Entering this phase, I think every one of us gets a reality check. We don’t actually become independent. In fact, sometimes life feels stuck, like all the paths and doors are closed, and you really don’t know what to do.

For me, this is the stage where we get stuck between academic pressure and future plans. We face various options, but somehow, we cannot decide where we should go or which path we should take. You make a career plan, but somehow, it doesn’t work out. When you start researching the career you have chosen, you suddenly face many barriers. Maybe this is one of the worst feelings: to realise that you can’t walk on the path you have chosen. You are just standing there, still trying to figure out which path to take next.

This happens to many of us. At this stage, many elders give us advice, and so do the people around us. But they are giving advice based on their own opinions and experiences, and we don’t always know whether their advice is actually good for us or not. This creates another kind of confusion about our lives.

We all know that one wrong decision can mess up our future, so we feel like we have to be careful with every step we take. And in the end, the consequences of our decisions are something we have to face ourselves.

Sometimes, we have to hear so many irrelevant comments about ourselves that are not even true. But what do those comments make us? They make us less confident in ourselves and make us feel worthless.

In this competitive world, we think about how we can keep running and take the first position without keeping our minds and souls at peace, just to achieve what we really want. But we always end up taking the harder path because of those comments. These comments especially come from our parents or the people close to us.

At this point, we need people the most, but very few people actually help us. Almost everyone either mocks us or does not even try to guide us. Yes, it is true that we have to choose our own path and do things on our own. No one will always be there for us. But still, as human beings, we need support and guidance. Because of the lack of it, many students lose their way and no longer have the courage to walk on that path again.

It is not that this is the only phase of life when people face these kinds of challenges, and it is definitely not the end. But we can say that the struggle starts at this age. At this point, you have to choose the right path, think seriously about your life, and deal with the pressure of making the right decision.

It affects us mentally a lot. When you are trying to figure something out many times but your brain just feels frozen, that’s where the frustration begins. During this time, many people start feeling like they want to hurt themselves or even take their own lives because they have never gone through this phase before.

You come out of childhood, then go through adolescence, and finally enter adulthood, which we often consider one of the hardest phases of our lives. We have to become responsible, and so many things need to be done on our own. Sometimes, that pressure feels like it can’t leave our minds. It stays in our heads and keeps growing day by day.

It affects our health a lot too. Because of the stress, most of the time we don’t feel like eating, and a lack of sleep makes our bodies weak. We lose focus and interest in doing things we used to enjoy. We lose hope, and our lives start to feel like they are not moving forward.

This is where comparison starts. We start thinking that everyone else is doing well. The truth is, we all go through difficult phases, but no one wants to share their problems because they are afraid of being judged.

Eventually, we cannot blame an age or anyone for this phase. Almost everyone feels stuck and faces difficulties at this point in their lives. We should be more careful when giving advice and be kinder to people around us. When someone is feeling lost, we have to try to understand things through their lens, not ours. Otherwise, we might lose some capable people from our lives simply because we failed to understand what they were going through.