Being a grown-up is not just about taking care of yourself; it’s also about considering how your actions affect the people around you. I like to think of it as juggling heavy dumbbells while riding a broken unicycle on a weak tightrope above a savage fire. Fun, right?
To learn which parts of this ‘performance’ people find the hardest, Redditor u/Frequent-Pilot5243 recently made a post on the platform, asking other users the following question: “What is an adult problem nobody prepared you for?” Turns out, a lot. From personal finance to relationships, continue scrolling to check out some of the most popular answers.
#1
Handling the decline and death of your parents
Image source: Agave666, Andrea Piacquadio
#2
$5K is a lot to owe, but not a lot to have.
Image source: Upper-Job5130, Karolina Grabowska
#3
Having to make dinner every. F***ing. Day.
Image source: EndlesslyUnfinished, Ella Olsson
#4
Life is all about maintenance. Your body, your house, your relationships, everything requires constant never ending maintenance.
Image source: IHateEditedBgMusic, James Bartholomew
#5
Didn’t know that other adults have the emotional intelligence of teenagers and its almost impossible to deal with logically
Image source: Super-Progress-6386
#6
Almost all of your friends wont be life long. No one really talks about how common it is to lose touch with people or grow apart. Most of your life will be spent either making new friends while losing old ones or being alone.
Image source: Emotional_Tale1044, Ba Phi
#7
The more life you’ve lived, the faster time seems to go.
Image source: FadedQuill, Pixabay
#8
That turning down the radio, when you are lost in a neighborhood helps you see better.
Image source: Garysgirl17
#9
How damned tired you are all the time.
Image source: chickenofalltrades, Adam Dimmick
#10
How easy it is to feel stuck in a bad situation (job, relationship, etc) just because the cost and effort of getting out can seem daunting. And sometimes you just have to accept a figurative bowl full of s**t because you can’t afford to blow up your life.
Image source: movieguy95453, Liza Summer
#11
You can stay up as late as you want. But you shouldn’t
Image source: geek_fit
#12
How prevalent depression, anxiety, and suicide ideation is. At this point I think every adult has been through it at some point in their lives.
Image source: ojazela, Magnus Karlsson
#13
Lack of purpose.
All your young life you are given purpose of passing exams and learning, then all of a sudden you are thrown into the world and told to find your own meaning.
Image source: Captain_Snow, Georgie Pauwels
#14
The kitchen is always dirty. You’ll clean it at least three times every day.
Image source: cewnc, Dejan Krsmanovic
#15
Figuring out what makes you happy. Everyone keeps trying to get you to do things you’re good at, or that makes you money, but never to pursue what you enjoy
Image source: eternalwanderer5, Tim Gouw
#16
Working full time, but still not being able to afford the basic necessities of life.
Image source: Liam_Tang, Marco Verch Professional
#17
Adult life being basically a permanent to-do list that just keeps on getting bigger and bigger
Image source: madkeepz, john.schultz
#18
Without a support system, your mental illnesses alone can render you homeless.
Image source: Ok_Sheepherder_8313, J.RISTANIEMI
#19
Daughter with behavioral and mental issues. Then she got pregnant at 16. It was a roller coaster ride…very trying and about kicked my [butt].
My husband had esophageal cancer and then 9 years later had 14 brain lesions. Both times his survival rate was low, but he’s still here.
Feel like I’ve been in survival mode for years and years. I’m kinda tired now.
Image source: Sharonanana, Gareth Williams
#20
That I can horrifically f**k my neck up just by sleeping at a funny angle
Image source: Retrosonic82
#21
Being 60 years old and still having to deal with people that act we’re still in high school. I can’t stand back biting and temper tantrums, and it seems even worse from 50 and 60 year olds. It’s embarrassing and I thought it would end, but apparently drama never ends
Image source: billiemarie
#22
Finding purpose and dealing with childhood trauma.
Image source: MisTeri678, Nenad Stojkovic
#23
This may just be because I’m on the spectrum but networking for jobs. My parents had the same jobs since I was born so I never saw them or anyone else look for one that wasn’t a temporary job for a college student so I didn’t know. I thought hard work would basically show employers I was worth hiring and despite burning myself out I still lost out to people with half my ability because they were more sociable was baffling to me for a long time.
Image source: TPrice1616
#24
I’m close to 50. Would have been nice to be better prepared for some of the ways your body starts to change that don’t normally get talked about. For instance, your teeth will start to shift from the general aging of your gums
Image source: Jaycatt
#25
I’ll say this: as a kid you think adults have it all together. Turns out we are just winging it.
Image source: ShorterByTheSecond
#26
My dad killed himself 3 days after my 31st birthday. And I still had to wake up and be a mother and a functional human being. Still have to.
There is no preparing for that.
Image source: legenducky
#27
That people will actively work against their own interests and/or the interests of society.
Growing up, you look at well adjusted adults and think “wow, these people know what’s going on and will help us all get to a better place.” Now? You realize there are a bunch of really stupid folk out there.
Image source: Yoluun
#28
Getting burnt out
Image source: OddRumskie, Andrea Piacquadio
#29
How much you have to clean. Like you are always cleaning something. I hate it
Image source: ljam16
#30
That once you are “stable” your life is f**king groundhog’s day. Every day is basically the same. Same person I already married, same house I already have and already decorated, same job every day, same foods over and over. Same damn shows and movies and songs… Boring and sometimes I have a crazy spell because I just can’t stand it… dysphoria sucks.
Image source: gyre_and_gimble_, Nenad Stojkovic
#31
Being asked why I’m single and have no kids like I’m some sort of alien.
Image source: thefanhit, Sofia Alejandra
#32
You can clearly see the systems that are in place to prevent you from advancing, but they’re effective in preventing you from advancing.
Image source: hercarmstrong
#33
Being an adult feels extremely lonely
Image source: Bluebloop0, Bianca Moraes
#34
How to fight with a partner. I just shut down because I don’t know how to handle it.
Image source: PMYOURBOOBOVERFLOW
#35
As a kid, I was taught, if you work hard, you can buy a house and move out once you’re 18. I wish I could tell little me that isn’t gonna happen anytime soon haha
Image source: K4YL13N
#36
Feeling like I’ve already seen every plot known to man and so movies are very predictable and not as enjoyable as they were when I was younger.
Image source: busyB_83
#37
Not having a lot of free-time or time by myself.
Image source: detective_kiara, Ron Lach
#38
How to handle existential crisis and the looming thought of my own death and the deaths of those around me.
Image source: thirtiesmatt
#39
Imposter syndrome. And then realizing that likely every expert or professional you’ve ever really trusted also probably has imposter syndrome and knows much less than you think they do. This became very apparent to me during the pandemic when I realized that our governments and our medical professionals don’t have all the answers and we’re all just figuring things out as we go.
Image source: Successful_Chip3930
#40
The intricacies of workplace politics.
Image source: Steve_Lobsen
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