Everyone knows the physical signs of getting old: you start noticing fine lines and wrinkles, your knees and back start hurting, and you can no longer function properly without a full night’s rest. And then, there are other signs of aging: the cashier is no longer asking you for an ID, those kids in the neighborhood are getting a little too loud, and you go from being a regular at a bar to a regular at a pharmacy. And though often depressing, signs that you’re getting old also indicate that you’re becoming more mature, wiser, and know yourself better than you ever did. Are those worth trading for softer skin? Some food for thought.
Either way, one of the harsh truths about life is that every single one of us is getting older. The only ones who don’t experience aging are the ones who have already passed. Hence, though bittersweet, aging is an inevitable part of life, and signs of aging are pretty much signs of approval that things are going how they are supposed to. Some time ago, user NordicModro asked fellow users of the AskReddit community, “What is a clear sign of you getting older?” And thousands of users swamped the comments section to share signs of getting old that they have learned and encountered in life. Though some answers were relatively expected, many were oddly specific instances from people’s daily lives, which made this thread even more appealing to dig through.
Below, we’ve compiled some of the most interesting responses from the thread, inviting people to share signs you’re getting old and the instances they realized they were getting older. Can you relate to any of the statements? Let us know by giving them an upvote! Also, how would you answer that same question? In the comments, you can let us know by finishing the following sentence: “you know you are getting older when…”
#1
TheYoungWan said:
“I used to sneak out of home to go to parties. Now I sneak out of parties to go home.”
YouveGotItMister replied:
“Your next stage of old is not going to parties in the first place.”
Image source: TheYoungWan
#2
stark561 said:
“You find teenagers irritating.”
SadLaser replied:
“Everyone finds teenagers irritating, including other teenagers.”
Image source: stark561
#3
Potential-Leave3489 said:
“Intolerance for loud noise. The older I get, the less I can stand it.”
steamygarbage replied:
“I look out the window like a grumpy senior when I see kids blasting music out loud in their cars at my apartment complex. No one cares what you listen to. Turn it down.”
Image source: Potential-Leave3489
#4
User No 1 said:
“People in positions of power being younger than you.”
RealStumbleweed replied:
“Your primary care physician looks like she’s about 17.”
Image source: reddit.com
#5
Heath_and_Harebells said:
“Making noises when sitting up and down.”
WaldoJeffers65 replied:
“Our dog is getting old, and whenever she stands up, she makes these little groaning noises. I thought it was cute and funny until the day I realized that I, too, make those noises whenever I stand up.”
Image source: Heath_and_Harebells
#6
ManicPrincessofKink said:
“When you are asked your birthday online and you realize how much you have to scroll to get to your birth year.”
Bortle1 replied:
“This one. The little year wheel just rolls and rolls and rolls to get to my year (1967!). PS. And I’m grateful for those years!”
Image source: ManicPrincessofKink
#7
UnQualityLife said:
“Back pain.”
User No 2 replied:
“Waking up every day with a new random pain somewhere. Probably partly some arthritis too.”
Image source: UnQualityLife
#8
“I schedule plans with friends earlier and earlier every passing year. There’s just something so satisfying about getting dinner and drinks at 6 pm and being back at home wearing my comfy fit binging the show du jour by 9 pm.”
Image source: cheerioguvna
#9
“I get excited when I buy a new kitchen utensil or some other house related thing.”
Image source: Helyn-
#10
“So, here are a few POSITIVE signs of aging: You recognize something is a dumb idea BEFORE you do it. You handle your own sh**/clean up your own mess, rather than leaving it for someone else to deal with. Your immediate desire or impulse doesn’t obscure every other factor when making an important decision. There are more, but you get the idea…”
Image source: fikis
#11
“After sitting still for a long period of time, standing and walking involves shambling about like a zombie. You’re fine after a seconds of movement, but initially nothing works right.”
Image source: Kiyohara
#12
Michi_Exiled said:
“Shrek was released 22 years ago.”
DemocraticRepublic replied:
“The Matrix was 24 years ago.”
Image source: Michi_Exiled
#13
“Always tired, and waking up sore every morning.”
Image source: LincolnCharlie
#14
GrimmRetails said:
“You don’t dare leave the house without peeing.”
Snooty_Goat replied:
“And you never fart in public. That s**t can go wrong in a hurry.”
GyrosSnazzyJazzBand also replied:
“I’m in my early 20s and I do this.”
Image source: GrimmRetails
#15
marina-minx said:
“I don’t want to set foot in a nightclub ever again.”
Fubai97b replied:
“I’m old enough where the club girls don’t check me out so much as keep an eye on me. When I was about 40, I got dragged to a club by some younger coworkers after a team dinner. I lasted about 5 minutes before having to tap out. The music and fog machine going full blast was like a living hell to me.”
Image source: marina-minx
#16
“Roughly 80% of the musical guests on SNL I have never heard of.”
Image source: reddit.com
#17
User No 1 said:
“That two decades ago is no longer the 1990s.”
airnlight_timenspace replied:
“Sometimes I catch myself thinking the 90’s were only a decade ago.”
havean**us also replied:
“The worst was when 80’s night at the club turned into 90’s night. Then when it turned into 00’s night I started shopping for grave plots.”
Image source: reddit.com
#18
Yearofthehoneybadger said:
“40 is a weird age. Everyone older says you’re so young. Everyone younger thinks you’re so old.”
zoomie35 replied:
“50 is the old age of youth, and the youth of old age.”
Ineedavodka2019 also replied:
“I had the nurse ask my husband at an appointment if I was his mother. Then two weeks later my teen daughter said all of her friends thought he was her brother and so hot. I’m younger than him. I must look old. He is hot.”
Image source: Yearofthehoneybadger
#19
NoraTMS said:
“I don’t care about how I look without makeup anymore.”
Melscott19651414 replied:
“I can’t even see enough to put makeup on… lol.”
soggy_n_groggy also replied:
“I’ve noticed this recently. A combination of the pandemic lockdowns negating any need for make up and reaching a point in life where I don’t give a s***. Plus I think our perception of what is good looking becomes more broad and generous as we get older. I appreciate my face more than I used to.”
Image source: NoraTMS
#20
SavvOrie said:
“Valuing your sleep and at least trying to follow a decent sleep schedule.”
Snooty_Goat replied:
“I just can’t do it if I don’t. In my younger years I could take on an army with 4 hours. Now 6 hours isn’t even enough to piss straight.”
Image source: SavvOrie
#21
saifster9 said:
“You start to give fewer s***s about others’ opinions and actions and do more self reflecting instead.”
and_so_forth replied:
“I really noticed this today. I teach at university and in a session today my students got into a pretty heated debate where I thought a few of their points were badly thought through or a little angry and immature. A younger version of me would perhaps have got a little worried they were laying down bad rationality but today-me just smiled and watched and intervened during the debate to make sure everyone got to talk. They’ll learn the world at their own pace and they don’t need browbeating by some dad-lookin’ guy. I only intervened when I thought they were being rude or when they were straight-up wrong. It was only driving home reflecting on it that I thought to myself, ‘s**t, I wish I’d learned to do that twenty years ago. Life would have been much more relaxing.'”
Image source: saifster9
#22
Hardtopickaname said:
“Media (songs, movies, games) you grew up with start being referred to as “classics”.”
advocatus_ebrius_est replied:
“The first time I heard Nirvana on the Classic Rock station, I died a little inside.”
iodine_iron replied:
“Same here but it was Green Day.”
GrapesHatePeople also replied:
“I don’t think I’ll forget the feeling of listening to my go to classic rock station at the time, a station that had always played stuff like Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osbourne, and Van Halen, and the first thing I heard after an ad break was: “Do you have the time, to listen to me whine…” I think several of my hairs immediately turned grey in that moment.”
Image source: Hardtopickaname
#23
MonkMode2022 said:
“Preferring to stay home than to go out.”
ILL_Show_Myself_Out replied:
“So, I’m slowing down and staying in as I enter my mid thirties, but I see more and more younger people 18-25 who aren’t doing much at all. Actually- the internet has become a bit of an introvert circle-jerk over the past years – I FULLY anticipate 21-22 year olds to join this thread and say ‘I’m 22 and I feel this way” and the like. I actually feel like a bit of a curmudgeon who wants to shout “that’s not how I was raised! You get back in the club and grind with rando’s and you like it!'”
Image source: MonkMode2022
#24
georgewashingguns said:
“You are more aware of others wasting their time.”
ForestMage5 replied:
“Yes! And of their wasting YOUR time.”
DontmindthePanda also replied:
“My tolerance for that is falling pretty fast recently. I remember waiting for people for half an hour or even longer because they had something else to do or needed to pick up other people. Now I’m like ‘f*** it, if you’re not here at 5, I’m gonna order something and don’t wait’.”
Image source: georgewashingguns
#25
irridisregardless said:
“You say to yourself: ‘It’s the end of January already!?'”
Translationerr0r replied:
“More like: ‘What did I do between 1990 and 2000?'”
Image source: irridisregardless
#26
macnutz22 said:
“More and more things annoy me.”
PowersIave replied:
“Yes! I’m 30 and I am acting more and more like those old grumpy people I remember when I was younger. Turns out I am becoming one, day by day. Come to think of it, maybe I thought they were old. They really weren’t that old. Sorry.”
Image source: macnutz22
#27
“(58m). Where do I start: 30s, didn’t brush off that wipe out on my bike like I did in my 20s. 40s, had to stop eating like I was 20, and visits to my family physician became much more frequent. 50s, takes much longer to get out of bed. My back and joints ache continually. as I approach my 60s, my friend and family pool is getting smaller as they start to pass on. Spend more time reminiscing about the past than looking to the future. Life goes by quickly. Don’t waste it!”
Image source: woodbarber
#28
“When you start to notice that your parents were right. Time passes by so incredibly fast! Remember that delicious pizza you ate yesterday? Nope. That was 1.5 months ago.”
Image source: ole1993
#29
Kooky_Finding8516 said:
“I genuinely (not sarcasm, not a meme) have no idea what slang teenagers use these days. I have absolutely zero context or exposure to any cultural influences teenagers even have.
But honestly, it’s kind of fun reading what slang people use these days. I was pretty sure things aren’t “fire” anymore, but maybe that’s still used?!?!”
Image source: Kooky_Finding8516
#30
DaSoberChef said:
“I sneezed the other week and threw my back out.”
Sylvair replied:
“Last year I had to take a day off work because I had hurt my back doing origami the night before.”
Image source: DaSoberChef
#31
pretty_little_life said:
“It takes twice as long to look half as good.”
More-Athlete1175 replied:
“Exactly. Used to be so easy at even 35 to look cute. When I do wear make-up I’m like well I still look 50.”
Image source: pretty_little_life
#32
StrangerKindly6118 said:
“Napping more often.”
User No 2 replied:
“I woke up early today to get some work done just so I could have time to nap later.”
Image source: StrangerKindly6118
#33
Any_Acanthocephala18 said:
“When they tear down a building that you remember getting built.”
Thinkingard replied:
“Haven’t experienced that, but that feel though when a place you used to work in your hometown is now a parking lot.”
cc452 also replied:
“My elementary school got torn down and turned into condos. That was weird.”
#34
lorna141 said:
“You have a serious and indepth conversation with your friends about decent lawn mowers/ weedkiller/ vacuum cleaners…”
mrmoe198 replied:
“Dammit. I was talking in earnest about home appliances and had to stop and realize… dammit if this is relevant then I’m old.”
Image source: lorna141
#35
pineappledaddy said:
“If anyone asks me to do anything after 8 pm, the chances of me going are slim, and the chances are even slimmer if I’ve already put on sweat pants.”
Stay-Thirsty replied:
“You get out of sweatpants. Well done. Workings remotely has definitely made me feel like I’m dressing up when I put jeans on.”
Image source: pineappledaddy
#36
CattoGinSama said:
“You start getting wisdom moments. Understanding why things happened and had to.. being more compassionate towards mistakes of others because you’re sh***y yourself and you know it.”
DadJokesAndMore replied:
“This one hits it for me. I think I have become much more patient with idiots than before. I want to add though; I also see through bull***t and have no fear calling it out, now, I mean, whose going to smack some old man for mouthing off Yikes.”
Image source: CattoGinSama
#37
wisertime07 said:
“The feeling of not waking up hungover sounds better to you than a night of partying.”
thisisinput replied:
“I get hungover without even getting drunk now.”
BamH1 also replied:
“Oh yeah. The classic 3 beer hangover is the worst. Then your wife says ‘you know you shouldn’t have had that many IPAs’.”
Image source: wisertime07
#38
stillcore said:
“Hair growing in places where hair shouldn’t be.”
Talesin_BatBat replied:
“Seriously, what is this bull***t that I have to shave my ears now?!”
TheEyeDontLie also replied:
“Yeah I was surprised this wasn’t higher. When I was 30 I noticed a few grey hairs. When I was 32 I noticed more hair on my chest and back. When I was 34 I had to start trimming my nose and ears and eyebrows and shaving my neck weekly and my nipples are surrounded by fountains of pubes.”
Image source: stillcore
#39
hiro111 said:
“Reading glasses.”
Aims312 replied:
“Multiple pairs placed in strategic places. Bedside, by my chair in the living room, in my truck, in my purse, and one at work.”
Image source: hiro111
#40
Sreneethomas said:
“When you’ve seen multiple decades of fashion trends come back into play with the ‘young crowd’.”
Waddiwasiiiii replied:
“I laughed when I saw a pair of JNCO jeans being sold as “vintage ultra baggy denim” in a trendy secondhand shop near work. It boggled my mind that people actually wanted to wear those again, but my 20-something coworker was like, “oh yeah, they go for like, a few hundred bucks or more now” I then showed the youngsters pics of how impractical garbage they were if worn in rain, snow, and the developing heel strap after about a month of dragging on the ground. They all still want them. And they said, “it’s cool because no one wears them that long anymore”. Case in point, the next day I saw a teen wearing a pair, only they stopped just above her ankles. didn’t think that look could get worse but the kids have gone and done it.”
Image source: Sreneethomas
#41
“Referring to people under 30 as kids. I caught myself saying “he was just a kid” about Anton Yelchin recently even though he was 27. Also my knees sounding like bubble wrap when I kneel down.”
Image source: samcahnruns
#42
“Getting excited about nesting things. Home projects. Yard work. Decorating for Holidays. New furniture. Also. When you start congratulating your friends when they get pregnant vs the feeling of panic.”
Image source: DarthDog371
#43
“Complain about prices.”
Image source: reddit.com
#44
“When your former school mates are on Facebook celebrating the birth of their grandkids.”
Image source: thebeanabong
#45
SpatulaJamtown said:
“‘Oh I like their cabinetry’ while watching an exciting action movie.”
Kyfigrigas replied:
“I showed my aunt Breaking Bad and she couldn’t stop talking about how nice Walters house was.”
Image source: SpatulaJamtown
#46
“Dad jokes are getting funnier.”
Image source: RedditKnight_
#47
Thirty_Helens_Agree said:
“I went to a local brewery taproom for lunch. I started chatting with the 19ish year old bartender and mentioned that the first time I ever got a keg of beer it was from that brewery and mentioned the year. “Wow, I wasn’t even born yet!” he says.”
User No 2 replied:
“For me it was meeting someone who said she was old, then I realised I have a CD that is older than her.”
Image source: Thirty_Helens_Agree
#48
Botryoid2000 said:
“It’s weird how quickly it happens. I hear interviews with people from bands I have never heard of and the interviewer is like “You have 6 platinum albums…” Or on People Magazine covers, there are people I have never seen before. Am old, don’t care.”
JohnExcrement replied:
“I used to hold my dad in contempt for having no idea what music I liked, etc. My mom used to make an effort to keep up but he did not care. And all these years later I totally get it.”
Maus_Sveti also replied:
“I heard Billie Eilish for the first time recently, and was like ‘NOW I get why my parents always moaned about me playing Radiohead.'”
Image source: Botryoid2000
#49
-Words-Words-Words- said:
“Every movie I’ve gone to (pre-pandemic and now) starts before 7 pm.”
not_an_Alien_Robot replied:
“Sunday matinees, first show of the day, for me. It’s cheaper where I live, not crowded at all, and as long as you avoid anything G-rated you’re golden.”
Image source: -Words-Words-Words-
#50
Far-Bug5843 said:
“Kids born in 2010 are turning 13 this year.”
fahargo replied:
“Kids born in 2000 are basically done with school. Most will have graduated college.”
Image source: Far-Bug5843
#51
“Either hair falling or turning gray.”
Image source: Much_Committee_9355
#52
-Words-Words-Words- said:
“I saw this somewhere yesterday, you live your 30’s just like your 20’s until ‘the injury’.”
Famous-Honey-9331 replied:
“Or ‘the diagnosis’.”
deltavictory also replied:
“This is me. No injury, but life-changing (not life-ending) diagnosis – and the following ramifications – at 33 signaled the end of the good times, and forced me to come to terms with my mortality. Now my Friday/Saturday nights consist of couch, Cooper’s Hawk (home by 10), or DnD. Youth, and life, is precious ya’ll. Don’t waste it.”
Image source: -Words-Words-Words-
#53
“You no longer call your knees left and right, but good and bad.”
Image source: v0t3p3dr0
#54
Longjumping_Sleep_12 said:
“I had a painter over (19 years old) that kept referring to me as ‘sir’.”
curtyshoo replied:
“Yes, I’ve noticed that. You become a ‘sir,’ though you really don’t feel like you possess the full power, authoritativeness and gravitas of one worthy of the name.”
strapping_young_vlad also replied:
“I remember when I was like, 19, working at a video game store, this mom was there with her kid, probably 5 or 6 years old, she told her kid “now tell the man which game you want out of the case” or whatever it was. ‘Man’? that threw me off. I’m 34 now with a kid and I still feel like a stupid teenager most days.”
Image source: Longjumping_Sleep_12
#55
Cyberwolf_71 said:
“I used to use the pull-up bar to make my arms big. I now use the pull-up bar to decompress my spine.”
t_ravyD replied:
“It’s also amazing for shoulder pain.”
Image source: Cyberwolf_71
#56
airfriedandbbqed said:
“You hear all types of pops and clicks in your body.”
LastandLeast replied:
“I just tell people I’m a crunchy human.”
Image source: airfriedandbbqed
#57
ImWhatTheySayDeaf said:
“The adults in your life start dying.”
Snooty_Goat replied:
“Wait until you hit 40. They drop like flies. It’s insane how quickly your life can depopulate.”
wisertime07 also replied:
“I’m in my early 40’s, I literally just attended the funeral of my best friend from my childhood this past Thursday. Died the day after his 42nd birthday from a coronary event. After going my first ~15 years or so without anyone I knew dying, my last 25 years has been a series of deaths and funerals. My dad, grandparents, family friends, a ton of kids from my HS. Before, it used to be extended people or older relatives – but here lately, it’s people I know/knew well. And no longer car accidents, but terminal illnesses and things.”
Image source: ImWhatTheySayDeaf
#58
“You notice your favorite band is having a reunion tour and didn’t realize they had broken up in the first place.”
Image source: nowhereman136
#59
Hunangren said:
“You often prefer a light dish to fried food because the latter is indeed tastier, but “it’s not worth the trouble”.”
BriaCass replied:
“Already going through this at 24. can’t have alcohol or anything spicy late at night or my stomach will not let me sleep.”
Lissy_Wolfe also replied:
“I’m only in my late 20s, but I’ve realized dieting is getting a tiny bit easier for me because eating junk makes me so damn miserable it isn’t worth the pain later lol.”
Image source: Hunangren
#60
Back2Bach said:
“Your address book includes many names of people who are either dead or you haven’t heard from in years.
Note: As I commented further down this thread, the address book referred to is my grandmother’s from when she was alive: It’s interesting to flip through the pages and see that most of the entries were crossed out by the time she died – meaning, all those people are dead too.”
Schneetmacher replied:
“Also, you have an address book. Also, my comment comes across a bit like I’m making fun of OP, and that wasn’t my intention. But I literally know of no one younger than my mother (in her 50s) who keeps a physical address book.”
Image source: Back2Bach
#61
devraj7 said:
“Haven’t gone to a wedding in a very long time. Have gone to a few funerals, though.”
_spookyvision_ replied:
“Unbelievably, I didn’t go to a wedding as an adult until I was 27. Next one should be my sister in early 2023. I know people who are on a conveyor belt of random weddings and it just never seems to stop. Previous weddings had young me in attendance only because my parents had been invited and kids were allowed.”
Image source: devraj7
#62
Aggravating-Bottle78 said:
“When the checkout girl at the local drug mart gave me a discount and I asked why the discount and she said seniors discount. I was maybe 57 at the time. I didn’t know whether to be outraged or happy about getting a few bucks off.”
User No 2 replied:
“My husband got the senior’s discount at Popeyes without asking and he’s only 34 lmao.”
Image source: Aggravating-Bottle78
#63
User No 1 said:
“I don’t recognize popular music artists now.”
WhoCanTell replied:
“I had an MRI recently. They asked what music I wanted on the headphones. I asked for an Alternative. I laid in that machine for almost an hour and recognized exactly one song, from Imagine Dragons, and that was only because I watched Arcane on Netflix.”
Image source: reddit.com
#64
User No 1 said:
“You don’t understand the purpose of TikTok and take advantage of any opportunity to let others know that.”
koala-itykush replied:
“This might be crazy, but I literally felt addicted to TikTok. My boyfriend and friends always complained I was on it too much, I was constantly posting on TikTok, until one day I decided to randomly delete it. Until then, I thought I wasn’t on it too much, but after deleting it, made me realize how much easier I got bored, I didn’t wanna do anything else but sit on TikTok. Eventually, I got over all those feelings, and I haven’t downloaded it again. The whole app was toxic.”
Image source: reddit.com
#65
toddlergangbang said:
“I found myself just wandering around the aisles of Lowes, not looking for anything in particular and had a moment of self-clarity: I’m old.”
3-DMan replied:
“I’m lookin’ for clearance sections, but I think I’ve always done that…”
ThorOfKenya2 also replied:
“99% of the time it’s useless chaff but that one time you find a good deal, always going to check. Never know.”
Image source: toddlergangbang
#66
“When I watched professional sports and all the players looked like CHILDREN! Baseball, football, tennis to etc.”
Image source: carolathome
#67
“Making healthy choices because the alternative is not worth the trouble. Eat birthday cake? No thanks, sugar makes me feel anxious and s***ty for days (it always did, but It took me 33 years to connect the dots). Wild molly bender? I dunno if I feel like 3 hours of bliss followed by a week of depression and low energy.”
Image source: BearModeCosplay
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