Mark Farrell O'Brien, MS, LCPC, CADC

The transition into adulthood can be harder than anyone expects. What looks straightforward on paper can feel overwhelming in real life. High school, college, and early career years each bring new freedoms, new pressures, and new expectations. What many young men are not told is that these stages require skills that are rarely explicitly taught. You may be feeling stuck, unmotivated, anxious, or unsure of what comes next. You might be using alcohol or other substances more than you intended. Classes may be slipping. Work may feel uncertain. Living at home may feel frustrating and confusing. Or you may be in your early career feeling the pressure of new responsibilities, uncertain if you’re on the right path, and frustrated that momentum seems to have slowed. You may also be a parent watching your son struggle — in high school, in college, or after graduation — and wondering how to help without pushing him away. You know he is capable, but something is getting in the way. That is where I come in. I specialize in working with young men whose mental health or substance use is interfering with their ability to move forward in life. In high school, pressure builds around performance, identity, social belonging, and future direction. Anxiety, depression, and substance use often first emerge during this stage. Executive functioning skills are still developing. Avoidance can quietly replace effort. Confidence can drop quickly after setbacks. In college, structure decreases while independence increases. Young men are suddenly responsible for managing academics, sleep, health, relationships, finances, and time. When anxiety, depression, or substance use enter the picture, routines fall apart and motivation declines. What looks like laziness is often interference. In early adulthood, comparison intensifies. Career uncertainty, burnout, relationship stress, and financial pressure can create a sense of drifting. Many young men privately question their direction, competence, or purpose. Momentum stalls not because they lack ability, but because the structure that once supported them is gone. This work is not just about talking through problems. It is about building stability, structure, confidence, and forward momentum. Our work focuses on reducing anxiety and depression, addressing substance use patterns, strengthening motivation, building consistent routines, clarifying identity and direction, and developing emotional resilience. The goal is not only symptom relief. The goal is movement. You don’t have to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. Many capable men go through periods when confidence drops, comparison increases, substances become coping tools, and the future feels unclear. Therapy with me is structured, practical, and goal-oriented. We create a plan, track progress, and build skills you can apply immediately. You leave sessions knowing what you are working on. If you are a parent, you may be noticing withdrawal, irritability, academic or career stalls, increased substance use, or a loss of direction. You want to respect your son’s independence while also ensuring he does not drift further off course. I provide developmentally informed therapy that supports autonomy while helping young men build real momentum. Young adulthood requires emotional regulation, frustration tolerance, self-discipline, identity clarity, and purpose. Many young men were never explicitly taught how to build these skills. My approach blends cognitive behavioral strategies, behavioral activation, substance use support, accountability structures, executive functioning development, and future planning into a forward-moving process. This is not open-ended therapy without direction. It is launch-focused therapy. We define what the next stage of your life looks like, identify what is blocking it, determine what needs to change, and build the habits and systems that support growth. The outcome is clarity, stability, confidence, and momentum. Not perfection. Measurable progress. If you are ready to move forward, or if you are a parent seeking professional support, the next step is a brief consultation call. We will discuss what is happening now, what has been tried, what progress would look like, and whether we are a strong fit. You do not have to figure this out alone. Let’s build the next stage of life intentionally.