If your children were born between 1980 and 1999: a psychological perspective inspired by Carl Jung that can help you understand them better.
The Threshold Generation: Why They Feel What Others Don’t
Being born on a threshold means living with one foot in each era: before and after the internet, before and after smartphones, before and after information overload. That’s why they can understand tradition, but also recognize its shortcomings. They can value science, but they aren’t satisfied with material things alone.
Many of them perceive the inner world with greater intensity:
They ask themselves existential questions from a young age.
They are sensitive to injustice, emptiness, and meaninglessness.
They are troubled by superficiality and the “automatic.”
They have a real need for coherence, not appearances.
This sensitivity can be an enormous strength… but also a burden if no one teaches them to understand it.
The collective unconscious and recurring symbols
When people go through crises, strange dreams, or feelings that are difficult to explain, symbols often appear that repeat themselves over and over: water, fire, snakes, doors, deserts, storms, falls, ascents. It doesn’t matter the country, culture, or religion.
The central idea is simple: the inner world communicates through images. And when someone has a fast-paced external life but a soul that needs depth, the symbols become more intense.
That’s why many adults born during this period recount more vivid dreams, with complex stories or strong sensations. It doesn’t mean they’re “wrong.” It might mean their inner world is crying out for attention.
When sensitivity turns into pain: anxiety, emptiness, and identity crisis
Here’s the crucial point: the same inner openness can become light or suffering.
When they don’t understand what’s happening to them, this generation may experience:
Anxiety without a “logical” cause.
A feeling of not belonging.
Emptiness even when they have “everything they need to be okay.”
Depression linked to a lack of meaning.
Spiritual exhaustion, as if they’re disconnected from themselves.
Many parents try to “fix” this quickly: normalize it, demand results, minimize emotions, push them toward a standard life. But sometimes what they need isn’t pressure, but understanding and support.
It’s not rebellion: it’s spiritual hunger.
A common characteristic is a hunger for truth. They don’t want to repeat empty phrases. They can’t sustain meaningless rituals. They don’t accept easy answers to profound questions.
That’s why they explore:
Depth psychology and therapy.
Alternative spiritualities.
Eastern philosophies.
Mysticism and symbolism.
Contemplative practices.
It’s not always a loss of faith. Often it’s a search for a more mature, conscious, and lived faith. A faith that can coexist with questions without breaking down.
The clash with the digital age: too much information, too little silence. This generation has learned to live at a fast pace:
They process information quickly.
They adapt quickly.
They are constantly informed.
But the soul doesn’t function at digital speed. The excess of stimuli robs them of something essential: silence, contemplation, presence. And without these spaces, anxiety grows, the mind becomes exhausted, and life becomes noisy from within.
That’s why many are returning to simplicity: nature, pauses, breathing, slow routines, partial disconnection. It’s not a fad: it’s an inner need.
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