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There are good things about being an adult, just like there are good things about being a kid – but there are also prices to pay for growing up, something children never really realize until it’s too late.
Here are 16 unexpectedly tough things about growing up – lessons you don’t learn until it’s too late to go back.
16. Faster than you would believe.
Money adds up quick.
You see something cheap that you want as a teen and think “It’s only $5.”
Yes it is only $5, but when the end of the month comes, all those “only” purchases add up really fast.
15. A truly terrible moment.
This didn’t fully hit me until I had to clean a massive amount of puke out of the shower because I took a shower while I was sick and just absolutely lost my guts.
Being a kid, someone else would have cleaned that up for me because I was sick, but as an adult, with a crazy high fever feeling absolutely terrible, I had to get on my knees and clean it up.
There was no “I dont feel good” excuse, no “someone else can do it” I had to clean it up or it would get even more disgusting and clog my pipes…
14. All the time!
People expect you to know what you’re doing.
13. Money is definitely different.
A $1000 pay check isn’t nearly as exciting as an adult.
12. Once a year, even, if they’re not local.
By the time you’re 30 you are going to be lucky to see whatever close friends you have left more than a couple times a year.
And it’s considered normal.
11. So hard to imagine when you’re young.
Forgetting your age is a real problem.
The only people who remind me how old I am are my kids, and i often have to double check.
I used to ask my parents how old they were and they always “cant remember” or said “21” and it confused me.
I get it now.
10. That’s deep.
Everything you buy starts to own you.
Got a new car? You now have to make a monthly payment, buy insurance, fill with gas, get inspected, change the oil, apply for a street parking permit, ect.
Just bought a house? Well on top of your mortgage, insurance and property taxes you now have to: mow your lawn, clean the building, maintain all of your appliances, repair damages when they are small so you don’t have to spend as much, possibly follow HOA rules, ect.
I just wanna get drunk and play video games, but I can’t because my refrigerator broke 2 days ago, and there’s a shortage of fridges because of COVID. So I had to borrow my college aged cousins mini-fridge. So now I’m on back order for 3 weeks waiting for something I just spent $2500 on to arrive.
Edit: a lot of people are bringing up the cost of the fridge. I’m paying for a high quality fridge that’s pretty big because my household needs that along with shipping and install. I am not happy about the price either but that was the quickest delivery option I had for something that fits my needs while also fitting the look of my kitchen. Normally I’d wait for a holiday sale to get a big appliance but this was an emergency, and I’ll eat the cost for convenience sake. I can afford the cost of the fridge and I’m not going to go into the hole over this amount, but I’d rather spend that money on almost anything else. Like I said not a lot of things in stock during this pandemic.
9. It never stops.
One day your body will betray you.
8. Truer words…
You don’t fundamentally change, you are still you, even if you are older. It’s the same you, you just need to survive in the adult world.
You don’t gain adult powers, you just have to do adult things.
7. You’ve gotta take care of your teeth.
Dental care.
It’s so damn expensive if you let your teeth degrade.
Please floss my dudes.
6. Nothing is free.
Adult freedom and responsibilities are a double edge sword. You now can make pretty much all your own life choices, from the small to the large! You can set out and make your own destiny.
But you are also responsible for the outcome of all those choices – both good and bad. It’s your life now, you don’t have anyone to tell you what the right choice is. You can call friends and family for advice and there are lots of scammers out there who will tell you 110% they know the answer if you pay them.
But ultimately it is YOUR decision. You either make a choice or don’t (and not choosing is still a choice) then have to live with the consequences for the rest of your life.
Even as a teen, you are present with choices as you start to get some of your own freedom.
But as an adult – yep it’s all up to you, both good and bad.
You will make mistakes. You will be scared into indecision. But you should face up to hose mistakes and move on. Eventually you will have to make a choice.
But with some fore thinking, planning, hard work and a bit of dumb luck – you can hopefully steer your life in a positive direction.
And it’s never too late for a second chance or to try a different direction.
5. They’ll understand some day.
When all the cliches that used to piss you off start making sense and meaning something, but you can’t explain it to younger people because they haven’t lived that life experience yet.
4. You’re responsible for yourself.
By and large, being an adult is awesome compared to being a teenager. No one tells you what to do, how to act, when to go to bed, or when to get up. People take you seriously. You can ask a doctor for sleeping pills and he’ll give them to you, you can buy all the booze you want, drive the car you want, and get credit cards with incredible credit limits.
The downside is: No one tells you what to do, how to act, when to go to bed, or when to get up. People take you seriously. You can ask a doctor for sleeping pills and he’ll give them to you. You can buy all the booze you want, drive the car you want, and get credit cards with incredible credit limits.
In short, being an adult comes with the responsibilities of adulthood and if you choose to ignore those responsibilities the consequences will be a lot more devastating for the rest of your life than when you were a teen. They can totally ruin your life and the lives of the people around you if you f*ck up.
3. There’s never enough time.
The importance and scarcity of time. Your “you time” gets seriously reduced as you get older and your other responsibilities mount up. I used to think that spending half an hour cleaning 3 times a week was the worst thing ever. Now I spend about an hour cleaning pretty much every day. Between work, maintaining a house, and raising kids, the amount of you time gets reduced to.minutes a day. Anything else you want to do means sacrificing sleep.
The other thing is how true “time=money” actually is. Simply existing and breathing costs money. Food, rent, bills, transport cost money. Often the difference between happiness and unhappiness for me was comfortably making it to my next paycheck.
2. Wave goodbye to your metabolism.
I swear when I was a teenager I could eat absolute garbage and stay slim because I was just naturally active throughout the day.
Now being an adult I’m fat as f*ck because after a full day at work and other “adulting” responsibilities it’s so hard to get the motivation to work out.
1. I miss alcohol.
Waking up and just aching for non discernible reason other than having slept ‘a bit funny’.
Oh, and the 3 day hangovers that make it barely worth drinking more than a couple glasses of wine
We’re all here now, so we might as well make the best of it!
What’s your least favorite thing about being an adult? Let’s commiserate in the comments.
