Friday, July 27, 2018

Understanding The Failure To Launch Syndrome

By Cynthia Patterson


It is very frustrating and also heart-breaking for a parent when they have a child struggling to leave home and start living independently. This is a situation that could make a parent to wonder whether they made some mistake that is inhibiting growth of the child or if that child is just being lazy. Whereas both of those scenarios are possible, there are a number of factors that lead to failure to launch syndrome. The factor that leads to it determines the treatment mode.

The term is a common way of describing young adults who are struggling with the transition to adulthood. It is defined as inability to leave home and support oneself, irrespective of the underlying causes. The people that suffer from it are young adults and will appear to be stuck or are not maturing in the expected manner. The majority of young adults will find the rites of passage into adulthood encouraging and enabling. For some of them however, the changes cause regressive behaviors.

The majority of young people need some extra support during the period when they are transitioning into adulthood. It could include some period when they are at home with parents. This does not however imply that all such young adults living with parents will fail in their launch. It is a situation that is only considered after a long period of dependency from that person, which happens without notable progress or motivation. Symptoms of the syndrome include low persistence level, reduced distress tolerance and the failure to take responsibility.

There are a number of factors that influence the condition. The style of parenting, family experience and relationship between children and their parents will be a factor to consider. Parents that are overprotective of their children instill lack of autonomy in the children. When children are faced with challenges that are appropriate to their age at various stages, they get to miss out on ability to develop confidence.

Substance abuse is another possible cause. Isolation, entitlement and unhealthy family systems are possible factors that lead to it. When addiction is present, it is possible that failure to launch might not be noticed. Young adults that suffer from chemical addiction are more likely to experience diminished cognitive, emotional and financial stability. Regardless of the type of addiction, everyone that suffers from an addiction lives a life that is unmanageable.

Give that there are different factors that interfere with successful launch, there will also be different treatment options. It is advisable to involve the family when it comes to setting require expectations, setting of short-term goals and creation of a long-term plan. All these should be sustainable. In the end, these help to bring the affected back on track. In many cases, the people affected will be better off living with other young adults without the same challenges.

The people that are suffering from the syndrome should be given clear responsibilities and need to face natural consequences if they are not able to live up to the responsibilities. It also helps to use organizational coaches to help those affected establish plans which are able to help them accomplish goals.

Individual therapy helps a great deal too. This helps to address doubts about the sense of effectiveness in the person. Therapy will also help to increase awareness of emotions and the ability to communicate the emotions effectively.




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