How do I cope with the transition from teenager to adult?

[physics user1]

I don't want to be an adult, this idea freaks me out and makes me feel old

Is 18 still an adolescent or is considered adult? When are you an adult and no more an adolescent?
20?

What's the difference between teen and adolescent?

And how did you dealed with the teen-adult transition? Was it painful and full of nostalgia?

 

[rootone]

The age at which a person legally becomes an adult differs with countries and culture, but 18 is quite common.
The legal distinction is there to define whether the person is responsible for their action, or whether the parent is.
Individual personalities vary enormously though, so thus physical age isn't that important other than that younger people suffer less from physical health issues.
I know some teens who are passionate about starting their own business, while I know some 60 year old people who appreciate modern dance music.
It's not as though there is some sharp transition either and suddenly you wake up one day as a completely changed person.

 

[russ_watters]

The word "teenager" refers to the "teen" in your age. As in, eighteen.

 

[micromass]

I hated being an adolescent. I hated every second of it. I'm happy it's gone now.

 

[jtbell]

I was never a teenager. I didn't start really listening to music until I was in high school. At that point I sampled a bit of everything: rock, pop, jazz, classical, country... and settled on classical music. That's all I've listened to, when I've had a choice about it, ever since.

 

[Sophia]

It depends on life circumstances. If you are 18 and have an easy life in college partying etc you still have that feeling of a spoiled teenager :-)
If your life was hard during the childhood and you had lots of responsibilities you may act like an adult sooner.
It all depends on personality and circumstances.

 

[Pepper Mint]

I don't want to be an adult, this idea freaks me out and makes me feel old
Is 18 still an adolescent or is considered adult? When are you an adult and no more an adolescent?
20?...

Kids don't or can't do many things adults do. Some very things adults like doing but kids are not allowed to do at their young ages. You can still act like a teen even after you become really old with a good sense of humor for people to enjoy and learn. You will look naughty and cute. But if you act like an adult or old person while you're just a teen, you will have less or no friends and have to deal with lot of things in life more than other ordinary teenagers will.

...
If your life was hard during the childhood and you had lots of responsibilities you may act like an adult sooner.
...

This is true. I also see most American kids act quite like adults. I guess it's freedom and indulge from their parents or supervisors also. Spoiled kids! but when they become adults, they may change.

 

[Pepper Mint]

I used to meet many people 10-15 years younger than me in a local library. They wore short-sighted glasses and like to correct every single statement or word others said in a tone as if they were Newton, Einstein etc or attorneys. They were still in college and always kept a straight face like busy businessmen/women though. I used to learn a word on PF by lisb to describe these superstars but I forgot as I didn't use it on anyone else then.

 

[physics user1]

I got an easy life without responsibilities, but is more the idea that something won't come back again that makes me feel bad...

 

[Pepper Mint]

... but is more the idea that something won't come back again that makes me feel bad...

In life, making it easy for others also means making it easy for yourself.
To distinguish love from personal possession, I think what you really love will be what you give away or let go of for others to enjoy and learn from it not what you keep forever by your side.
You're not old when your spirit is still young.

 

[physics user1]

I was never a teenager. I didn't start really listening to music until I was in high school. At that point I sampled a bit of everything: rock, pop, jazz, classical, country... and settled on classical music. That's all I've listened to, when I've had a choice about it, ever since.

I also started listening to music mostly at high school and I settled on pop ☺

 

[Pepper Mint]

... I settled on pop ☺

Hey, I have been with vbulletin boards for over a decade, so I can read metaphors. ☻

 

[ProfuselyQuarky]

I was never a teenager. I didn't start really listening to music until I was in high school. At that point I sampled a bit of everything: rock, pop, jazz, classical, country... and settled on classical music. That's all I've listened to, when I've had a choice about it, ever since.

Your age isn't determined by the music you listen to

 

[physics user1]

Your age isn't determined by the music you listen to

Living in SoCal is my dream you're so lucky

 

[collinsmark]

My philosophy is: you can only be young once, but you can be immature for a lifetime!

 

[jtbell]

I got an easy life without responsibilities

At some point, you're going to have to take on the responsibility of supporting yourself financially, at least. For me, this was when I started graduate school and had an assistantship that paid my tuition and basic living expenses. This was back in the days when it was possible for frugal working-class parents in the US to send a kid to a private college (not an elite one!) for undergraduate.

Later on, it helps if you marry someone who can support him/herself financially if necessary. Children are another matter!

 

[Fervent Freyja]

I consider 18+ an adult. Trust me, the new freedom will be worth it! Other adults will take you more seriously, that in itself is worth the transition.

 

[256bits]

, but is more the idea that something won't come back again that makes me feel bad...

I do not feel bad that teenager "zits" never came back.
But now I feel bad that my hair is not coming back.
Trade one for the other, they never told me that.

 

[member 587159]

I hated being an adolescent. I hated every second of it. I'm happy it's gone now.

Why did you hate it if I may ask?

 

[Dembadon]

I don't want to be an adult, this idea freaks me out and makes me feel old

Is 18 still an adolescent or is considered adult? When are you an adult and no more an adolescent?
20?

What's the difference between teen and adolescent?

And how did you dealed with the teen-adult transition? Was it painful and full of nostalgia?

Technically, yes, you are still a teenager. But maturity doesn't always come with age. Sometimes adults still act like teenagers, while some teenagers are more mature than many adults I know.

 

[symbolipoint]

I don't want to be an adult, this idea freaks me out and makes me feel old

Is 18 still an adolescent or is considered adult? When are you an adult and no more an adolescent?
20?

What's the difference between teen and adolescent?

And how did you dealed with the teen-adult transition? Was it painful and full of nostalgia?

If a person is still adolescing then he or she is an adolescent.

Eight-teen years of age is still a "teen" -ager.
Nineteen years of age is still a "teen"-ager.
Twenty and twenty-one are twenty-teen and twenty-one-teen, and these are also teenagers.

A person is an adult when he or she is mentally and physically mature enough.

 

[Choppy]

If you're having trouble with turning 18 years old, man, you're in for a lifetime of heartache.

Life marches on, regardless of whether you're ready for it. Not only will you turn eighteen on a specific date, twelve years later, you'll turn 30, twenty two years later you'll turn 40, and this just keeps on going. The best anyone can do is take good care of him or herself and try to enjoy each stage of life as it passes

 

[mheslep]

A 40 yr old can still be an adolescent. An 18 yr old can be an adult.

 

[EnumaElish]

In the US you're an adult.

http://www.ncsl.org/research/civil-...diction-and-transfer-to-adult-court-laws.aspx

 

[Pepper Mint]

If you happen to get stuck in the middle of being a mature adult and behaving or thinking like a kid, then something like "be yourself" should be applied. People have self-control and self-respect as well as respects for others, any of which if lost could get them "judged" differently. Our brain grows and experiences are accumulated overtime, so no matter how old you are physically, you will probably always act awkwardly on or before things you learn or encounter for the very first time and smoother on others.

 

[mheslep]

In the US you're an adult.

http://www.ncsl.org/research/civil-...diction-and-transfer-to-adult-court-laws.aspx

In the US the legal system treats an 18 yr old as an adult (more or less, still can't drink alcohol), which is not the same thing as actually being one.

 

[ebos]

I'll be 63-teen on my next birthday. Drive carefully, eat well and keep in good shape (and all the other stuff) and you will not dread any part of your life. Perhaps you are looking at other people in your life who are not being very good examples. If that's the case, find some better ones. This site is full of great folks who look forward to every day.