A college education seems to be more important than ever. The job market is abysmal and anyone who doesn't have at least a bachelor's degree might as well print his or her resume on toilet paper.
What's waiting for us after graduation is less of what the "real adult" world should be and more of an extended nightmare.
We are put under incredible pressure to outperform, out-impress and out-qualify all of the competition. Overachieving is our lifeblood.
So, naturally, we look for some help. Unfortunately, that help often comes in the form of Adderall.
And why shouldn't it?
The little blue pills are relatively cheap, and it seems too easy to find a person who has a prescription -- if you don't already have one yourself.
According to author Greg Critser, in his book "Geration Rx: How perscription drugs are altering American lives, minds, and bodies," Generation Y or millennials, has become one of the most medicated generations in history.
Baby boomers pop pills just as much as we do, by the way.
Some people do need medicines such as Adderall, not to study, but to function.
Yet, it seems all too common for otherwise healthy high school and college students to take Adderall as a substitute for time management.
It has become the go-to remedy for gaining as much knowledge as possible in the shortest amount of time.
We don't want to go on an anti-drug tirade because those are typically ineffective and alienating, but we do want to say Adderall is not the answer.
When students take Adderall, they medicate a symptom, but not the underlying condition.
In many cases, the condition is our own hubris.
Sure, we can go faster, learn more, stay up longer, but at what cost?
Instead of fighting against the systems that created the poor economy and even poorer job market, we take it out on ourselves. We buy into the idea that this is reality, and we have to deal with it.
But this isn't the way it has to be; we don't have to swallow pills to make it easier to cope.
We have the potential to be the generation that makes a difference and breathes new life into an ailing nation.
That potential is dying, however, and Adderall is killing it.
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