If you were to ask any person what they wish for most in this life, the majority would probably say a good, happy life. But what does that entail, actually? According to the experts at VeryWell, a few things: healthy relationships, getting enough sleep, and being physically active.
Then there's also getting rid of stressors that drain our energy, finding meaning in the work that we do, and dedicating time to something we love outside of work. Sound like a lot? Probably because we're more used to engaging in bad habits.
Recently, one person online asked others to share their past bad habits that made their life now so bad that they wish they had never done them. We've collected the best answers and present them to you here, Pandas. So, scroll down and cheer for the people who were able to kick their bad habits and check whether you're engaging in some of them right now!
#1
This will sound glib but I’m going to say it:
Moving to a city in Texas.
A better way of saying it “no matter the promotion or the amount of money: Never move somewhere where the general and sum total ideological or political belief system does not align in any way with your own. .
Moving to a city in Texas.
A better way of saying it “no matter the promotion or the amount of money: Never move somewhere where the general and sum total ideological or political belief system does not align in any way with your own. .
54points
#2
Fall for the romanticized idea of overworking, overachieving and ignoring my health related red flags as a sign of virtue and strength. I felt so proud about not getting enough sleep or food, not letting illnesses stop me and working my a*s off. At the end I never got actually recognized for any of it and completely blew my health at only 24, now I can’t do half of what I could do before and lost so much time of my prime years trying too hard instead of being a happier person.
49points
#3
Worked 12 hour days for a job that wasn’t worth it.
43points
#4
Social media. It has seriously messed with my attention span. And I can’t even remember how to enjoy free time without checking it every five minutes.
40points
#5
Getting fat. As someone with ADHD who already struggled to feel comfortable sitting, having extra weight on my legs made it even harder to sit. I've lost 55lbs so far, more to go, but I feel so much more comfortable now. I also have far less nerve pain, it's easier to exercise (which helps reduce pain), and sleep better. You never realize just how much being overweight decreases your quality of life.
37points
#6
Smoked.
PathOfTheAncients:
They say after 10 years of not smoking your odds of health problems return to near normal.
I am 10 years out as of this month. Started running the day I quit. At first I couldn't go the length of a city block without having to stop and walk. Now I run hundreds of miles every year and every time I am tempted by a cigarette I just think about how much it would ruin my running.
If anyone reading this is trying to quit, keep trying. It took me a bunch of attempts before I was able to get there.
PathOfTheAncients:
They say after 10 years of not smoking your odds of health problems return to near normal.
I am 10 years out as of this month. Started running the day I quit. At first I couldn't go the length of a city block without having to stop and walk. Now I run hundreds of miles every year and every time I am tempted by a cigarette I just think about how much it would ruin my running.
If anyone reading this is trying to quit, keep trying. It took me a bunch of attempts before I was able to get there.
35points
#7
Thinking that romantic love is more important than anything else and that I need a man to be complete.
35points
#8
Working at an animal shelter.
psychochihuahualover:
As a former animal shelter worker, 100% agree. It broke me.
psychochihuahualover:
As a former animal shelter worker, 100% agree. It broke me.
34points
#9
Neglect my body for years.
Almost no movement. Rather poor hygiene. Horrible food.
And little to no sleep.
DiecastKiwi:
Start walking everyday and keep adding ten minutes to make it a solid hour, stop eating processed and packaged food you will bounce back.
Sad_Fee_4104:
That's basically how I started.
Even 11 minutes stairwalking caused anywhere from mild to "tears down my face in pain" headaches
Slow steady walks. A year. Until a general practicioner gave me the greenlight to start hitting the gym.
Another year of painstakingly slow progress later: Only regular headaches which I can almost always wave away with a big fat smile.
Almost no movement. Rather poor hygiene. Horrible food.
And little to no sleep.
DiecastKiwi:
Start walking everyday and keep adding ten minutes to make it a solid hour, stop eating processed and packaged food you will bounce back.
Sad_Fee_4104:
That's basically how I started.
Even 11 minutes stairwalking caused anywhere from mild to "tears down my face in pain" headaches
Slow steady walks. A year. Until a general practicioner gave me the greenlight to start hitting the gym.
Another year of painstakingly slow progress later: Only regular headaches which I can almost always wave away with a big fat smile.
31points
#10
Going to prison at 19 for selling w**d.
In the end it worked out, I've since graduated college and have a nice engineering job and great life. It was a rough patch in my life for sure.
Freezing stuck in a prison cell in Joliet for 77 days, went weeks without showers or seeing sunlight. Then shipped off to bootcamp for 4.5 months to be further denigrated. In the end it caused me to grow up and prioritize what I want in life. Worked and paid my way through a 2 year community college, followed with a MIS degree at a 4 yr University.
Life hasn't been perfect, but I always have perspective on a "bad day" in that I've had it much worse.
In the end it worked out, I've since graduated college and have a nice engineering job and great life. It was a rough patch in my life for sure.
Freezing stuck in a prison cell in Joliet for 77 days, went weeks without showers or seeing sunlight. Then shipped off to bootcamp for 4.5 months to be further denigrated. In the end it caused me to grow up and prioritize what I want in life. Worked and paid my way through a 2 year community college, followed with a MIS degree at a 4 yr University.
Life hasn't been perfect, but I always have perspective on a "bad day" in that I've had it much worse.
31points
#11
Trying to impress people who don’t GAF about you.
figgynewton1:
Amen. I feel like this is a lesson that one will learn over and over again. I find myself doing this in different settings, with a different crowd, in a different mindset. Always in a cycle of learning and relearning.
figgynewton1:
Amen. I feel like this is a lesson that one will learn over and over again. I find myself doing this in different settings, with a different crowd, in a different mindset. Always in a cycle of learning and relearning.
30points
#12
Went nomadic as a full-time RVer. It was easy to sell off everything and drive away but when the RV got totalled, I found myself homeless and it took years to get back to a normal way of life with my meager funds.
29points
#13
Bulimia for 15 years since I was a teen. All because my mom put me through weight watchers as a kid because I was a little chubby. Never felt thin enough.
Ruined my teeth and digestive health. 10/10 do not recommend.
Dry-Blueberry-8226:
I’m so sorry 😞
Body image issues can be so devastating…and they linger, boy do they linger.
Best medicine for me (not bulimic but suffered from severe dysmorphia for many years as a young man) was to find something physical that I was remotely good at and become better. Now, between how I eat and what I do with my body, I know objectively I look damn good (lol), but still have trouble eating out with freinds…
Hang in there.
Ruined my teeth and digestive health. 10/10 do not recommend.
Dry-Blueberry-8226:
I’m so sorry 😞
Body image issues can be so devastating…and they linger, boy do they linger.
Best medicine for me (not bulimic but suffered from severe dysmorphia for many years as a young man) was to find something physical that I was remotely good at and become better. Now, between how I eat and what I do with my body, I know objectively I look damn good (lol), but still have trouble eating out with freinds…
Hang in there.
28points
#14
Slept less to keep up w school and work. At one point i was sleeping around 3 hrs a night, and falling alseep at the wheel regularly. Its been 10 years and i still have problems from this period of sleep deprevation.
Kids, dont sacrifice your sleep. Turns out you need it.
Kids, dont sacrifice your sleep. Turns out you need it.
28points
#15
Being understanding when someone treats/talks/screams at you like s**t. Dont stand for it.
26points
#16
Bought an HOA-governed condo in Florida.
26points
#17
GET INTO DEBT!!!
25points
#18
Not wearing ear plugs at concerts.
25points
#19
Tried to show off, ended up destroying the lowest 5 vertebrae in my back and now I'm nearly crippled.
I picked up a very heavy object that I had no business picking up and, since there were people around, I didn't immediately put the damned thing down. My lumbar region went cold and then numb. At that point I knew I screwed up. The pain began the next day.
I damaged multiple vertebra. Caused the discs to basically, squirt out the sides. Once that happened the nerves going out of my foramen became crushed by the bones.
One failed surgery later I get to have constant pain, weakness, and instability that prevents me from doing a great many things that I once loved.
I tell younger people that if you want to screw up your quality of life, damage your back. because once its damaged, its damaged for life.
I picked up a very heavy object that I had no business picking up and, since there were people around, I didn't immediately put the damned thing down. My lumbar region went cold and then numb. At that point I knew I screwed up. The pain began the next day.
I damaged multiple vertebra. Caused the discs to basically, squirt out the sides. Once that happened the nerves going out of my foramen became crushed by the bones.
One failed surgery later I get to have constant pain, weakness, and instability that prevents me from doing a great many things that I once loved.
I tell younger people that if you want to screw up your quality of life, damage your back. because once its damaged, its damaged for life.
25points
#20
Spent years to impress the girl I like, I should have given that attention to my own self instead to improve my life.
MrLanesLament:
I fortunately got this impulse out of my system before I left school.
I completely fell for someone who had zero interest in me. To this day, I can’t figure out why I kept trying. Kept trying to be a guy she’d like; to be into the same interests she was; kept trying to invite her to stuff she probably had no interest in.
It. Was. Dumb.
If someone doesn’t like you immediately, put even an ounce of further effort in at your own peril. 99% of the time, you are wasting your time; not only that, but there’s also a good chance it will have the opposite effect and repel them.
I’ve had numerous good relationships since then; in each case, the person expressed interest in me very quickly. There’s no other way for it to happen IMO.
MrLanesLament:
I fortunately got this impulse out of my system before I left school.
I completely fell for someone who had zero interest in me. To this day, I can’t figure out why I kept trying. Kept trying to be a guy she’d like; to be into the same interests she was; kept trying to invite her to stuff she probably had no interest in.
It. Was. Dumb.
If someone doesn’t like you immediately, put even an ounce of further effort in at your own peril. 99% of the time, you are wasting your time; not only that, but there’s also a good chance it will have the opposite effect and repel them.
I’ve had numerous good relationships since then; in each case, the person expressed interest in me very quickly. There’s no other way for it to happen IMO.
24points