to think that this current batch of 18 year olds are REALLY messed up?

It must be who you’re mixing with OP.

My son was in year 11 when covid hit so he’s a bit older. He missed out on lots due to lockdown but he’s at Uni and is very capable and focused on his future. He’s polite, works part time in a customer facing role and can chat with anyone. He passed his driving test at 18, vital for where we live as public transport isn’t great. He has a lovely group of friends who are all similar and range from 18-22. They all seem to be well rounded young adults. They’re all too into fitness to vape and they drink a lot less than we did at that age. They’re all want to be successful in their career as they know how tough the housing market and life in general is going to be for them.

It annoys me when people knock our young generation, I see so much goodness and determination in so many of them. I’m sure lockdown impacted many of them but that’s to be expected when years of such an important time is taken from them. Most seem to have overcome it well, they just get on with it.

Fuck's sake. I'm as middle class as they come, grew up in Devon, and when I was 18, my mates were doing Es and raving in fields all weekend, one had a heroin problem, and another already had two kids by different dads. We're all in our 40s now and no more or less messed up than any other batch of 40somethings.

This generation are probably less messed up than Gen Xers like me if anything. Loads of them don't even drink.

I disagree. My 18 year old and her friends are bright, hard working - lots of them have part time jobs, all of them have plans for the future. They're all polite and friendly and pretty well organise their own lives. They certainly socialise but not to the detriment of everything else

I would say they're more independent than I was at that age

@TrickyD can I ask what the college course is that she is doing as my DS wants to do accounting but is also not sure about Uni and has just missed out on an apprenticeship with a big 4 at the last hurdle. Your daughter sounds great.

My 18 year old son is a sweetheart. I feel blessed to have him. He has a very gracious and dignified manner. I think he has wonderful interpersonal skills, if a tad on the reserved side. He is good natured and good humoured. He has a lovely group of friends and a really close bestie who is a girl. He doesn't drink or smoke etc - he's always marched to the best of his own drum and he's not really interested in alcohol right now.

My 18 year is not like this, goes to school all week, works part time, no drugs, no boyfriend that I know of but plenty of male friends, saving to buy her first car, in fact I was having a conversation with my dh the other week about how sensible all the teenagers seem to be these days, when I was 18 I was a complete disaster

It was prolific when I was 18 too, 30 odd years ago.

I don't see this there are five teens 16-19 in my family. They are all health enthusiasts, three are vegan help out in community sports clubs. The one that did have a few bumps were minor and experimental with drink, now driving so they don't drink unless away on holiday.

I find them very emotionally mature,🤷‍♀️

My DD is 19. Out of her circle of school friends, a couple do seem lost-one close friend has become v. dependent on weed, although that’s more to do with her bf (whom no one likes) than other factors. Another had some problems adjusting back to in-person school and is still recovering, I think she’s improving now.

Everyone else went to uni and appears to be doing well. The pandemic definitely affected them at the time, but for them, I think it’s resulted in a “get on with my life” attitude, because the pandemic made them aware of how quickly things can change, iyswim.

@FunnysInLaJardin

🤦🏻‍♀️

Yes. As the vast majority of posters have said. RTFT!

But OP spoke about her own experience. And that's valid too. Not ageist.

In which case, giving the OP the benefit of the doubt, my 18yo and his mates are nothing like as described and are polite, don't seem to drink or do drugs and are all round pleasant young people.

I'm mid 40s so my teenage years were the 90s.

I think they're very boring TBH! 🤣 My 18 yold drinks in the local pub sometimes but otherwise spends his time at the gym or playing football. Sometimes smokes weed. At his age, I'd been a whirlwind of sex, drugs & rock n roll for several years already and I was fairly typical of my age range. They never go clubbing and no girlfriends (or boyfriends) have appeared on the scene yet.

Cannot relate to this at all with my 18 year old DC. DC at Uni studying medicine, very health conscious, sociable and focused.

However, you are describing me over 35 years ago!

I’ve done okay.

18 is too young to label.

So many tedious threads about how shit the yoof of today are

That's not what OP said, tbf. She recounted her own experiences with her DC & friends.

She's not giving out. She's asking if others share this experience.

My ds is 18 and not like the op describes. He is very independent. Boarded a plane and visited two European countries by himself from 16. Loves to socialise and drive everywhere. I can't keep up!

I'm lucky - mine doesn't drink or smoke and is very much into a healthy lifestyle - peer group are the same. A few friends kids smoke weed and party a lot but I don't think its any worse than when i was young!!

I agree OP may do seem very socially awkward and completely addicted to devices, rude- which I too feel comes from poor social skills. I think it’s if they have been exposed to too much synthetic stimulation. The shocking amount of vaping amongst the young will be an epic health disaster just like all the smoking diseases we’ve seen from previous generations.

The even younger generation are going to have complex MH issues with anxiety too of the list.

So you wouldn’t have been as proud of her if she was less attractive?

So you should be proud! Well done to her.

In the OP.

So many tedious threads about how shit the yoof of today are

@Goldenbear - pandemic? When was that? Must have missed it in London. Was it on the news?

I work in L&D and have recruited, worked with and mentored hundreds of interns over the last 14 years. I believe the lack of resilience comes down, in a way, to better parenting - or in some cases over parenting/helicopter-ing. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing that they are more 'immature'. But the work ethic is something that has changed dramatically in the last 7 years or so - pre pandemic.

That is of course my own experience and doesn't relate to EVERY 18 year old in the entire world. And of course every generation will have different quirks. It doesn't make my experience boloney though.

Sigh. Honestly. Cop on.

With the horrendous conditions teens and young people face in many parts of the world, where their lives are really impacted, it's utterly ridiculous to be making such ludicrous statements.

We are very proud of our 18 year old granddaughter.
Rather than getting shoehorned into some third rate university course with a debt at the end of it she is studying accountancy at our local college.
She was interviewed last week by a large international company. The feedback to the recruiting firm was ‘We can’t believe that was her first interview’ and ‘She was the best prepared candidate we’ve seen in 20 years’ and ‘Where on earth did you find her?’
She starts immediately after her next exam in June, pay £25,000 at 18, she is delighted as are we and her parents. Doesn’t drink or smoke, saved up and bought herself a car, and is strikingly pretty, (not that this would have affected her being offered the job 🤔)