Being a grown up means feeling absolutely baffled when you remember that as a kid, you’d been looking forward to this.
I mean, sure, you get to pick your own bedtime now and watch as much TV as you want, but there are some um…downsides that child you probably wasn’t anticipating.
Let’s check in with the people of Reddit to see what caught them off-guard.
1. Deaths in the family
The death of the elder family and your rising name on that list. I was just ruminating earlier today with my station.
It feels like I was 20 just yesterday, but then suddenly I have an adult daughter, I’ve buried grandparents and a parent, and now more voices turn to me than I can turn to myself.
– zaxmaximum
2. Dealing with repairs
When to know a tradesman (plumber, auto mechanic, dentist, etc) is scamming you or actually doing their job.
You wanna give them the professional benefit of the doubt too, but s**t happens all the time.
Do i really have to be a Renaissance man in order to properly vet someone to do what they say they’re gonna do?
– YoureNotMom
3. All the errands
How much time you spend just doing stuff.
“Oh need to replace my tire and that’s over by the store, so while I replace the tire I can do some errands and I’ll save time and be home in no time” three hours later “Okay just one more errand before I head home”
Also how putting off a small task just a couple days in a row can quickly amount to a longer chore/responsibility later. “Eh I can just leave this in the sink, get to it later before bed” x 2 days “Why is this grime caked onto this plate still I’ve been scrubbing for 10 minutes straight!”
– whyImcalledqueen
4. The endless cleaning
I had chores when I was a kid, but I had zero clue how much actual work went into keeping house.
I cleaned my house this morning and by midweek it’ll be a war zone of pet hair, crumbs, and dust.
I don’t even have kids wtf it’s like the underpants gnomes show up when I’m asleep and f**k my house up
– Sn00dlerr
5. The isolation
You can go days on end without having to speak to a single person, at first it’s a dream come true, after about 2 months you start talking to your toaster to pad the silence while waiting for your toast.
– austinape9
6. Making friends is hard
How much harder it is to make friends.
I kinda feel like if you hadn’t already made some good friends by 25-26, you’ll end up stuck with superficial friendships.
– I_hate_traveling
7. The lack of thinking skills
How uneducated people are.
Like, the complete lack of reasoning and critical thinking is astonishing.
You can’t even have a proper conversation with some people because they make up their minds and the conversation is over.
– PLEASEHIREZ
8. The childishness of other adults
I thought when I graduated from college the workplace would be full of serious people.
Oh god, was I wrong!
There is so much childish behavior with adults that it amazes me our society functions at all.
– eddyathome
9. Being on
Always having to be “ON”
At work you need to meet goals and be ON
At home with your kids you need to be ON
With your spouse you need to be ON.
I’m very fortunate that my wife and I can just sit and veg in complete silence for hours. And nobody is internally freaking out.
– [deleted user]
10. Just getting housing
“normal” housing becoming a luxury and designed for 2 people to split the bills. How is this normal?
People used to live in households where the wife didn’t work and raised 3 kids on a single income.
I make $50k a year and can’t afford to live on my own.
– monitorcable
11. Worry
Are the kids okay? Their grades, job, mental health? Can we make that bill this month? Is the dog getting sick?
Is that a lump I should worry about? Is Mum recovering from her fall? Did I remember to send flowers for the MILs birthday?
It never ends
– LadyMirkwood
12. Mental health
Mental health disorders and productivity.
I spent my whole hs and Uni years doing my bare minimum to have a good currículum and then discovered that my sh**ty time habits wouldn’t work in Adultland.
– Perless_cucumber
13. Single parenthood
The isolation of being a single dad. Single parents don’t have a fall back, someone to carry the load for a couple minutes while you decompress and jump back in the fray.
When your one deep – there is no break. When your not at work, your at home.
There is no going out, getting away, dating or adult time.
I’m rural and don’t have family or a sitter for my boys so it’s all on me.
– Bedeaux_Active_420
14. Becoming a parent to your parents
That moment when the switch is flipped between having parents who are vital and have their s**t together, and essentially becoming the parent to people who have significant health/memory issues.
Health decisions, bills, disposition of assets, paperwork…and that’s on top of your own life and responsibilities.
It’s stressful to navigate, and painful to watch.
– Organized_Khaos
15. Pants
When you’re a kid, you don’t wear out clothes, because in 6 months, you’ve outgrown them.
That slows down by the end of high school, and there’s this weird transitory period where you slowly discover that you’ve worn out tat really comfortable pair of jeans and have to replace them, and no, holding on for a little longer just isn’t an option.
– BitPoet
I’d rather just not deal with it anymore, honestly. Anybody got a de-aging potion on them?
What would you add to this list?
Tell us in the comments.