a job market that is truly globalized. Younger workers are competing with workers from all over the world at the same time and the economic horrors of globalization for developed countries has been laid bare. Millennials entered the job market with this already in place. Older works suffered through off-shoring and outsourcing and that was devastating enough. Millennials always had to compete on a global scale and to some degree the deck was already stacked.

Much of the focus on the job market has been how it has affected older workers and how much they have been left out of the American economic recovery and economic story. But the reality is that at least they were apart of the story and are still apart of the story. For many Millennials, they never even got in the book to start with. They were simply left behind and for those born between 1986 and 1991, their economic future will always remain poor. They will never recover the lost wages they didn’t earn during those jobless days in 2008-2011. They will not get back the interest from savings or the return on retirement investment. They will earn less over their lifetimes and their situation with most likely always be somewhat precarious.

Social Changes

Much of the social changes that make the mainstream media have to do with cultural changes with race, gender, and gender relations. However, it is important to remember that while it is often Millennials that push for these changes, they are also affected by how different the world is than it was before. Millennials, especially the younger cohort have borne the brunt of the changes in campus sexual assault policies. The laws around domestic violence, child support, and other changes made when they were children have adversely affected them as adults. It may seem like younger people are better able to handle social changes but that isn’t always the case.

Dating has also changed and that has had a profound effect on this generation, especially for young men. Online dating has broadened our ability to find a partner and a mate and this had created a scenario where young people are not just competing with people in their town, city or neighborhood. They are competing with each other from anywhere with an internet connection. It is among this generation we’ve seen the rise of incels (the involuntarily celibate), Mens’ Rights Activists (who have some legitimate gripes), and the recruitment of young white males to the far-right organizations like the Proud Boys. The culture of casual and easily available sex without much in the way of commitment has had effects that are not yet understood. Simon Sinek likes to blame it on a culture of instant-gratification that gives us what we want when we want it. This is antithetical to dating in his mind. The picture isn’t that simple. Competing with other men and women in your local area is one thing. Competing with strangers from miles away in an app is quite another.

This was the generation of men who failed to launch while the women crowded into schools to get degrees and were introduced into the bad job market already mentioned. Men were written about in books and talked about in the media as a bunch of feckless gamers without any desire to become “real men.” Jordan Peterson has made fixing that his entire business model. Women have not had an easier time. Not only do they have to handle all the above mentioned stressors but also being female in a world that is often not always friendly to them.

Starting families has been difficult as well. Families that do form struggle with childcare costs and many Millennials have opted out of parenthood. These social and economic stressors have made the dating landscape particularly fraught with difficulty. This has lead to challenges that previous generations simply didn’t have to face.

What To Do?

Solutions to the deaths of despair are not easy. It is hard to write public policy for social problems. However, some basic economic investments could curb many problems. Changes like universal childcare could help families and encourage people to have children again. Creating a more equitable society will not give millennials back lost time. But it can create a better future for everyone and given this data, it might just save lives.