“Had To Fight The Ladies Off With A Stick”: 50 Hilariously Awkward Childhood Photos That People Cannot Look At Without Cringing

The period is called blunder years, and it hits us either in childhood or adolescence. Basically, it's a time when we think we're cooler than others find us to be. And later, no matter how much we would like to forget our cringey past, there's usually a photo or two to remind us of it. Some are sitting in family albums, some are scattered across our friends' hard drives, and while many try to ignore them, a few decide to spread their embarrassing moments even wider by sharing them on the internet, taking ownership of their previous silly hairstyles and questionable clothing choices.

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Apparently I Didn't Know How To Smile In First Grade

Young boy making a hilariously awkward face in a childhood photo with a green shirt and a gray background.

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People Share 50 Hilariously Awkward Childhood Pics They Wish They Could Delete

Apparently I Didn't Know How To Smile In First Grade

I Show My Boyfriend One Picture From My Childhood And Suddenly Reproducing With Me Is Off The Table

My Friend Has The Best Awkward Childhood Photo Ever

Here I Am Winning The “Little Miss Piggy” Award At A Mud Volleyball Tournament In 1998

I Was 10 When I Realized People With No Bangs Had Grown Them Out, Not Cut Them Off

Glamour Photo From 1994. I Was 8 Years Old (Going On 45 In This Pic)

My Family Dubbed Me "Fivehead"

This Is My Wife's Favorite Photo Of Me

My Dad Always Thought This Haircut Looked Incredible On Me. My Mom Thought The Shirt Was Incredible. I'm A Female

Childhood Me Thought This Would Look Awesome. I Can't Believe They Let Me Take It

School Photo Looking Like A 60-Year-Old Librarian With My Cardigan, Turtleneck, And Thick Glasses. Date And Age Unknown

Today I Completed My Master's Degree. To Celebrate My Future, I've Decided To Start By Embracing My Past. I Present My Single Most Embarrassing Photo

In 7th Grade, I Didn't Have A Date To The Dance, So I Cut Out A Picture Of Brendan Fraser And Taped It To A Stick And Brought It With Me. For Real

Apparently This Was The Best Photo They Could Get For My First Christmas

I See Your Friend's "Awkward Childhood" Photo, And Raise You Mine. Man, I Was A Looker

When I Met My Childhood Crush, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, My Face Was Painted Like A Clown

Yes That Is My Real Head, No This Photo Was Not Edited

I Wanted Dreadlocks In Highschool. Mom Gave Me Braids

I Blame My Mom For This One. My Sweater Wasn't Stained, The Photo Is Just Old

Permission Has Finally Been Granted To Share My Wife's Glorious Childhood Perm/Greatest Soccer Pic Of All Time

All Decked Out In Eyeliner And Angst, About To Go To The Local Emo Concert (2006)

My Uncle Being Embarrassed Of Me Trying To Sip Some Soda In Public

My 9th Grade "Graduation" In 2002. 3 Months Later I Was In Military School In Texas

My Childhood Picture

I Recently Visited My Sister Who Shared Her Favorite Childhood Photo Of Me - The Time I Married My Giant Stuffed Pikachu, Ricky

1995-1997 My Dear Grandpa Showed This To My Fiance The Night Before Our Holy Matrimony

6th Grade Was A Rough Year

In Honor Of National Emo Day, I Thought I’d Share My Favorite Myspace Looks

My Friend Was 12 Going On 45

Glad My Wife Changed Hairstyles Since Then

My Boyfriend And His Mom In 1992

Looking Back To My Iconic Fashion Choices

Mom Asked Me To Model For A “Moody” Photo Shoot. Peak 7th Grade Me

2004. Trying To Take A Myspace Photo While No One Was At Home

1994, Age 7, First Grade. My Stepdad Says I Wanted My Hair Cut That Way

This Is My Wife Circa 1989, Bless Her Heart

This Is What "Rizz" Looked Like In The 90's

I Raise You All, My Sister's And My Most Embarrassing Childhood Photo. I'm The Unfortunate Soul On The Right

Describe Your Childhood With A Picture. This Is Not The Worst

I Went To See The Easter Bunny While Sick With The Flu. Can You Tell Which One I Am?

My Sister Asked Me To Post This For Her. She Asked The Babysitter To Make Her Look Like Ernie. She Loved Ernie

This Was Me At 16... I’m A Dude

My 9-Year-Old Official Photo For A Tap Dancing Routine Set To "My Boyfriend's Back". Yes, That Is My Real Forehead. Yes, I Have Bangs Now For A Reason

I Had Liberal Parents And Tried To Rebel With This Haircut. It Backfired

Didn’t Realize Whole Body Photo

It's 2013, 14-Year-Old Me Liked Photoshop, Fedoras, And Space

My Wife And I Apparently Shared A Common Love For Ladders, Denim, And Bangs. Our Senior Years In The Late 90s

10th Grade Me. My Fashion Sense Dictated T-Shirts And Flannels With Sleeves Cut Off

2005, College Freshmen, Full Of Rebellion

I Used To Think It Was "Cute" To Dress Up Like My Doll

“Thriller” Dance Routine My Sister And I Put On For Our Parents, Where Being A Zombie Meant You Had Hairbrushes Stuck In Your Hair

Corduroy Cat Vest, 1994

2007 Photoshoot In My Grandparents' Bedroom. Not Sure What The Inspo For This Photoshoot Was Or What Emotion I Was Trying To Convey

Favorite Picture Of My Husband

My Wife Gave Me Permission To Share This Picture Of Her From The Early 90s

My Super Fun Aunt Used To Work At A Photography Center At Sears

I Was Blessed With A Mom Who Believed In Creative Freedom For Her Kids

Me And My Sibling Crossdressing As A "Present" To Our Mom For Mother's Day (2004)

Right Before A Brutal Transfer From Homeschool To Public School. Circa 2007

My Original 3rd Grade School Photo (Left). Mom Demanded A Retake (Right) With The Instructions "Smile! Show Some Teeth!" Note Which One Got Framed

I Present To You This Very Caucasian Girl Who Dressed As A Rapper For Halloween

Bringing This One Back. My 9th Grade Picture In 2013. Thanks I Hate It

My Graduation Outfit Was A Polyester Kimono I Spent All My Travel Money On At Disney World

My Boyfriend's Senior Picture

Our Most Embarrassing Photo

My Mom Just Sent This To Me, And I Guess Now Everyone Else Has To See It Too

My Entire Life Is A Kesha Phase

Me In The 90s, Absolutely Thrilled To Be Wearing This Chipmunk Onesie

My Dad Sent Me This Picture The Other Day. I Was 17

My Wife Was Every Generic 90’s Advertisement In Picture

My Husband At 14 Years Old

Embarrassingly Enough, This Is Not The Only Photo I Have Of Myself With Balloons Stuck Up Under My Shirt

Aparently I Wouldn’t Stop Licking My Lips

Had To Fight The Ladies Off With A Stick In 8th Grade

Everyone, Meet My Alter Ego, Kyle

My Parents Made A SpongeBob Costume For Me Out Of An Old CRT TV Box (2001)

This Is How I Smiled Because I Had No Top Teeth

2004 - It Was "Clown Day" At School. I Was The Only One In Costume. Aside From The Clown At The Assembly. Thanks Mom

My Mom Was Going Through Old Photos And Found The Worst Possible Picture Of Me