Emerging Adults in a World on Fire: Contextualizing “Stuckness”
Tuesday April 29, 8:00-9:30 PM ET
(will be recorded for registrants)
Mike Langlois, LICSW
Teaching Associate in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Elena Rangel
Certified Life Coach, Private Practice
Since 2020, young adults (18–28) have navigated historic social & economic upheaval. Over 50% live with their parents in the U.S.—a record high—mirrored globally across OECD countries. Employment plummeted during the pandemic & has only recently stabilized; yet even now, only about 45% of U.S. 18–34-year-olds are fully financially independent, & less than one-third report feeling engaged or happy at work.Despite this, young adults remain remarkably optimistic: 75% of Americans aged 18–34 believe their personal futures are bright. Globally, youth express stronger hope for the future than older generations, especially in lower-income countries. This optimism endures even as dominant narratives label them “unmotivated,” “entitled,” or “failing to launch.”
But what if “stuckness” is not a pathology, but a resistance to a system that no longer works? These data demand a shift away from purely intrapsychic explanations. Young people’s so-called immobility often reflects rational responses to unstable labor markets, unaffordable housing, & a crumbling social contract. BIPOC LGBTQ+ youth face compounded challenges—including higher rates of housing instability, job insecurity, mental health struggles, & financial hardship—due to the intersecting impacts of racism, queerphobia, & systemic inequality.
This webinar will discuss working with emerging adults deemed “stuck” by parents & society with an eye towards to tremendous social upheaval that should not be located entirely or even primarily intrapsychically, but rather seen as an eruption & opportunity in the face of the crazy-making aspects of late-stage capitalism. We will discuss ways the therapist & caregivers can queer the paradigm of stuck adult, how it parallels the binary of play/interpretation, freedom/compliance, & how our own countertransference can be understood in terms of our own embeddedness in capitalist projects.
Registration $30
Please Register in Advance at https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_a44arJusSXi9_OIYyTK-qA
Paying It Forward
Candidates, trainees, & early career please contact directly for reduced rate options. If you have significant financial privilege, & you want to support early career therapists from a variety of racial & class backgrounds, you are welcome to fund a full or partial scholarship.
Host:
Mike Langlois, LICSW is currently a Teaching Associate in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, where he supervises interns and clinicians. He has served on the Massachusetts Commission for LGBTQ Youth. Mike serves as a resource on digital literacy & social justice issues such as dismantling racism, LGBTQIA awareness & safety, disability awareness, and non-traditional families. He has served in an advisory capacity to NASW on youth suicide prevention. Mike is a member of APsaA and APA’s Division 39 as well as the Board of Psychoanalysis for Social Responsibility.
Elena Rangel (they/them) is a professional Life & Leadership Coach Life with certifications in DBT Foundations, Motivational Interviewing & NeuroAffective Relational Model Level 1. Their background in accessible & trauma-informed movement, together with corporate coaching, career coaching & recovery coaching skills, creates a cohesive healing model for each individual. For the past few years Elena has concentrated on professional coaching with an emphasis on supporting the LGBTQ+ community. They are passionate about helping entrepreneurs, executives & artists create pathways out of stagnation, finding clarity on goals, & taking supported, consistent action.