No job at 24 weighs more than money
ladiaria.com.uy asks if youth unemployment influences anxiety and depression, and that question deserves more than clichés.
In an article on ladiaria.com.uy, it asks whether high youth unemployment has anything to do with depression and anxiety in young people. Being without work at 24 is not a minor detail.
I think it's a necessary question, and I'm glad it's being asked out loud. For a long time we treated young people's distress as a matter of character: if you feel bad, it's because you don't try hard enough. But when you've been sending resumes for months and no one answers, the wear goes beyond the money that's missing.
What weighs besides the paycheck
I believe unemployment alone doesn't explain depression or anxiety. Saying otherwise would oversimplify something with many causes. What does weigh is uncertainty: not knowing if next month you'll be able to pay for transportation, your phone, or your share of the rent.
«Being without work at 24 is not a minor detail.»
Shame also weighs. In many Hispanic families, the first job works as a rite of passage: the day you stop receiving and start contributing. When that takes time, the question "and what do you do?" at dinner becomes an exam.
And comparison weighs. On social media you see peers from your generation with their first paycheck, their first car, or a trip you can't afford. You see your inbox. That distance between what they show and what you live wears you down more than is admitted.
For those who migrated, the weight multiplies. In cities like Santiago or Chicago, a young person without support networks faces paperwork, language, and loneliness at the same time. Looking for work then becomes a job without pay.
Neither "try harder" nor "just pray"
The two most repeated phrases in church fail in different ways. "Try harder" assumes that willpower is enough for everything, and there are sorrows that don't yield to effort. "Just pray" turns prayer into a substitute for professional help. They don't compete: prayer and therapeutic support can go together.
Jesus said: "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28, ESV). The invitation is for the weary, not for those who already have everything figured out. That includes the one who has had eight interviews and no contract.
I also remember that a person's worth doesn't depend on what they produce: "Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad" (Proverbs 12:25, ESV). A good word doesn't fix the economy, but it sustains the one who hears it.
The church also counts those who don't work
I wonder how we value in church those who don't have a job. When every Sunday's greeting is "and what do you do for work?", we unintentionally rank: the one with a steady position seems worth more than the one searching. It shouldn't be that way.
If you're in that situation, there's a concrete step: tell someone you trust. Don't carry it alone. Talk to your pastor, a family member, or a friend who knows how to listen. And if anguish stays with you for weeks, seek professional help without guilt; asking for help is not a lack of faith.
In an emergency, call your country's emergency services. At https://findahelpline.com you can find the helpline available where you live.
And how does your church treat those who don't have a job? I'd like to read you.
