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A 2019 survey found that globally, we think old age begins at 66. When asked to describe it, we usually use the term wise (35%), followed by frail (32%), lonely (30%), and respected (25%).
People believe we should prepare for this period of our lives by exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet (60% and 59% respectively), saving enough money for an adequate pension (51%), and avoiding smoking as well as having a good circle of friends and having a sport or hobby (45%, 44%, and 44% respectively).
But sometimes no matter how much you plan, you still don't fully understand what lies ahead until you start experiencing it.
Interested in the challenges that come with the years, Reddit user Fainne-Wu posted a question on the platform, asking "What's the hardest part about getting older?" Here are the most popular answers.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
With each passing day, my chance to see the world passes. I don't have the money to travel as much as I want, and I know I will die missing out on so much. It's a sad reality for everyone, but it's still hard to handle.
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#2
I’m really old...the two hardest parts are having almost everyone you've ever known die, so your entire history dies with them, and losing mobility one way or another. Sucks.
#3
For me, it's just losing that feeling of innocence you had in your youth. Like seeing your crush in class and imagining a relationship in your head. Hanging out with good friends and all it was was swimming, eating junk food, watching movies. No alcohol or d***s, just a family sized dorito bag and Dr. Pepper. It's hard to put it into words, but I miss that feeling when you and your crush would sit on some bleachers and you felt nothing could go wrong. No worrying about sex or marriage, just you and the person of your affections just talking about life, nearly holding hands. When you get older you lose the excitement of so many firsts. Your first kiss, your first time sneaking out, your first time walking around a mall without parental guidance, first this and first that. Life just felt so exhilirating. The feeling begins to fade out as you get older and it's hard. Those times were so happy and stupid.
Floeckchen 1 year ago
I beliefe this feeling of innocence is a retrospective feeling when you get older and think back to your childhood and youth. I think these things felt way more serious when you actually were at that age since you didn't have much to compare it with.
#4
Your body changes in ways that you don't want it to.
#6
Realizing your death is getting closer and your dreams will not come true.
cerinamroth 1 year ago
I nearly died when I was a kid, so this one doesn't really worry me. Every day of my free life is a gift.
#7
I could sound like a broken record that's been heard by all generations but the truth is, as you get older, the healing process gets slower and you end up in pain for longer periods of time, you'll hit a threshold where trying to work out the pain only makes it worse.
#8
When I (female) was young I spent a lot of energy fending off unwanted attention and harassment. Not every day but enough.
Now that I am older and have started to naturally age I feel pretty much invisible to everyone.
There are pros and cons to this of course.
#10
Time is perceived faster for some reason. Everything speeds up and you're still trying to catch up. In some ways it's good, like making the work day go by quicker, but it's bad in other ways like having less time for friends and the hobbies you used to be able to devote many more hours to.
#11
I'm only 24, but seeing people you care for die has to be the one.
One quote that hit me hard is: "One sibling will never have to bury his brothers and sisters, while one will have to bury them all".
#12
The complete inability to sleep in.
The older you get the earlier your body wakes you up. You don't necessarily need to be up for anything on Saturday or Sunday morning but your body has decided you need to go to work on your off days. When you're a teenager and in college sleeping 12-14 hours when you have nothing to do is completely normal and acceptable.
I would pay $100 a night if I could get 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep and actually feel well rested when I wake.
#13
Losing my voice. I used to have a nice singing voice. I sang harmony well and enjoyed singing along with the radio and alone. It brought me a lot of joy, but now, my voice sounds like I have a permanent cold. I also used to play the flute competently, but now I can no longer reach the high notes. It's hard to accept. I don't think younger people realize that the talents you had in your youth might not be there after the age of 70.
#15
Slow metabolism. damn i get fatter as i age.
#16
My husband and I opted not to have children. I still don't regret the decision, but I do wonder what will happen to me when I'm older. I'm 65 now, but if I lose my husband, I will be alone, and that scares me.
#18
52 here. It's a real toss up. First, our only kid is grown up and gone and we really liked being parents. I'm truly proud of him, but miss him desperately.
Second, taking care of my elderly mother who has dementia has made me feel old like nothing else, ever.
similarly 1 year ago
Right there! When my youngest moved out, for about six months I was really depressed. Didn't know what to do with myself. For over 20 years, my whole existence had been raising my children, making sure they had what they needed, etc etc, etc. When they were grown up and gone, and felt like "Now what?" I felt that all that was left was to grow old and die. I got over it though. I got some hobbies.
#19
The potential of the future gets smaller.
When you're young you could potentially achieve so many things at some point in the future.
The worst part about getting older is when you reach a point where you realize that realistically some of those things are off the table for good now, and you're never going to be able to do them. It's like climbing a tree and each branch you take closes off some of what's at the ends of the other branches.
Slowly your destination is narrowing down. Slowly you're reaching what will turn out to be your full potential, what your life will turn out to be, and all those other things are just dreams.
similarly 1 year ago
There's one great potential in being older that is not to be underestimated: the ability to guide the young. I often think of advice to the young like planting seeds. A lot of times, young people have no idea what I'm talking about. But someday, when experience catches up with them, they will. Hopefully it will be BEFORE they need the advice, and not after.
#20
It becomes more difficult to make new friends, even as your closest ones move away, die, or just "drift apart" over time.
#22
Not being allowed to eat all the good things you enjoyed when you were younger: sweets, salty things, fries, bread, etc. When you're older, all those things either get you sick or sicker.
#24
Someone on here said something before like "not knowing when the good ol days were"
And it's true. You don't know those days are over until they're behind you. And sometimes, if you're lucky, you can have multiple times in your life that are like that. I hope that rings true for the rest of you.
Corvus 1 year ago
There can be multiple instances of "good old days," I think. For me, it could be the summers in my grandma's neighborhood when I spent whole days outside, just doing all sorts of mischief. But it could also be my college years when we had so much fun, went for road trips/picnics, stayed up all night, supposedly to study, but goofing off instead, etc. Years from now, I may even look upon today as some sort of "good old days."
#25
The condescending attitude of young people.
#27
Feeling that I no longer have anything of value to contribute. No one really cares about my life experiences. I'm yesterday's news.
#28
It is increasingly more difficult, expensive, and complicated to do something about a career rut and/or the need to break out and retrain for something else. That, and discovering real talents and passions for things that you realistically have no time or possibility to pursue because you wasted your younger years working jobs you hated to chase someone else's dream.
#29
Getting both more responsibility and freedom.
Like you could do anything, but that could also f**k you up. And there's no one to stop you from doing that.
BookFanatic 1 year ago
I'm 45 and I still feel like I need an adultier adult to keep an eye on me.
#30
Picking things up from the floor without yelling something out.
#31
Recovery time. I'm 28.
I remember being 18 and 21. Going to a metal show, moshing for the whole show, getting drunk, wake up the next morning at noon and being fine.
Well I did that recently this year. 3 days later and my ribs still hurt....
#32
I’m only 24 but I’ve burried 4 family members since I was 18, and another has terminal cancer at the moment. I live in constant fear that someone else is about to die, and the hardest part is knowing that my fear is a valid one that will eventually keep coming true if I live long enough.
#33
Back pain.
#34
Reflecting on the past hoping you could change certain aspects of your life. Sometimes asking yourself what if I had done one random thing differently? Realizing now this is your life and there is no going back or do overs. The tough reality that it’s hard. You had goals and hopes that you never quite achieved. Constantly asking yourself why you didn’t die sooner and telling yourself there is still time to go that route. But also fearing death.
#35
Referring to body parts as "My good leg or my bad Bad" rather than "left leg or right leg" for example.
#36
I regret not enjoying my childhood! I took a lot for granted as a kid. Man, that saying, 'Youth is wasted on the young,' couldn't be more true.
#37
Getting your a*s handed to you on video games by little kids. I'm looking at you fortnite....
#38
Wishing you had a time machine so you could do things right.
similarly 1 year ago
I wouldn't want it. I did a lot of things wrong, and I did a lot of things I wish I hadn't. I screwed up quite a lot, and still do. But I'm here, and I learned things, and I experienced things. It was all part of life. I don't think we're here to be perfect, or to do everything right. I think we're here to live and do the best we can with what we have.
#39
I used to enjoy parties and talking to people, but now I forget names, cities I've visited, other peoples' children and grandchildren, and more. It is very awkward to talk to people now, so I don't talk a lot at parties anymore.
Geoffrey Scott 1 year ago
The names, holy c**p! it takes me far longer than it used to remembering them.
#40
I miss my parents organizing vacations. I love to travel with my husband, but most of the planning falls to me, which leaves me with low-level anxiety — did I spend too much? Is that company legit? What if we damage the rental car, etc.? My dad is such a good vacation planner, and I never had to worry about anything when abroad.
#41
Realizing summer vacation is a lie.
Fire Singer 1 year ago
My nephew asked once, you don't get the summer off work? Oh darling...no, no you don't.
#42
Injuries taking longer to heal. "Walking it off" doesn't work as well as you get older.
#43
The ever growing presence of your own mortality.
Fire Singer 1 year ago
Dying doesn't scare me, the means of dying scares me. I don't want to be in pain or have a long drawn out illness creating a bunch of medical debt or anything like that.
#45
Knowing that you won't ever be young again.
"It would remind us of when nothing really mattered.
Out of student loans and treehouse homes we'll always take the latter".
similarly 1 year ago
I wouldn't want to be young again. I'll take 50 over 15 any day of the week. I hated being young. Oh, it's nice to be healthy and full of life and have all that potential and promise ahead, but I was stupid when I was young, so stupid and full of myself, and full of anxiety and fear. I'd much rather be who I am now.
#46
Realising that sleeping on the couch is actually pretty s**t, and having ice cream for dinner just f***s with your digestive system as your body starts to lose it's ability to process dairy.
Oh also bills. Millions of bills.
LB 1 year ago
Vegan icecream for the win? We have some pretty good options, these days. The big brands started getting on the vegan bandwagon about two to three years ago, I think, and even the sausage brands now have vegan things. I love the 'whipped cream' plain one we have here, but also Ben & Jerrys has great options.
#47
Losing your sense of self, your identity--that mental image that you have of yourself that informs how you interact with people. I had one until my late 30s, but I don't recognize who I am anymore.
Also, everything aches and you gain weight just from looking at a strawberry. Not even a tasty chocolate-covered strawberry, just a plain old regular lumpy f*****g strawberry.
#48
Deciding when to retire. Your mind is willing to stay motivated, but your body is failing. Also, trying to figure out things like Medicare and Social Security. There are so many discussions; the government couldn't make Medicare any more complicated if they tried.
Geoffrey Scott 1 year ago
No decision there, lifetime of physical labor.. gone at 62. I can still earn 22k/yr if I wish. Biggest concern for me was health care. Have an ACA plan (Thanks Obama) for <200/mo including dental which will go down if my income drops. Local library has hired me for custodial duties. My go back to more consistent work, may not, nice to be able to choose.
#49
The regret that you didn’t die decades earlier.
Michael Largey 1 year ago
Not me. I note (and gloat) with pleasure that the people I went to high school with are dying in the right order. Racist bully homophobic rich kid first, internet child predator second, ...
#50
Work.
Seems like more and more, I have less time to do the things I really enjoy doing.
#51
Wet farts/ dry mouth.
#52
I'm 27 and I miss living with my parents. I miss seeing my mom every day. I live across the world from her now and although we call each other every day it's just not the same.
#55
The hardest parts are the expectations that are put on to you. People expect you to have a good job, a house, a partner (who then is expected to become your spouse), children etc.
With each of those expectations comes responsibility. Job = tax, house = bills and mortgage, partner = bills and mortgage, children = food on the table every day, toys every birthday/xmas.
Enjoy your youth while you can, and don't do something just because it's what is expected of you. I'm only 27, maritally single and no kids.. but I have friends with all of the above who can't just decide last minute to go on a night out or do something spontaneous because life has them by the balls.
#56
To pee without peeing on your legs.
#57
Losing friends.
Donna Peluda 1 year ago
Yea this is a bad one. Recently an ex left us to the big C. Everytime I bump into someone I hear that someone has died.
#58
I can't drink like I used to. I'm only 25, but drinking like I was 18 gives me the shivers even thinking about it.
You also make a lot more noise when you're just moving about as normal.
#59
The automatic ‘oh my parents will do that’ thoughts, mostly about helping round the house.
What do you think ?
similarly 1 year ago
Getting old isn't all bad. I like to say that old age takes with one hand and gives with the other, and I like to think what old age has given me is worth more than what it's taken.
Janissary35680 1 year ago
"Getting old isn't all bad." (1) Growing old certainly beats the alternative. (2) Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
Load More Replies...
Susie Elle 1 year ago
The only thing I miss about being young is the lack of responsibility. For the rest, almost everything is better now than it used to be. Almost.
Corvus 1 year ago
The lack of responsibility + the ability to never get tired.
Load More Replies... Bertha Madott 1 year ago
It is a rare and special gift to grow old with someone you love. We (F76 and M86) still have fun together after 48 years. Just love going out for lunch.
similarly 1 year ago
Getting old isn't all bad. I like to say that old age takes with one hand and gives with the other, and I like to think what old age has given me is worth more than what it's taken.
Janissary35680 1 year ago
"Getting old isn't all bad." (1) Growing old certainly beats the alternative. (2) Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.
Load More Replies... Susie Elle 1 year ago
The only thing I miss about being young is the lack of responsibility. For the rest, almost everything is better now than it used to be. Almost.
Corvus 1 year ago
The lack of responsibility + the ability to never get tired.
Load More Replies... Bertha Madott 1 year ago
It is a rare and special gift to grow old with someone you love. We (F76 and M86) still have fun together after 48 years. Just love going out for lunch.
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