Doomers. A fresh term used to describe people who have given up on the world and themselves. It sounds jarring. Aren’t people who struggle with this degree of hopelessness uncommon? Why is a term needed for it? Doomers are a group prevalent on Reddit, which is where I found out they existed. I was sucked into a rabbit-hole of heartbreak, poverty and suicidal ideation, and I was horrified. Not by what I read, but by its prevalence, and I think the Ode To Millennials-Gen Z is one example of why Doomerism has become so common. One aspect of ‘The Ode’ that is agreed upon to be true by both the younger and older generations, is the idea that Gen-Z is going to inherit hardships. The Ode outlined just a few struggles we are going to be saddled with and have already been affected by. Corporate corruption is the problem The Ode focused on, and I agree with everything stated. Corporate greed is disgusting. It’s an issue for Gen Z because we haven’t had the time or the opportunity to secure a place for ourselves in this world. Rather, many Gen Z are currently floating between dead-end jobs, living paycheck to paycheck or living with parents who have the stability Gen Z lacks. We’re broke, and as such we can’t afford housing, can’t afford healthcare, and according to many testimonies from my generation, can’t even afford to raise children. Corporate greed behaves a lot like fungi, with mycelium that dig into society, releasing spores that cause other catastrophes, infecting the younger generation with the sickness of destitution. One such spore is the climate crisis. The Ode skimmed this subject, but for us it’s the challenge we most fear. The severity of the climate crisis has only been realized recently, and now the pressure is on to find a solution that our predecessors couldn’t. It’s a source of terror for many of us, since too many, not stepping up could mean the end of day. That’s a pressure so heavy no gauge can measure it, and yet Gen Z struggles to shoulder it anyway. Key word being ‘struggle’, which takes me into my next idea. The idea that Gen Z’s response to these hardships is less of a noble attempt to stand up and face adversity, and more like coping with anxiety. Gen Z is torn between two responses to hardship. The first is that we have a sense of duty to solve these crises, that we can improve things. This perspective is the one The Ode focuses on, so it’s the view I want to examine first. In short, Gen Z has a crippling ego. What The Ode portrayed as ambition to solve problems set before us is more accurately described as an egotistical generation’s way of enacting superiority. I say this not to be harsh to my generation but to reflect what I’ve seen and heard from peers. Gen Z has a keen sense of morality, with no tolerance for anyone who does wrong, even minor offenses. This seemed positive initially, but it very quickly transformed from moral uprightness into moral superiority. Social Media echo chambers are to blame for this. With the loud opinions of extremists reaching the ears of many. The truth is that Gen Z is not a united generation at all, we have been torn asunder by our own sense of ‘duty’ and have turned on each other instead of solving anything. Cancel culture came about because of this egotistical view on morality, and it ended up ballooning so much that a common and disturbing ideal of Gen Z came about. ‘Reject your ancestors, because they were wrong, and you are right’. The Ode acknowledges this, citing that those of Gen Z have ‘politely’ asked their predecessors to move out of the way and let them solve problems. I, a Gen Z, am here to say that it doesn’t come from politeness, but rather hatred of everything that we think earlier generations stood for. For decades, our generation has been told, through pieces like The Ode, that we are the ones who will change things, that we’re ‘destined for greatness’ and that we’ll fix every problem laid before us, so it isn’t shocking that my generation has become a generation of narcissists. Narcissists that have only just reached the age where life starts humbling them. This is reflected in Gen Z’s second response to hardship. Nihilism. The sad truth is that many of us have given up. The ‘Doomers’ I described before are not a small group, but rather a massive community with thousands of people outwardly expressing that they’ve given up. We’ve heard messages like The Ode, and have tried to stand up for what is right, and many of us have been punished by the world for it, without any improvement. As similar as the two generations are, the differences Gen Z has have set us up for this. Our culture is focused on the self, on doing what you want to accomplish, rejecting family and living for yourself. Yet, what we can do right now seemingly amounts to nothing, and the lives of countless Gen Z have been ruined in turn. It’s no wonder then, that people give up. When we constantly see how others around us succeed when we can’t, it’s no surprise Gen Z has the highest suicide rate of any generation. I don’t stand by this. I believe I can live a happy life as a Gen Z, and that others can as well, by realizing that it only takes a few contributions to make big changes. I chose psychology as my major out of desire to raise my generation up, to help people out of the pit of nihilism and into the freedom of connection. We must unite, throw away our personal biases and look towards the future we all want, and have tricked ourselves into thinking we can’t have. That is my ode to Generation Z.

The environment is everything because you are always living in it, whether you're in a big city or rural village, you are still living in an environment. I live in Kansas, and we take our environment very seriously here because a majority of the remaining Tallgrass Prairie is found here. This consideration for the ecosystem would elude me throughout my childhood, but a single event brought it to the forefront of my thoughts. The April 14th, 2012, EF3 tornado. It was an overlooked tornado when compared to others in Kansas history, but it was no less devastating, to both the people and the environment. My family and I participated in the cleanup efforts, and the destruction to the habitat shocked me. Trees were destroyed, resulting in the deaths of countless wildlife, and the Arkansas River was polluted with debris. I was able to finally see how the environment is linked to humanity. how our presence can damage wildlife, and how it needs our protection. Since the tornado, I have worked to advocate for the environment by maintaining my town's cleanliness, picking up litter, cleaning up after festivals and sports events, tending to the city's garden, raising funds for groups that help keep the environment in good condition, and spreading the message of environmental stewardship to others just by being there and helping. If I were to have climbed a mountain and could plant a flag, it would read, "I climbed this mountain despite having asthma. It hurt the entire time, and people told me it would be for the best if I gave up, but I did not, and I made it to the summit. So remember to never give up on whatever mountain you're climbing, because every mountain has a peak".

I have only woken up in a hospital once in my life, and it was one of the most terrifying experiences I ever had. I felt no physical pain when I awoke, and the oxygen mask on my face fed my pure, blessedly clean air. However, the pain I felt in my heart when I saw my parents’ frightened and exhausted faces overlooking me is one I will never forget. That was the day of my first asthma attack. I am diagnosed with asthma and also struggle with seasonal allergies and sickness. Let me say this, it is not easy going through life with mucus-filled lungs and constantly irritated sinuses, but I have managed to do it anyways. It took almost ten years for my asthma and allergies to finally be fully treated, but even though I have medicine to keep me stable, there are simply some things I cannot, and likely will never do. I cannot participate in sports, I cannot spend much time outdoors in the summer, I often have to wear facial coverings in the autumn, and paranoia is my closest friend whenever sickness strikes my area. When Covid 19 first struck, my health was threatened more than others, and my anxiety spiked during that time. And all of that is without mentioning the upwards of 600 dollars that are put towards the pills and inhalers I will likely be taking for the rest of my days. Speaking of my future, however, it is not all doom and gloom. Ten years from now, I plan on being out of college with a master’s in Psychology. I have 27 college credits already completed, putting me a year ahead of other students. I plan to transition from college to a two-year internship, as that is needed to get the Kansas Psychology Licensure. I can either set up a practice or become a psychologist for an agency, a decision I will make later on. Ten years from now, I will be three to four years into having a position as a Clinical Psychologist, serving my community. That brings me to my last point. My career path will have a massive positive impact on my patients and the community around me. My philosophy is that it should never be understated how crucial psychology work is in keeping a community stable and emotionally well. Psychologists are in massive demand and as a result, they are needed nationwide. For example, my hometown of Haysville is severely lacking in psychologists, there being less than twenty available, and a decent number of them are completely booked or on the verge of retirement. America is lacking in therapy centers and widespread knowledge about mental health and the consequence is that every year, suicide numbers rise by the hundreds, if not thousands. I was in a situation like that myself, once upon a time, and I have always dedicated myself to helping others turn away from the noose after I overcame my struggles. The mental health crisis in America is an epidemic, for a set of diseases for which there is no vaccine, no one-stop cure that fixes everything in one sweeping motion like physical ailments can have. I know I can help, and that is what I intend to do, but it is something I can only do with your support. Despite all of the fierce battles I have had with my health over the years, I have no intention of letting my physical weaknesses temper my emotional strengths. Mental health is a medical condition that can be treated, just like mine were.