When I was in college, my grandma often talked about what would happen if you spent too many hours working and didn't remember to enjoy life. In her words, I’d be old and gray before I knew it, without having really lived my life. I’d also find myself empty, dissatisfied, and depressed.
By the time I was teaching high school English to sophomores, I realized she was right. I was becoming burned out, and so were the students I taught. Day after day, I would ridicule myself for ending up like this. But it didn’t happen overnight, did it?
Now at the age of 30, I’d love to say that I have my grandma’s advice figured out. That I’ve mastered the balance of navigating the grind and having fun. The truth is that I’m only just beginning. I’ve started taking one Sabbath day a week, but I’ve realized that alone isn’t enough. Our bodies need daily rest when we’ve lived in a state of exhaustion for decades. And that’s what many Gen Zers are experiencing right now.
In a news report covered by West Central Online, Gen Zers are experiencing the highest levels of mental health strain and chronic disease pressure of any generation. This isn’t new news; Barna’s 2020 report found it, but it’s still startling. 6 years later, not much has changed. But much has grown worse.
How do we reach a generation that’s tired on the inside? How do we stop them before it’s too late? How do we talk about faith to a generation whose nervous systems are exhausted?
While public reactions believe this exhaustion stems from weakness or over-diagnosis, culture shows us this is about a generation growing up under sustained pressure with limited recovery time, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Young adults aren’t just “too sensitive” or “over-medicated,” but they haven’t been given the tools and permission to live.
How Chronic Stress Is Leading to Chronic Illness.
As I look back over my teen and Gen Z years, I see a lot of trauma. We’ve survived the pandemic during formative years, educational disruption, economic instability, climate anxiety, rising depression, and digital overload. This chronic stress has directly correlated to the chronic illness we’re seeing worldwide. Public Health Post reports that this cumulative nervous system strain has become a matter of life or death.
“In the last ten years, rates of obesity, depression, high blood pressure, and other chronic conditions have increased among young adults.”
Not only are chronic health issues occurring, but they’re co-occurring with other serious mental illnesses. A new CDC study by Kathleen Watson reports that these stats reflect a constant, draining, and never-ending pain for many young adults, with consequences they won’t outgrow as they mature into adults.
Nearly 60% of adults aged 18 to 34 reported at least one chronic condition, and more than 19 million young people live with two. From asthma to diabetes, migraines, arthritis, depression, anxiety, and autoimmune disorders, those who live with chronic health issues find everyday life, relationships, work, school, and fun nearly impossible to manage.
Mental and Physical Pain Are Deeply Connected.
Before we try to offer the best advice to those who are suffering, we need to start with a healthy dose of empathy, validation, and facts.
First, those who are in pain and struggling with chronic health issues need empathy and validation from you. They don’t need to be told that “someone has it worse” or “things will get better.” They need to know that you and the Lord are with them where they are, here and now. Second, you need to know the facts behind mental and physical health issues. They aren’t just in “your head,” but real chronic issues that need to be addressed with love and care.
Anxiety does scientifically cause sleep and health issues. Likewise, depression increases inflammation and changes in your mood. Stress, culminating in an autoimmune flare-up, can lead to conditions that affect your thyroid and immune system. Instead of separating mental health from physical health, we need to realize that the mind and body are not separate. God made us bio-psycho-social-relational-emotional beings for a reason; therefore, we should not isolate or compartmentalize the issues we face into such categories.
Gen Z is seeing these diagnoses earlier and earlier because the body truly does keep the score. The earlier we face these “traumas” and health issues, the more chronic health issues will show up in our lives. Especially when we don’t take the time to process them in healthy manners and live in bodies where rest has never been built into our system.
Gen Z Is Seeking Rest, Not Just Recognition.
Compared to previous years, Gen Z is talking more about mental and physical health issues. This is a huge contrast to the silence in older generations, and the transparency is admirable. But just because the issues are being talked about doesn’t mean solutions are being invented. In fact, some things, such as social media, have become a double-edged sword. We have awareness, but to the point of overwhelm. We see posts about anxiety and depression, but who do we believe? Is that recipe to cure chronic health issues supported by science or just someone’s opinion?
The deeper cost, perhaps, is the spiritual cost of living in constant survival mode. From disconnection to loss of meaning and moral exhaustion, young adults are at a loss. We long for safety, rest, and belonging, but feel we can’t afford to take a break. It’s been baked into us, but we don’t know how to get it out. Like a little bit of yeast in dough, we’re confused about what this generation actually needs to receive true rest and solutions.
Gen Z's Need for Less Advice and More Compassion.
Instead of offering Gen Z insincere platitudes, we need to offer them accessible mental and physical health care, especially if they don’t have insurance. In addition, we need to show them that our community is a safe space for them and their chronic health issues. They won’t be judged, but loved. They will receive mentorship, not censorship. They will see rhythms of rest lived out and modeled, not overhauled and ignored. It sounds radical, but this approach is simple: It offers support over solutions.
You and I don’t need to have all the solutions or witty answers to this problem. I don’t believe God asks any of us to do this. But He does ask us to walk humbly with Him, to love deeply, and care about those who are sick and hurting. We need to shift this responsibility from individuals to systems. From them, to us. From blame to how can I make a difference today?
The true question we need to evaluate isn’t why Gen Z is struggling, but it’s why we expected them not to.
A Prayer for Healing Rest from Exhaustion
Dear Jesus,
Instead of correcting a generation that is suffering, help us to be part of the solution. We don’t need to have all the answers, but we do need to care. Show us how we can help this epidemic and to love instead of judging. When we’re tempted to give platitudes or advice, remind us that people just need our concern and presence. And we can give that because of your Spirit within us. We love, praise, and thank you, Jesus.
Amen.
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Vitaly Gariev
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