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The first stage of Erikson's development is about how trust can be extremely important not only at an early age but throughout life. Trust can allow us to make relationships with other people. Trust is crucial to social development. Mistrust can make children struggle with making friendships. Attachment issues can be shown when we mistrust others.

Personally, I began to trust by interacting more with others at a young age. "The trusting infant expects the world to be good and gratifying, so he feels confident about venturing out to explore it" (Berk, 2018, pg. 172).   Understanding that most people truly care about you and want the best for you built up my trust. My parents also were loving and heavily involved in my life. This allowed me to build a relationship with them and a firm foundation of trust was built.

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Autonomy allows us to feel good about our bodies and who we are. Encouraging children to explore new things and find confidence is important. Parents encouraging children and showing them that they are unique and special can truly benefit the development of a child. Shame and doubt come into play when we think that there is something wrong with us. When we negatively look in the mirror we see that we are different than other people. This can take a toll on our emotional health.

I used autonomy in order to persevere through my shame and doubt crisis. My parents did a great job making it known that I was made in the image of God, which means I was made perfectly. They would always remind me of who I was. Looking back it was incredibly important that my parents encouraged me that I was unique and wonderful. It was also important that my parents encourage me and allowed me to make choices. Rather than shaming me for doing something wrong they would make it into a lesson. "A self-confident, secure 2-year-old has parents who do not criticize or attack him when he fails at new skills—using the toilet, eating with a spoon, or putting away toys" (Berk, 2018, pg. 173). It was important for me as a child to find my self-confidence.

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Initiatives gives us the ability to try new things and experience the results of our actions. This can mean finding new things that we enjoy and taking the initiative to develop that skills or interest. Guilt can cause us to feel bad about our interests or skills. Parents, adults, and peers can effect how we approach our hobbies. "Play creates a small social organization of children who try out meaningful roles and skills and who must cooperate to achieve common goals" (Berk, 2018, pg. 246). If people encourage children to not only play but encourage our hobbies we will feel proud and continue to pursue them. If people speak negatively about our hobbies we will tend to feel guilty about who we are. Discouraging experiences can cause individuals to not want to learn.

I think that initiative to figure out new things allowed me to overcome my fear of guilt. My teachers, parents, and friends have always praised and talked highly about my interests and skills. This allowed me to be encouraged to expand and learn more. Surrounding myself with people who build me up allowed me to focus on my gifts and not feel shamed when using them.

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Industrious allows us to work hard and be motivated throughout the process. When parents and teachers recognize hard work children will become motivated. Inferiority is when other people do not encourage what we are passionate about. It's important for children to be encouraged so they can find who they are.

I began to notice as a child that when I'm encouraged by family, teachers, and others I feel industrious. This allowed me to feel like my passions are not only recognized but encouraged. "Erikson believed that the combination of adult expectations and children’s drive toward mastery sets the stage for the psychological conflict of middle childhood" (Berk, 2018, pg. 321). As a child, I was able to be driven because my parents set expectations and encouraged me to work hard.

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Identity is found in parents allowing their children to explore who they are. Parents' opinions aren't being forced on the child and they are encouraging self-discovery. Identity allows us to find our goals in life. Role Confusion occurs when a child is discouraged to find who they are. When a parent forces their beliefs on a child, the child may struggle with finding what makes them unique and different. This can make individuals struggle with self-esteem. "Constructing an identity involves defining who you are, what you value, and the directions you choose to pursue in life" (Berk, 2018, pg. 398). Identity gives us all purpose.

Personally, I believe that I was taught identity from an early age and throughout K-12 that you have to experience it yourself. You have to find your friend groups and figure out who you want to be. If I were to only listen to what my parents said and not other people's perspectives I would be less cultured. I also think that identity allows us to feel good about ourselves. The realization that I should always be myself and never change for anybody has stuck to me.

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Intimacy allows us to care for others and encourages us to be around those who we love. This allows people to find happiness. Intimacy teaches us how to show commitment. Isolation makes individuals struggle to find joy. "Because of earlier disappointments, some individuals cannot form close bonds and remain isolated" (Berk, 2018, pg. 10). We become isolated from past experiences that make us not want to venture out. As humans, we are made to communicate and have relationships with others. Being isolated has a negative effect on our mental health. Intimacy towards a person gives us a sense of purpose.

To solve the issue of feeling lonely I used Intimacy. I surrounded myself with people that care about me. This allowed me to continue building relationships and also taught me how to love others. Being around these people motivates me to be a better person.

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Generativity allows us to feel at ease once we leave this earth. We want to know that our loved ones and others we care for are in a good place before we are gone. Stagnation can cause people between 40-65 to feel scared that they haven't done enough which can be draining.

Even though I have not experienced Generativity vs. Stagnation, I think it's important that we plan for the future generation. Generativity can help solve crises by teaching others knowledge that will be important for their lives. "The person who fails in these ways feels an absence of meaningful accomplishment" (Berk, 2018, pg. 10). Generativity will allow us to feel like we lived our life with meaning.

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Ego Integrity allows for reflection and gives us a feeling of contentment that we have done what we were supposed to do with our time on earth. Despair allows us to negatively look back at our life and wish we did more. "Older people who are dissatisfied with their lives fear death" (Berk, 2018, pg. 10). This makes the final years of our life resentful.

I think the resolution for the final Erikson development is ego integrity. I think people 65 and older start to look at how they think they've done in their life. If they feel bad about what they have done it can almost leave a bitter taste in their mouths. Ego integrity will allow me to feel accomplished and happy with what I have done with my life.