Social Issues,Curiosities,RelationshipsMAR 17, 2022

People Reveal What 30 Things Keep Disappointing Them But They Still Haven't Given Up On

Mindaugas Balčiauskas and Jonas Grinevičius

105

Among the many virtues and positive qualities of humankind, persistence, perseverance, determination, and good ol’ grit are some of the most important ones. Ever!

They allow us to push forward after failure. And to move towards our goals and loftiest ambitions, step by step, even when we feel like we’re utterly lost. However, in some cases, no amount of persistence is likely to change the fact that some things simply won’t get better.

What follows is a collection of very open and honest posts made by redditors who shared the things that consistently leave them disappointed, yet they keep trying to do them anyway. From hobbies and jobs to relationships, aspirations, and beyond.

There’s a lot of bittersweet motivation here, but we hope you enjoy it, dear Pandas. When you’re done reading the posts, tell us a bit about the things that disappoint you, but you still keep at them.

#1

People Reveal What 30 Things Keep Disappointing Them But They Still Haven't Given Up On

Trying to explain to people that animals are sentient and shouldn't be exploited for human pleasure.

lttlprncssbtt, pexels

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220points

#2

Trying to make friends.

I understand Im not everyones cup of tea, but it hurts being the outcast sometimes.

I keep being friendly though.

GozerDaGozerian, pexels

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194points

#3

Politics. I always vote, but the sh*tshow never gets any better.

beccapenny, pexels

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188points

Redditor u/es_mo’s thread on r/AskReddit went viral and got over 50.2k upvotes in just a week. They started up an important discussion about how our expectations don’t always match up with reality.

But the underlying conversation also touches upon the power of the human spirit—that there is always hope. Hope that our determination will let us succeed at that which we so desperately want.

#4

Me and my wife trying to get pregnant... took a year for our first and that constant negative test was brutal.

We have been trying a year now for a second to the same disappointment. Until last week

Sarnick18, pexels

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134points

#5

Trusting other people.

PackageIllustrious90, unsplash

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133points

#6

Trying to lose weight.

sandenema

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132points

A rule of thumb to keep yourself content (or possibly even happy) is to manage your expectations. Generally speaking, we tend to have slightly unrealistic expectations of what might happen. While some of us are more pessimistic, others are overly optimistic.

And when those expectations don’t match up with reality, we can get disappointed. If we consistently fail to manage these expectations, that disappointment will continue. Unless, of course, we try out different strategies to try and reach our goals, and actually manage to break the cycle of failure.

#7

Trying to keep in contact with my one sided friendships.

sydthefkdown, pexels

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120points

#8

Thinking my job will get better.

itzFinners, unsplash

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118points

#9

Being an adult. It Sucks

RoundOneMiles

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118points

Whatever the case might be, it’s best to keep expectations low. If you actually manage to get what you want, you’ll feel elated, ecstatic, and all-around wonderful. However, if there’s any deviation from what you constantly daydreamed would happen, you’ll feel a deep sense of longing and sadness. You might even start questioning your skills, even if the end result is objectively quite good.

As such, it’s best to accept things as they are. Instead of hoping that there will be a moment that everything will fall into place and be ‘perfect,’ you should strive to enjoy what’s around you. Gratitude for what you have and who you have in your life will likely make you happier. And it’s a much better alternative to being disappointed for years.

#10

My faith in humanity.

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105points

#11

Being normal.

I was diagnosed ADD, ADHD, Bipolar 1, and clinical depression at the age of 10. My whole life ive been told things i can or cant do because im bipolar. Or because i need medicine.

My entire middle school year through half of highschool was spent in a medically induced coma caused by my meds constantly making me so drowsy that i passed out all the time.

It got so bad that the principal informed all teachers to send me to the nurse, with a passing grade, to sleep. For entire school days. This is where the bullying started with rumors about drug use.

People thought i smoked weed. All through highschool i was seen as a pothead cause i was always so exhausted. Id have rocks thrown at me by people. Cinstant bullying and name calling. I kept to myself as much as i could by this point.

The few friends i had would often want nothing to do with me because i was so starved for affection from years of bullying that it made me needy. I dont blame them for wanting to keep a distance.

My whole life i begged to some sort of diety to either fix me or kill me. Sometimes i still do. Ive looked into getting a lobatomy to force some sort of cranial reset and hopefully the connections in my brain would fix themselves. Thats the dream.

Ive been in and out of therapy since the age of 15. And i only got a few mental meditation techniques from it. But other then that? Im probably worse now at the age of 30 then i was at 15. This is partly due to the texas mental healthcare system being a rotating door of garbage.

People will often tell me things like there is no normal. That normal is over rated. That im fine the way i am.

To those people i fart in their direction because there is a normal. Theres a normal of people being able to be happy without drugs or without some sort of clincal assistance. There is a normal where you dont think about horrible dark things.

I want that normal. Ive never felt it. And each time I try to get it, I get disappointed.

Know that i am safe. And you dont need to be a douche with that reddit mental health message. This was me seeing a chance to vent some pain.

Thank you for joining my TED Talk.

Chonkasaurus30, pexels

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101points

#12

Growing indoor plants.

TruthOf42, unsplash

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93points

#13

Trying to make new friends in my 40s.

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88points

#14

Dating.

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83points

#15

My wife. She left me in October, and I keep hurting myself by trying to get her to come home. We have two small sons together. I am lost.

Chingaderus_, pexels

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81points

#16

Trying to enjoy my free time like I used to.

ICODE72, pexels

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78points

#17

My self esteem.

DA_LEMONADE_MAN, pexels

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75points

#18

Getting through the day....it's just draining

lemon-84

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75points

#19

Voting. Doesn't really matter who gets elected, there are still wars in the middle east, massive government debt, continual erosions of freedom, poor getting left behind, military industrial complex thriving, stupid policies enacted, politicians helping each other and their friends instead of the populace, etc. etc.

weird_al_yankee

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74points

#20

Trying to have a baby. Five pregnancies in the last year and a half. One made it to 16 weeks, and I was over the moon. Then there was no heartbeat, and I used medication to produce the most tiniest, most perfect baby girl ever, which I buried in my front yard under some flowers. Sometimes I go over there and say a prayer that in an alternative universe, we are together. IVF is around 20,000 paid up front with genetic testing that I need, so I’m at an impasse and just sad as hell. I just rejoined Reddit because I just needed to say this somewhere anonymously.

andbutsowhat, pexels

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73points

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