Adulting is hard, not just because you can no longer depend on your parents and be sure where your next meal comes from. Often, adulting is realizing that things are way different from what you imagined them to be when you were little. When you are older, you first learn that it’s not Santa who puts all the gifts underneath the Christmas tree or that your beloved pet did not actually “leave to live on a farm in the countryside.” Though learning truths as such is often sad and disappointing, those are still seemingly innocent facts we learn early in life.
However, you know you are getting older when you start to understand why Peter Pan never wanted to grow up, why Squidward just wanted peace and some alone time, why Garfield hated Mondays, and why Moe might be the most relatable character in The Simpsons. Adulthood is full of discoveries, and learning harsh truths about life is a part of it. To learn more about those, some time ago, a user on AskReddit asked, “What’s a sad truth you only realize when you’re an adult?” And hundreds of people jumped on the thread to reveal the many harsh truths they only learned once they became older.
Below, we’ve compiled the many adult realizations and sad facts about life that many have learned once they become adults. Any sad truths about adulthood that you can relate to? Give those an upvote. Also, what’s a sad truth about life that you have learned only recently or years into becoming an adult? Share your thoughts in the comments!
#42
"Going to school is the easiest thing you're going to have to do."
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8points
#43
paletapt said:
"Everything seems to be too expensive when we have to work for it."
"Everything seems to be too expensive when we have to work for it."
Raskolnikovo replied:
"This depends on many things. One factor is how much money you received from your parents growing up. The other is how high the purchase power in your country is. I was raised in Colombia by very restrictive parents (in terms of money), then I moved to Germany and started working minimum wage and I feel I'm rich lol."
"This depends on many things. One factor is how much money you received from your parents growing up. The other is how high the purchase power in your country is. I was raised in Colombia by very restrictive parents (in terms of money), then I moved to Germany and started working minimum wage and I feel I'm rich lol."
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7points
#44
OptimalBeans said:
"That you're going to college to work at a job that cares absolutely nothing about you or your family. Meaning that if you're a good employee it means nothing. You have to switch from job to job if you ever want to make more money which is the dumbest thing in my opinion. If you're a good employee and do your job right you should get raises."
"That you're going to college to work at a job that cares absolutely nothing about you or your family. Meaning that if you're a good employee it means nothing. You have to switch from job to job if you ever want to make more money which is the dumbest thing in my opinion. If you're a good employee and do your job right you should get raises."
UncleSub replied:
"I dunno, I worked at a hotel, went from server to manager and could've probably gone up after that. left for another job, went from assistant to a real position (currently in training but still a new title and a huge raise) will then be a fully trained employee with a raise again. And if I do well I can most likely become a manager there too. If not, then yeah I can move... but yes, I work weekends and extra hours all the time because I want to move up. I get it, you can move higher and faster by switching jobs, it is proven I am not saying it is not. Just saying it is not dead, at a lot of jobs if you do amazingly well you will move up. However yes, at some, you won't move up no matter how well you do... I agree with that."
"I dunno, I worked at a hotel, went from server to manager and could've probably gone up after that. left for another job, went from assistant to a real position (currently in training but still a new title and a huge raise) will then be a fully trained employee with a raise again. And if I do well I can most likely become a manager there too. If not, then yeah I can move... but yes, I work weekends and extra hours all the time because I want to move up. I get it, you can move higher and faster by switching jobs, it is proven I am not saying it is not. Just saying it is not dead, at a lot of jobs if you do amazingly well you will move up. However yes, at some, you won't move up no matter how well you do... I agree with that."
OptimalBeans also replied:
"It depends where you work. When you work for a company like I do (IT) with 150,000 employees that’s stationed in France and outsources most of its employees it’s dif. If you work for a hotel that is basically run by the staff there it’s a little different. Try working for a multinational corporation and tell me you can move up easily and raises are guaranteed."
"It depends where you work. When you work for a company like I do (IT) with 150,000 employees that’s stationed in France and outsources most of its employees it’s dif. If you work for a hotel that is basically run by the staff there it’s a little different. Try working for a multinational corporation and tell me you can move up easily and raises are guaranteed."
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7points
#45
"You will never find more than 1, maybe 2, people who actually give a s*** about you or your well-being."
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7points
#47
DM-Hollens-117 said:
"Even parents with the best intentions will still f**k you up."
"Even parents with the best intentions will still f**k you up."
Redditor replied:
"My parent's "love" and "care" was disguised as verbal and emotional abuse to get me to comply with how they wanted life to be like. If I didn't work with it, I would have things taken away (including pets,) and would have to work for their love and attention. It has sadly affected me as an adult, though I have worked through it and now acknowledge how it affects me (I was a huge people pleaser for a long time.) The sad part about all of it is, that my parents still think they did the right thing and that it was "tough love" though looking back it was mostly arbitrary. Like, who the f**k rehomes a kid's pet because they aren't interested in playing an instrument?"
"My parent's "love" and "care" was disguised as verbal and emotional abuse to get me to comply with how they wanted life to be like. If I didn't work with it, I would have things taken away (including pets,) and would have to work for their love and attention. It has sadly affected me as an adult, though I have worked through it and now acknowledge how it affects me (I was a huge people pleaser for a long time.) The sad part about all of it is, that my parents still think they did the right thing and that it was "tough love" though looking back it was mostly arbitrary. Like, who the f**k rehomes a kid's pet because they aren't interested in playing an instrument?"
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7points
#48
"Seconds are constantly ticking away and we’re all dying as we speak. Also the world keeps spinning and people keep growing. People you once knew and loved grow without you. It’s a tough pill to swallow."
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7points
#49
COVID-69420bbq said:
"Life in general is an endless version of high school, it's just that people's bodies continue to age and the setting changes."
"Life in general is an endless version of high school, it's just that people's bodies continue to age and the setting changes."
Agorm replied:
"Really? I work in a school nowadays but other than that I don't see the similarities. Haven't been bullied at work. I'm not trying to be cool or whatever to fit in. People don't really care what you do in general as long that their work doesn't suffer from it(colleagues). Have to pay taxes. Have to pay bills. It just day in day out the same basically. I remember high school as a much more carefree period tbh. But with a lot more social drama..."
"Really? I work in a school nowadays but other than that I don't see the similarities. Haven't been bullied at work. I'm not trying to be cool or whatever to fit in. People don't really care what you do in general as long that their work doesn't suffer from it(colleagues). Have to pay taxes. Have to pay bills. It just day in day out the same basically. I remember high school as a much more carefree period tbh. But with a lot more social drama..."
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6points
#50
"Adult life is literally just working 9-5, eating, sleeping, showering, and fu***ng. Everyone is literally s** crazed as adults, I didn't realize it until I was like 25."
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6points
#51
"Time is relative and to us. The last decades of our life, although a longer duration will speed by faster than our youth. As time runs out it also speeds up until you realize at the end that you should of done more and now its too late."
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6points
#52
"That for better or for worse life goes on. Something good happened today? Great, today ends and tomorrow comes. Something terrible happened today? That sucks, same thing. Moments good and bad are fleeting, nothing ACTUALLY matters. The sun will rise tomorrow with or without you. Your loved ones may remember you but when they are gone you will Be lost to the sands of time."
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6points
#53
"Every person you will ever know only likes you for what you can give them. Money, food, love, a place to stay, conversation, a car... what it is doesn't matter, but you have to give them something. You are the same way with everyone you will ever meet."
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6points
#54
"I'm only 18 and I was at a family diner the other day for my grandpa's 70th birthday. At this diner was also my little cousin who's 2 years old. And a couple of times through the whole night I realized how happy and excited she was about anything and everything only to notice the adults just half-heartedly giving a smile at these things including myself. Like in many aspects, I'm still a kid and I've already lost the ability to feel like that it's kinda sad tbh. Like many people are saying again still only 18 but just how incompetent people are. I'm a first-year uni student in chemical and computer engineering and a lot of my classmates are impossible to work with or just have no clue what's going on. It makes me worry for the future."
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6points
#55
"Life is punishment, it's designed to hurt you as much as possible for as long as possible."
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6points
#56
mrsguyliner said:
"You didn't ask to be born and now you're forced to work for the rest of your life with no guarantee you'll be safe, secure or happy."
"You didn't ask to be born and now you're forced to work for the rest of your life with no guarantee you'll be safe, secure or happy."
ArthurshatHasAplan replied:
"If I had the financial security in making a baby I would but if I know I don’t have the funds for it I would be f***ing f***ed. I wish my parents would have thought about that but I guess I learned don’t make a baby when ur broke as s*** & can’t make it live a comfortable life. Most of my friends are getting to that age where they have babies. Like I feel being 20 years you need to have fun and enjoy the moments to yourself you are only in your 20s for a bit don’t f*** yourself over by having children."
"If I had the financial security in making a baby I would but if I know I don’t have the funds for it I would be f***ing f***ed. I wish my parents would have thought about that but I guess I learned don’t make a baby when ur broke as s*** & can’t make it live a comfortable life. Most of my friends are getting to that age where they have babies. Like I feel being 20 years you need to have fun and enjoy the moments to yourself you are only in your 20s for a bit don’t f*** yourself over by having children."
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5points
#58
BrnInD80s said:
"Not all adults are nice."
"Not all adults are nice."
More-Masterpiece-561 replied:
"In general, most people are horrible and awful. And if they felt that they are not being watched they would do even more horrible things. Most people stay away from doing the wrong thing not because of their conscience but because of the accountability. Most of the people stay away from driving under influence to avoid getting a DUI, not because they think it's dangerous. And the people closest to you are more likely to hurt you than a random stranger. Physically or mentally."
"In general, most people are horrible and awful. And if they felt that they are not being watched they would do even more horrible things. Most people stay away from doing the wrong thing not because of their conscience but because of the accountability. Most of the people stay away from driving under influence to avoid getting a DUI, not because they think it's dangerous. And the people closest to you are more likely to hurt you than a random stranger. Physically or mentally."
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4points
