Carpe Diem

When Blood Is Young

Life is short. Just Do It. Take the risk. Carpe Diem.

Since the beginning of our time, humans have been trying to live up to something. Whether it be their neighbor, a celebrity, a parent, or a sibling, it’s in our nature to feel the need to accomplish, to triumph. (Check out this essay from Psychology Today to learn more about how society today strives to be anyone but themselves: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fighting-fear/201308/be-yourself-vs-being-somebody-else )

Although, as time speeds along, it’s been found that shockingly enough, we only have a limited time to do so!

Since we aren’t immortal, seizing the day should be done in your youth, when you are still able to.

World-renowned poet Robert Herrick said it best back in the 17th century… “age is best which is the first, when youth and blood are warmer” (Herrick, 9/10).

Studies show that during the young adult years of your life, your neurological makeup encourages you to take more risks than later on in life. Social rewards stemming from pop culture and levels of accountability are also huge factors as to why children and young adults take more successful risks than any other age group. (For more on risk and reward read this article from The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stacia-pierce/why-taking-risks-comes-wi_b_4235351.html )

Our brains are complicated masses of new thoughts and opinions that arrive upon every twist and turn in our lives. However, it is easily proven that in our teenage years, our brains are geared toward risk taking.

Dr. Nina Mounts of Psychology Today states, “A strong connection between the amygdala, the part of our brain responsible for emotional reactivity, and the prefrontal cortex, which controls emotional regulation and critical thinking, allows for the reward sensitivity part of the brain to become very active” (Mounts, 1)

This area is known as the nucleus accumben, and it is flooded with hormones and reward signals when teenagers take risks or make uncertain decisions.

So even if we wanted to live a boring, risk-free life as a teen, our brain would work against us. The neurological science behind risk & reward, and the urge to seize the day is best backed up in the young adult years of our lives.

While risk and reward are extremely important to the brains of teenagers, the thrill of a daring decision is also very important socially.

As teen psychologist Burnett Heyes once said, “Adolescence is a developmental period characterized by a social reorientation” (Heyes, 2005).

During these years of a person’s life, they learn to care more about what their peers think of them than what they themselves do. In today’s modern culture, taking chances is an important role in the social status of an individual. Teens especially feel the need to take risks and fit in because when they do, a stimulative chemical called dopamine is released into their brains which makes a person feel generally happier.

Research has also shown that rewards are better enjoyed in a group. For example, when a young adult accomplishes a goal on their own, it is a rewarding feeling. However if the same goal is achieved with others around, the rewarding feeling lasts longer and is more prominent. Because of these social and mental rewards, teens are more prone to taking a risk, simply for the feel-good attitude and social climb that comes with it.

Being with friends is one of the more important aspects of a young adult’s life, because they are more geared towards impressing that group of individuals than anyone else. However, when we grow older and have children, our peers are no longer as meaningful in our lives.

Do you ever wonder why adults seem to think having kids is so time-consuming? Well, that’s because it is. In a recent study, it is shown that in the standard work day, an adult with children has around 2 and a half hours a day for leisure activities and relaxation.

This may seem like a lot until you look at the next chart, which shows that teens have more than twice that amount, almost five hours a day for actions of their choice. Data shows teens using “approximately 5.2 hours a day for leisure and sport activities” (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).

Adults spend a lot of their time either working, caring for others, or completing necessary errands daily. This leaves almost no space for personal time or relaxation. Whereas young adults have multiple hours to do what they want, which leads to a higher level of risk taking because of the lowered levels of accountability and responsibility.

As John Keating points out in The Dead Poets Society, “There is a time for daring and there’s a time for caution, and a wise man understands which is called for” (DPS, 1989).

The best time for daring nature and risk is in the freest time of our lives, the teenage years. 1.Hormones inside of our complicated brains support the idea of rewards through neurological patterns. 2.The necessity of social interaction and acceptance is at it’s height during these years, as 3.well as opportunity and willingness. So if you would like to truly live before you die, make sure to do so during the prime time for risk, youth.

#carpediem #carpe #diem #risk #youth #teenagers #time #seize