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“It Will Happen To You”: 28 Unexpected Parts Of Aging, As Shared In This Viral Thread
Article created by: Mindaugas Balčiauskas
Despite access to thousands of people’s life experiences, we tend to not really understand something until it happens to us. There is really no proper substitute for just living through something, but the magic of the internet allows us to at least try.
Someone asked “What’s a truth about aging that no one prepared you for?” and netizens shared the surprising examples. So get comfortable as you read through, upvote your favorite stories and be sure to share your own experiences, ideas and thoughts in the comments section below.
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#1
The fatigue.
Resistant-Insomnia:
I haven't felt rested in over ten years. Always tired. The moment I open my eyes I'm exhausted.
RELATED:
#3
I’m 61 and sometimes I feel like this world is not for me anymore. I feel almost like an imposter. For example, I can’t find clothes I like that fit correctly, tv is abhorrent, only old music sounds pleasant, shoes are uncomfortable, I don’t recognize most celebrities or famous people in the news or tabloids, and I don’t understand the need for most new and supposedly exciting products.
I’m an educated person, I still work and have an active life. I’m not a recluse. But a little at a time, I feel the world is moving on without me. I finally understand why, in her final years, my mother only watched movies from the 1950s and reminisced about the past more than she talked about the present. Her world was long gone.
#6
You will realize that you hate planning meals and making food every single day. It's boring and to easy to fall into monotony. But you have to make lunch again and then plan for dinner again then make dinner again and what do you want to eat tomorrow so you plan for breakfast tomorrow and get up and make breakfast again and then plan for lunch again.....
I am so tired of planning and making food.
Laurie Lowenstein 6 months ago
This is why in our parents' time there was "Tuesday is Prince spaghetti day" and Sunday was roast - chicken, beef or pork didn't matter, it was roasted, with carrots and potatoes. Planning? Pshaw.
#7
Just how horrid menopause is and how little the medical community cares about how much you're suffering.
#8
How your mind stays young while your body starts to slow down. You still feel like the same person you’ve always been but suddenly you notice little things changing.
Kremidas:
When I turned 40 I was asked by a younger person what that felt like. I told them I just feel like a 27 year old who has been hanging around and doing stuff for 13 years.
#9
Doors start closing once you reach a certain age.
Frozboz:
Ageism is real. I just turned 50 and am in a young person's career (software development). I feel how hiring managers look at me when asked to turn my camera on, during an interview that was going very well and suddenly it's "we'll get back to you".
#11
Time for the hard truth.
One day, and yes it will happen to you, you will see a box... and you won't just throw it away because IT'S A REALLY USEFUL BOX.
#12
I'd just turned 40 and wasn't happy about it when I happened to talk to a couple in their 80s. Oh 40 they said, eyes misting up. What I wouldn't give to be 40 again. Made me feel better and now that I'm 60 I'm beginning to see their point of view.
#13
You start to realize the older you get that the end is closer than the beginning and you still feel like you have so much more to do.
#14
It’s really lonely being an adult. I mean you have friends and co workers etc but it’s just incredibly lonely because you only ever have surface level conversations with most people.
#15
How much it hurts to fall.
I fell off the roof of a house as a kid and just got up and walked away.
Now I'm careful when stepping off of a tall curb...
#18
No one prepared me for how much energy and time it takes to maintain everything—like health, relationships, and just staying organized. It’s way more work than I expected!
#19
It will hit you unexpectedly, you think you're still young but your body just won't cooperate and will show some signs.
#21
Remember when you were younger and you'd ask your Dad: "What's wrong?" And he'd say: "Idk, I must've slept funny."
That's you now.
#22
The point where you start evaluating friendships and find that most friendships are merely transactional. I've dropped a lot of "friends".
#24
When you get a flashback of a good memory and you realize that was over 10 years ago.
Bonschenverwerter:
I saw a former classmate the other day. Did the maths and realized I hadn't seen them in about 20 years. I'm only 35.
#25
Healthy living is just one part of living longer. Genetics and environmental influences are the two other puzzle pieces.
Healthy living only gets you so far. The last three funerals I went to were for people in really amazing shape before their illness/death. Cancer, cancer, heart attack.
Absolutely, do all you can, but denial of mortality isn't helpful as you age.
#27
Household appliances start getting really exciting. Had a vacuum delivered a couple of months ago, it arrived while we had dinner guests and everyone was super excited lol.
#28
If you choose not to have kids, you may end up losing your friends. I turn 40 this year, and my partner and I don't see many folks these days. Parents like to hang out with other parents. And I don't have a grudge, I totally see the value for playdates, etc. But it can be a little lonely.
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