Psychology Late Adolescence		Late adolescence, the 17-21 year olds. They are more independent, they have more meaningful relationships with their parents and their friends. Peer groups are becoming less important to them at this age. These are the teenagers and young adults who are hopefully in college or vocational schools, maybe working by now or in the military. They may be starting families. They are becoming more comfortable with their own values and their own identities. For the most part, I love taking care of these patients. I have seen them through the hardest part of their lives during middle adolescence and then I pick them back up in late adolescence and they're delightful. In fact, I just had a 20 year old girl, who I can't care for anymore because her insurance company does not recognize me as a provider (since she is almost 21 years old) even though I am trained to take care of a patient of that age. She had surgery and called me up and said, "Are you coming to see me? I know you're not my doctor anymore, but I want to tell you about the things that I've done to make my life better." Nothing is more rewarding than that - to see a patient grow and mature into an insightful young adult with a plan for a future and a healthier lifestyle that will make that possible!! Return to top of page