I feel bored with my life... Everything feels so empty, and my family keeps getting smaller and smaller. 🪦

When I was a child, I thought adult life was going to be amazing and exciting! But it didn't turn out that way...

I still live with my mother, who at this point has purchased multiple homes via working tons of overtime in a HCL area. I have yet to purchase a home. I racked up a bunch of cc debt being out of work while getting a second degree transitioning into a new career. Looking back, I’m spending most of my salary trying to pay off my debt from being out of work for two years. It’s around $27k. I feel I can’t move out until I’ve significantly paid off these cards. The rent in my city is out of control. I pay my mother rent, buy groceries, pay her phone bill, electric, pay for other miscellaneous things around the house, etc. I’m definitely doing all I can to not seem like a freeloader. My mother is also getting older and doesn’t want me to go. This is killing my dating life, can’t invite a guy over, I feel like such a loser.

Sure i can tell myself that i can still enjoy the little things, but when i think about my life's circumstances and see the real possibility of not having the basic things other people achieve in their lives, all i see is the cruelty of it all. I'm fairly certain I'm never going to find my person and get married and have children. That I'm going to be working minimum wage jobs for the rest of my life (however short it may be). I'm going to have to live with the fact that i have disappointed my parents. I don't know if it was the environment or was it all my fault but this situation is the reality of my life now. It's not like i didn't try! I just failed at everything.

I'm so bored with life. Sometimes it feels like I lived what I had to and that's it. I'm 32. Got no friends, no social life. Nothing gets me excited no more. I'm not that talkative either. I just don't feel the desire of living like I used to. I was full of life, full of love. I never met anyone. Whatever love I used to feel for family, friends, or someone I liked is all gone. I wake up and think here we go again. I'm not suicidal, but I kind of wouldn't mind if something happened and that was it. I just don't see the point of life no more 😅

And the AUDACITY TO REPRODUCE AND BRING AN INNOCENT CHILD INTO A APOCALYPTIC WORLD😑

Want to eat steak and mashed potatoes for breakfast? Go for it! Have dessert at 6 pm and dinner at 9? Do it! Drink a Dr. pepper at 7 am then snack all day? Nobody’s stopping you! I don’t even understand why these rules exist. As long as your body is getting what it needs, why does the “type” of food even matter?

Funny enough, my Gen X parents tend to still judge me for this, even though I’m in my 20’s. “You’re eating ___ for breakfast?!” “Are you sure you want to have a snack before dinner?” Yes I am, because I’m an adult and I don’t conform to your food guidelines! 😁

I’m 36 and still trying to figure out what to do long term. ... And need some reassurance it is possible. Who built a successful career after 35 from scratch? I’ve mostly worked in hospitality, with some sales experience, and I’m back in school now for accounting though I don't want to be an accountant, looking at different career paths.

I’d love to hear from people who changed direction in their mid-30s, 40s, or later.

What were you doing before? What did you switch into? Did you go back to school, get certified, or start from the bottom?

How long did it take to feel established and make decent money?

Are you able to retire? What would you do differently?

I'm either still young, comparing and thieving my joy, or washed up.

It would be interesting to hear your successes.

my parents get genuinely hurt if I skip a random Tuesday dinner or a cousin's birthday. I’m exhausted and on a budget. At what point does "family first" become toxic guilt-tripping?

What age when you told people your age or just based off looking at you did they stop calling you young.

Lol, I don’t know why I’m making this a post

Hey everyone, today or tomorrow I have to tell my 87yo father that we are moving someone we trust into his house. He lives a 16hr drive away and will absolutely not consider moving closer to me, and I of course can’t leave my family and job to move in with him. I do have power of attorney but as of yet haven’t done anything he wasn’t on board for. He doesn’t want anyone to move in unless it’s myself or one of my siblings but he simply can’t live alone, it’s dangerous and I worry every day. He doesn’t not have close neighbors.

Can anyone give advice or share their experiences about how I can go about telling him that wont lead to a disaster? Thanks, and I appreciate your time.

I mean the kind where pain is inevitable.

Where any attempt to avoid the topic altogether only brought it into your life with much more terror.

Those who are on the other side of the lesson- pls shed light on how it feels to be wise now, did those scars make you proud?

I've gone on a journey the last couple of years to find myself. I broke up with a best friend and had to move back home and started a new career at the same time.

Fast forward two years and I've had a lot of time to "date" myself and find things that I like to do. I'll go to the movies alone, dinner, the gym, a hike, read a book, a museum, etc. and I love it! Every now and then I wish I had someone to share stuff with whether that be a friend or a partner but that hasn't worked out so well. After dating and having some new friendships I've learned I don't really like anyone as much as I do myself. 😅 I feel like that makes me sound like an ass but I've done a lot of work on myself and I know the things I like and I hate doing anything outside of what I want to do. Also I have hard no's of ways I don't act or say and after so many red flags being checked I just don't wanna try anymore lol

Anyway idk why I'm posting this other than to say I use to feel so left out that I didn't have friends or someone to text me to ask about my day or make plans with but now I don't even care. Anyone else gone through this or are going through it?

My parents never taught me how to properly clean, I lived basically my entire childhood in a pig sty. It was literally disgusting. When I turned 18 I moved out and now I'm 20 and realized I don't know how to clean. Like obviously I know how to do laundry, sweep, mop, take out the trash, etc. But how do I deep clean? When do I use microfiber rags vs normal rags? What chemicals do I use and where? And how do you clean the sides of the tub and sink without getting tons of water everywhere?

I've tried youtube and tiktok and I can't really find any videos that go deep into depth on how to really clean. Every video I watch is all the same: pick up trash, sweep, mop, fold laundry, blah blah. Like yeah I know what order to clean things in but HOW?

I am aware this post will almost definitely get a lot of comments calling me incompetent, but please have some grace. I grew up in a very neglected home and I'm trying to improve little by little every day.

All of this hits home.
What are your practical tips to heal from this?

Childhood experience / Possible adult behaviour
Fear of criticism - Constantly questioning yourself
Parents' approval is conditional - Seeking external validation
Being punished for mistakes - Perfectionism and fear of failure
Having feelings dismissed - Difficulty expressing emotions
Parents getting angry - Fear of confrontation
Being compared to others - Feeling inadequate
Having to please parents - People-pleasing and weak boundaries