toomanyteens, I think you must have misunderstood my last post because your response doesn’t really connect to what I intended. I wasn’t referring to parental expectations so much as how college has become a cultural norm that defines “success” for so many, often unfairly. Sorry if I was unclear.
Of course many kids choose their own path, but I was just saying that society’s expectations lead to labeling that path as “crashing.” Indeed, sometimes a sudden onset psych. or medical issue can make it seem like “crashing” but the long term picture does not have to be dire.
I am certainly hoping your daughter experiences a turnaround in the same manner I have seen others do. Or maybe she is on a path that is ok in the long run.