Identity crisis: what it is, characteristics and how it is treated in therapy

Ask yourself the following question in a conscious and thoughtful way: "What am I here for?"

It is clear that the answer is not easy, in fact, it is quite likely that you will ask yourself more questions. You may even have started to wonder a bit about the meaning of your own existence.

Searching for answers to these types of questions may have left you a bit with a bad body. It is normal. The emotions you have felt are what the people who are submerged in an identity crisis. Let's see what they consist of.

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What is an identity crisis?

We can describe identity crises as thought patterns and other cognitive processes focused on the meaning of one's own existence, both past and future, marked by a significant level of emotional distress and uncertainty. It is a period in which the person has many doubts about himself, accompanied by feelings of emptiness and loneliness and various questions such as why he is in this world, who he really is and what is his goal vital.

We tend to associate these crises with adolescence, a time of profound changes and uncertainty related to personality and the roles of the individual, which are not yet well defined nor do they have guarantees of how their future. The adolescent has questions about his sexual orientation, about who he should associate with in high school, what to study in the future, what job he wants to have as an adult ...

Although they are very frequent in adolescence, identity crises are not exclusive to this period. We are all going to manifest some of these crises at various times in our lives, especially in periods marked by big changes such as a new job, having a child, losing a family member or move. In fact, identity crises are synonymous with evolutionary crises, typical of changing life stages according to models such as those of Erich Fromm or Erik Homburger Erikson.

These crises are usually transitory. The subject is trying different ways to get ahead, resolving this internal conflict and ending his identity crisis. However, in some cases they can last too long giving way to an emotional imbalance so great that it negatively affects the psychological health of the individual. A person in a long and deep identity crisis could develop mood problems, such as depression and anxiety disorders.

A diagnostic concept?

Identity crises they usually appear in moments of great changes and high emotional tension, such as adolescence, after a romantic breakup or after losing your job. It is a process full of uncertainty and fear but, in itself, it is not a psychological problem, much less a disorder. As we said, we are all going to manifest an identity crisis at some point and, in most cases, we are going to know how to get ahead. However, it can sometimes lead to mental health problems if they last too long or cannot be resolved.

The expression "identity crisis" is a rather colloquial, "street" concept. It is a term that patients or psychologists often use to make themselves understood, actually referring to those periods in which there is a strong life crisis, full of great uncertainty and that it is not very well known where it is going to go stop. They are moments of deep anxiety, but they can also be loaded with opportunities and progress.

Identity crises occur in momentous moments in life, moments of change in which although we do not know exactly what is going to happen, although that does not necessarily have to be something bad or synonymous with pathology some. These are situations in which there is a rethinking of vital issues, having a crisis that can stem from both something negative, such as a divorce or a health problem, and something positive, such as a job change, a new home or having a child.

These identity crises are not disorders or pathologies, but they can lead to one. If the person becomes obsessed with not knowing who exactly he is, not finding an answer to his questions and feeling great anxiety and uncertainty about it, he can develop health problems. Anxiety and depression are two emotional states that can appear if the identity crisis has not been resolved satisfactorily over time because the affected person feels great frustration at not being able to find out what their place in the world.

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Characteristics of an identity crisis

Identity crises are not a disorder. They lack diagnostic identity as such and we will not find them as a clinical category either in the DSM-5 or in the ICD-11. They are not pathological, but if not resolved, they could lead to a mental health problem if the emotional imbalance associated with these questioning processes lasts too long. Likewise, we can find a series of "symptoms" suffered by people who are in an identity crisis.

The main aspect that we find in people in an identity crisis are thoughts about the meaning of their existence, which take center stage throughout the day. The individual verbalizes them with phrases such as "I feel lost, meaningless" or "I don't know what to do with my life." These thoughts can be truly intrusive., interrupting you while you are doing your chores and causing great emotional distress.

The person tries to end their restlessness by looking for an answer, but does not find it easily, which makes them feel lost and aimless. The discomfort interferes in his life, preventing him from doing other things such as going out with friends or practicing his hobbies, since he feels that he must first answer the question "who am I?" You feel empty, alone, and out of place.

The pathological aspect of all this is in “getting hooked”, that is, that the patient begins to obsess over thoughts and feelings associated with the identity crisis. If you give them too much thought, it can become counterproductive, and can lead to the typical obsession in a case of depression, especially if the crisis has lasted longer than it should and the affected person does not have the feeling that there is progress or answers.

Psychotherapy treatment

As we have mentioned before, identity crises are not a disorder and normality should not be pathologized. Everyone, throughout their existence, experiences an identity crisis at some point, whatever that may be. It may be that we have lost our job, our partner has died or that we have had a child, moments crisis that involve introducing changes in our lives and rethinking who we are and what we do in this world.

However, since the symptoms can cause psychological discomfort and, in the long run, affect our health, Going to a professional to treat an identity crisis is not a cause for shame. Everyone needs help on more than one occasion, and trying to be "strong" going through such a complex process As an identity crisis is without resorting to the support of our relatives or a psychologist, it can be worse than well.

Going to the psychologist serves to acquire useful techniques and tools not only to overcome this complex period, but also for those who may come in the future in addition to being able to better manage our emotions and expectations towards who we are and who we want to reach to be.

People who are experiencing a crisis of this type are usually not very clear why they feel bad, so consulting a psychologist can help them to understand what makes them find themselves like this are questions about who they are, questions that the psychotherapist can help them to give them answer.