Redditor Palarity was curious to hear some of the rude awakenings people had as they entered adulthood, leading them to ask:
"What were you grossly unprepared for as an adult?"
Who's the boss here? Wait, me?!
"The slow realization that I am the adult in the room who's supposed to help out everyone else."- lapsangsouchogn
Not relying on your parents anymore
"Trivial in comparison to many things, but keeping up familial social obligations."
"Like, it's now on me to check in with aunt M and how she's recovering after her recent surgery, send a gift to cousin K's new baby, congratulate 2nd cousin T on his graduation, etc."
"Gone are the days when my mom did all of that and I just had to sign my name on the card or whatever."- InannasPocket
Role Playing Reaction GIF by Hyper RPG
No more chilling on the quad...
"Going from having tons of friends to really having no one."- ZachariahCasey
Wondering if you have, in fact, "grown up".
"How much I still feel like a kid on the inside."- RosesSpins
Life is precious and unpredictable.
"Loss."
"As time passes and you become an adult, there are two guarantees:"
"1: the adults that shaped you, whom you love and adore, also get older."
"Older and sicker and will die, hopefully later but sometimes so much sooner than you would ever imagine."
"And 2: Peers and folks younger than you will die too, often with little to no rhyme or reason."
"My parents would say growing up that 'death is a part of life'.”
"But I’m not sure there is any way to prepare for really UNDERSTANDING that fact until you experience it yourself as you grow up."- Mbathrowaway202two
Taking care of yourself
"Dealing with a chronic health issue."- Square_Tangelo_7542
It's not all fun and games
"How little time in a week there is to enjoy 'life' after working full time."- Ser0t0n1n
Too Much Deadline GIF by Jeremy Speed SchwartzGiphyThat some people don't grow up.
'How insecure and incompetent other adults are."- ducvette
Bullies aren't only found in high schools.
"Bullying at the workplace by other 'adults'."- MathematicianOld1117
The truth is, nothing can prepare anyone for adulthood.
Primarily owing to the fact that no one follows the same path, so there is just no telling what life has in store for you.
But maybe the best part of being an adult, is that you are always learning, only now you don't have to show up to class or hand in homework to prove the lesson has sunk in.
Redditor BolognaAnt wanted to hear about the times we've all shown a little skin amongst friends.
"Have you ever gone nude in front of your friends? What was it like?"
I've only been naked at the gym and with my initmates. So I guess I'm bland.
Who Cares?
Atlanta Braves Win GIF by MLBGiphy"Yes weekly for football and occasionally swimming. No one cares."
HowtoUninstallSkype
Numb
"Play hockey, shower after the game. People are hanging out everywhere. All different sizes. Nobody cares."
BassGuy11
"Woman, played mens hockey my whole life. I’ve seen too many naked men that I never wanted to see. Hockey boys really don’t care."
jjeenniiffeerr
"Yep grew up playing hockey, kind of get desensitized, eyes front or high and you got no issues, but no one likes the guy who got his head down in the showers."
KittenLOVER999
In the Army
"Yeah, being in the military its kind of unavoidable, and you get used to it."
specterthebatpone
"The military taught me 2 things."
"1) how to be comfortable with my sexuality to an unnerving degree..."
"2) how to make dudes not comfortable with their sexuality extremely uncomfortable. Number 2 provided endless amounts of entertainment. I regret nothing."
jhagen13
"Yeah even having conversations and making eye contact in the showers was normal. LOL."
Fixyourhands11
Rulers Up
jair bolsonaro brazil GIF by euronewsGiphy"We had an actual penis measuring contest."
Due_Essay447
People are weird with nudity options.
Naked Everywhere
Family Guy Dolphin GIFGiphy"I live in Finland, a country where nudity isn't a big thing. Whenever we go to the sauna together, if we are not going swimming, we are always butt naked. It's really not a big thing here."
More-Mixture1453
In the Scene
"I was in a play in college and had to do a nude scene. All my friends, my parents, my GF at the time and her parents/family. The scene took place in a doctor's office, so it wasn't anything sexual, but def a strange experience greeting everyone after the show."
Perfect-Distance9
"Same - I used to do a lot of theatre in my younger days. Got naked every night for 2 weeks in front of friends and family in a relatively small city where you know everyone. It was awkward, but my co-star was HOT, so I thought 'no one’s looking at me anyway.'"
andyinmelbourne
RUN!!
"Junior year summer. Me and my 5 friends 3 guys 2 girls went skinny dipping. I chased my friend down the street a** naked running as wide-legged as I could."
"Edit: told my buddy about this comment and he wants you all to know, he has seen me chasing him like that in his dreams throughout the years on occasion."
37BiscutsInMyAn*s
Downhill
"Went to boot camp, got naked in front 60 other grown men every day. The first week was super awkward y'know we were all getting used to each other. But then one day someone just ran in there and started spinning his member like a helicopter and it all went downhill from there."
Careless-Review-3375
Towels ON
"When I was in high school we had a mandatory swimming class, so for the first time unlike regular gym class we had to fully replace our clothing. I had no idea what conditions would be like at first, so going in I did the smart thing: wore my swimsuit under my clothes. But getting out of the pool I was freezing and panicking and realized I still had no idea what the expected protocol was."
"So I just stood at my locker for a while and eventually got the nerve to pull my suit off, with half the class standing there Apparently my friend figured out something was wrong and just as my trunks came down, he wrapped a towel around me and pulled me to a stall, that I hadn't noticed existed."
rocketmackenzie
Dream on...
Game Show Dancing GIF by NBCGiphy"I had a dream that there was a game show I was on and I was nude and people took a vote on how much they liked it and at the end whoever wanted to would be picked by me to be my friend."
SnakeOilSaIesman
So, how comfortable are you in your own skin?
Do you have similar experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.
RedditorAthompson9866realized it was time we all discussed and unleashed some truths.
"What is the biggest myth you learned in school that has now been disproven?"
And then... BOOM
Ted-Ed Animation GIFGiphy"This is super specific but I had a biology teacher who told us the human genome was so complicated that they'd never be able to map it and then they did like... 3 years later."
seanofkelley
Identities
"That Dutch people have weird family names because Napoleon forced them to have family names and they chose the silliest ones they could think of."
nondedjuuu
"Nicknames + place names/German names that got turned into Dutch words. For example 'Naaktgeboren' (born naked) is probably from German 'Nachgeboren' (after born), meaning a child that was born after its father died. It also was already in use before the French invasion, like many of the weird family names."
nondedjuuu
Behavior Patrol
"That if you did anything bad it would go on your permanent record."
Kashhvortex
"In retrospect this single lie probably prevents 80% of misbehavior in school, or in my case heavily incentivized avoiding getting caught."
mechapoitier
"As someone who worked in schools on the record side, this is true to an extent- most schools send discipline reports so that admin and counselors at each level could look back at your behavior from however long you were in that district- sometimes they transfer it to other schools if you move too. It doesn’t go to the college level but can impact rec letters and if you are expelled that is technically a legal process and can be shared as well."
KawaiileesiOnTwitch
Revolution!
"Just a few years before the young Einstein completely disrupted physics, the physicists of that time were saying that everything about physics was discovered and understood. That research in physics was dead/dying... Then came in quick successions: general relativity and quantum physics... total revolution!"
PedanticYes
Head Forward
nose tissues GIFGiphy"That you should tilt your head back when you have a nose bleed. Nah bro."
Illustrious_Sir9612
"First time I did that, I vomited. Learned immediately. Never did that again. Whoever suggested that deserves to step on lego for all eternity."
II_Daisy_II
Now that is a dangerous lie... not to mention the taste!
Awake!
College Sports Sport GIF by Sealed With A GIFGiphy"Bears don't actually sleep then entire time they hibernate."
Tac0Gat0r
"Right?! Man, I was taught that any animal that hibernates is just sound asleep through the whole winter. Imagine my surprise when I learned the truth."
Athompson9866
'Lucy'
"I had a biology teacher try and convince a class of 15 year olds that we humans use 10% of our brain. We told her that she shouldn't base her lesson on 'Lucy' and we Googled it to show her that she was wrong. I got kicked out of the class for pulling out my phone. Had a fun chat with the principal."
Jimvlah
Counting Up
"That the metric system would be fully adopted in the US by 1995."
PinkRoseBouquet
"Interestingly enough I learned today that the US measures it’s pools in meters like sane people so today I stupidly assumed they just use metric for swimming and I walked into a 1.76 mile open water swim thinking it was 1.76 kilometres and ended up doing a way longer swim then I expected but it’s ok I got a cool shirt and came like 200th out of like 700 people so that’s cool."
AffectionateAir9071
99 Flavors
"Mine is that your tongue has specific areas that taste only specific flavors. Like there was a spot on your tongue that only tasted sweet, one that only taste salty, one that only tasted bitter, etc"
Athompson9866
"I immediately started experimenting with my tongue during meals after learning that at school. My conclusion was: That's complete bs. Lol."
Friendly-Taco
Wrong!
Special Project Work GIF by ABC NetworkGiphy"One day our High School Physics teacher wrote on the blackboard 'Everything you know is wrong.' 40+ years later I think he might have been onto something, but then again maybe not."
thitherfrom
The more you know. The better life can be.
Do you have similar experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.
Reddit user NotPhantomforce asked:
"Girls, what’s the downside of being a female?"
Turns out frustration at a man-centric world isn't the only thing we agree sucks.
Hormones VS Body
"The way hormones f*ck with your body. First puberty. Then childbirth. And top it all off with menopause."
- 629mrsn
"Don’t forget the monthly cycle…"
- Nugat37
"Don’t get me started on the pages long list of BC side effects."
- rohlovely
"I dont have biological children and my hormones are messing with my body. Women are hormonally fu*ked either way it's just so unfair"
- Delaine1978
"It’s also the fact that women are 3 times more likely to get endocrinological diseases bc of our fu*ked up hormones"
- leathersonja
Big Breast
"Big boobs that hurt my back. Tis a blessing and a curse"
- Ash_Lynx17
"Also BOOB SWEAT"
- SlugKing003
"Having to wear a bra in public and even at home when you have people/family around. At least where I live."
- Objective_Sand_8769
"I’ve wished for decent boobs all of my life. I must have been found on the doorstep because the boobie fairy visited everyone in the family except me. 😢"
"That said, seeing the pain, bother, and expense experienced by my sister, aunts, cousins, etc, I have accepted that ladies with a decent bust really do pay for the privilege!"
"Still just the tiniest bit jealous, though! ❤️"
- Jenny_Pussolini
"Having to pay for a decent bra when you have big boobs otherwise you can't walk, sleep or work."
- theGreat-Marzipan
"The things I'd do to get average-sized boobs and be able to go braless in dresses and tank tops....oh to dream"
- ChanelNo50
enhance weird science GIFGiphyUTIs
"The complications that come with a vagina. BV again? Uti? Yeast infection from the uti antibiotics? BV came back cause of the yeast infection that you got treating your uti? Such a pain sometimes"
- Advisor_Brilliant
"Tight pants? Wore the same pair of underpants an hour too long? Couldn't quite wipe thoroughly enough because the public bathroom didn't have much TP? Enjoy your BV and/or UTI and/or yeast infection!"
- SevenSixOne
OBGYN
"Having to go to the gynecologist. I literally get lightheaded every time I think of it"
- vivalicious16
"The speculum looks like a torture device. It makes me wanna die just thinking about it tbh"
- RomeoLyshitski
"Recently I changed gynecologist. I was in the stirrups waiting for the pain of the speculum aaaannnd.. nothing. There was no pain. For the first time in my life. If you are having pain, it's time to talk to your OBGYN or change OBGYNs!"
- OC*CKazzie
baby i'm sorry GIF by truTV’s I’m SorryGiphyIUD's
"That to affordably get an IUD in rural BC you can't have any pain relief at its insertion. You're expected to 'tough it out'"
"Edit: I've noticed that this isn't a problem that is just to Canada and to be honest I believed that European countries would offer numbing or something else. I'm horrified to hear that my story of nearly fainting on the table in silence twice is not just my story and I wish they would treat this procedure properly."
"I've read all your stories and I'm sorry for each and every horror one. As for the ones who did manage to get pain relief of some kind, I'm so glad to hear that. I'm glad your experience was not mine (ours: collective of women with stories like this) and I hope that is the future of this procedure."
- Natural_Sir6189
"Wait are painkillers for IUD insertion a thing? My nurse just told me to take ibuprofen and held my hand lol and I'm in NYC"
- lover_of_pancakes
"I’m in the US and on my 3rd IUD, I didn’t know pain relief for that was a thing anywhere"
- Affectionate-Ad3816
"Comments like these break my heart. Maybe it’s bc my GYN is fairly young, but before I had my first IUD she straight up gave me Valium. She was like 'you don’t have to take this, but you’ll probably want to'.”
- Key-Ad9759
Periods
"Having periods"
- SkyBlueGlitter
"I havent had a period in over 2 years thanks to birth control. Am I a little depressed, a little anxious, and possibly other unknown side effects from it? Maybe, but at least I'm not bleeding...so that's something"
"Edit: I am in a same-sex relationship, and I don't ever want kids, so I couldn't care less about it affecting fertility. It's perfectly fine for me to skip all my periods. I'm actually pretty happy with my bc overall. Even cleared up my acne over time!"
- bluezebra_eleven
"I, for one, revel in the total badassery that is Shark Week by imagining that I am a warrior in an ancient world like Game of Thrones and have secured the defeat of my uterus"
"Or I just sit on the couch and complain with a heating pad."
- bopshebop2
Season 2 Period GIF by AwesomenessTVGiphyThe Pain Is Real
"Nobody believes your pain."
"I was in labor with my first son and was dilated to about a 6. I asked for the epidural because the contractions were bad and I was starting to feel faint. They said “oh I bet you can hold off a little longer. These aren’t that bad yet.” Like excuse me??? No, go get the numbing magic. If I say I’m in pain and need help with it, I mean it."
- etlifereview
"My ma gave birth to me on the hottest day of the year and was severely dehydrated. Technically she wasn’t supposed to take in any fluids while in labor but her heart rate would drop super low, which made MY heart rate drop, so they hooked her up to an IV and she went through so many of those saline bags."
"To top it off she was in labor for over 24 hrs, had gone through TWO epidurals, and I just refused to come out. Mom’s sobbing, screaming “get her out” over and over again."
"Doc comes in and take one look at my mom and goes, “I’ll come back and check in a few more hours.” Mom watches as a nurse grabs his arm and YANKS him back into the room and tells him, 'NO. She cannot do this anymore. We need to get this baby out NOW'.”
"20 mins and one vacuum extraction later, there I was! Mom always credits that nurse for saving her life."
- lilcipher
birth GIFGiphy"My mom went into labor on a Friday night and went to the hospital the next day. A male doctor said everything was okay, and discharged her without taking anything she was saying into consideration. She continued to be in labor on Sunday, and when she called the hospital about her pain being minutes apart another male doctor asked why she hadn’t come in."
"She told him she had the day before and then my dad had to speed her to the hospital, carefully running every red light. Here’s the kicker, because that first doctor ignored my mom’s pain she wound up having an emergency C-section Sunday night. I was born 3 months prematurely that night in 1993. I’m disabled because of that and my mom sometimes still blames herself even though she did everything right. She couldn’t even sue for malpractice because the first doctor wrote that everything was fine in her chart."
- indoor-girl
They Blame It On The Period
"Any time you express yourself, or get upset about something, even if it's something to get legitimately upset about, you almost always get a 'aRe YoU oN yOuR pErIoD?'."
- zuka88
"ugh, YES. The slightest bit of animation or expression in your voice and it’s immediately ‘omg stop taking it so personally, why are you getting so emotional over this?’. And people wonder why I monotone a lot these days."
- kellerae
"As$holes be roid raging 24/7 but somehow women are the emotional ones."
- lalayatrue
"Omg my ex husband said this to me during our last fight! Yeah it’s my period making me scream at you for being rip roaring drunk at noon on a Tuesday. Kicked him out that day, now he doesn’t have to worry about my cycle."
- Sadielady11
"Any engagement from us that isn’t saccharine is taken as anger and it’s irritating. I’ve politely asked men not to do something and even when I was speaking in a calm manner, the response was 'don’t be so upset'."
- pacificaurora
Assumption of being a caretaker
"The expectation of being a caretaker. Kids, ageing parents, it always seems to be expected of the woman to be in this role."
- Mel_Behaved
"I don’t have a maternal bone in my body. This phenomenon drives me insane."
- throwawaygrosso
"My husband is listed as the primary contact for schools and doctors offices because his job provides a lot more flexibility than mine."
"They still always call me first when they need to reach us about the kids. My daughter was going to have surgery and he was trying to handle the scheduling. He would call and leave a message with the nurse line with his phone number and they would turn around and call me and leave a message on my cell, which I couldn’t answer because I was working and unavailable. I would let him know they called. He would call again and the same thing would happen. It was absolutely maddening."
"Dads can manage the kids, too. Stop assuming moms are the only ones who know what’s going on with the kids."
- Moonlightonthelake80
"I work in a nursing home and the children who are responsible for their parent, getting things done for their parent, communicate with the staff, are always the daughters. The sons hop in every few weeks to say hi to their parent and that’s it."
- DamnHotBananas
Patriarchy, periods, and pain ...
Yep. This sucks sometimes.