Adult Child Independence and Failure to Launch 

The term “failure to launch” describes young adults who are still living at home with their parents and are not taking on the responsibilities of adulthood. This can be distressing for parents, and it can create marital conflict over how to intervene and a cycle of enabling if they are fearful that the adult child cannot successfully grasp the responsibilities of adulthood. Although there are steps along with many parenting resources for helping resolve failure-to-launch syndrome, a professional counselor can be of enormous benefit if the crisis has existed long term without resolution after many intervention attempts. Although mental health issues like anxiety and depression can make it difficult to transition into adulthood, often parental overprotection (doing too much for too long) can make it difficult for some adult children to learn the skills they need in order to become independent. Your path to resolving failure-to-launch syndrome will include challenges like setting clear expectations and responsibilities, requiring that chores be managed, creating new rules regarding financial support that encourage independence, and working through the natural resistance to change that can be expected, all without returning to a cycle of enabling. You are not alone in this struggle, and with patience, understanding, and support, you can help your child overcome the challenge of becoming an independent adult. 

 

1/18/2024

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