People saying you look young for your age

I get this too... I work in a school and I've been asked lots of time why I'm not in uniform. I'm pushing 40.
Salespeople ask to speak with my parents when I open my front door.
I also have EDS, so that makes me look younger.
Some people have been really nasty when saying I must have been a child myself when I had kids - er, no I was not!!

I get this too and also find it embarrassing. I think my issue is that I think I look immature. It’s taken me a while to find my sense of style (I still don’t really have one as I don’t like to spend a lot on clothes) so I take it to mean I look unsophisticated. I’ve also not achieved everything I want to in life so I relate it to that as well (if someone I know personally says “I thought you were younger”).

But this debate has no answer or solution. Are you going go around asking people not to compliment you on your looks or when they do, tell them to shut up? Most men and women see it as a compliment because one's physical appearance is also a reflection of their sprit, personality, dressing sense. All of this contributes to looks. It's an appreciation. Why view it so negatively and make such a big deal of it?

I get so tired of this. I'm 89 now and still have people every hour, of every day telling me that I look 25!

I don't usually tell people my secret but I'll tell you, fellow Munsnetters! I have fairies at the end of my garden and they spin me special cloths that I place on my face every night. I cannot move house because of this.

It is a gift, and it is a curse.

I get the same. I'm nearly 46 but I have a 7yo DD so between her age and my looks, people assume I'm younger. I don't mind it so much but when one of my mum friends (well she's a friend of a friend) found out how old I was about a month ago she said, "wow I didn't realise you were so old." Ummm...thanks? 😅

When I was 29/30 people kept asking me if I was a new graduate in my new job, which used to infuriate me as I wanted my experience to count! My 30 year old colleague was unhappy that no one was asking the same question of her, but then she was an avid sunbed user 😂.

I’m now pushing 50 and people are still surprised, but obvs don’t think I’m 21 anymore!

I tell people how old my daughter is, if they ask. She's nearly 27 now. They work out that on average I'm at least 20 years older, or say something like you must have had her really young, etc. I was actually 31 when she was born, so no. I've got used to not looking my age, but I've started grey blending now so they'll hopefully stop saying it, even though I have few lines/wrinkles.

Enjoy it! I used to get this all the time in my 20s and 30s. Not so much in my 40s! haha. It does happen sometimes, but that's usually more of a comment on how I dress and live my life than my actual face. By that I mean some people my age have really settled into being middle aged and dressing older and going to bed early. I still enjoy going to gigs and dressing however the hell I like.

I think it helps that we had our kids pretty young so compared to parents of our older kids' friends we are about 15 years younger.

I don't do botox or fillers but I've not got old looking skin thanks to genetics, not smoking, and being on the chubby side!

I’ve only experienced this recently - when I say I have a 28 year old daughter, everyone seems to say “did you have her very young?”. No, and I look 57 (today actually; first time I’ve typed that). I think people have an internalised view of what a certain age looks like.

I think people have this idea in their head that people in their 30s should have lots of wrinkles and look weathered- probably thinking of films and TV shows in the 90s when 30s tended to look much older.

This makes no sense. Why would you be surrounded by people, presumably of all ages, who are incredulous at your youthful appearance because they think 30somethings should be wrinkly and weathered because they watch a lot of 90s TV?

If you are flattered by it then just reply "oh thank you, that's nice of you to say" as you would any compliment. Then turn the conversation back to them by asking them a question, paying them a compliment etc.

It's not that uncommon to look 5-10 years younger at 35. Once you hit 45-ish, your age will catch up with you.

I think 99.9% of people are just being polite when they say someone looks young for their age.
Everyone seems to say it to everyone.
I never take it seriously.

😂😂😂

I understand what you mean OP albeit I am MUCH older than you. I think it sometimes is about the age of the person remarking - by that I mean it’s hard for me to discern someone in late twenties to mid thirties - I really can’t judge any more. If someone is close in age to the person they comment on then it comes across as disingenuous. Whether it’s meant to be or not is another matter.
Im 51 and.. a smoker .. so there is no WAY I look as young as some people say (given that I afford the same age blindness to all people- if someone who is 25 can’t tell if I’m 41 or 51 I think they just see “a lot older than me” and don’t have much more interest than that) but as times have changed so much I think I look normal for my age. I’m not wrinkly. Or crepe-y skinned. I don’t have jowls either, or if I have my head up rather than looking at a phone..
Sometimes it is just a compliment. But it’s hard to take it that way all the time!!! (Just for a laugh I’ll tell you a healthcare worker tried to tell me it can’t have been that long since I was 27.. I was like .. almost half my life ago son).

If 56 and get it a lot. I usually assume they're taking the mickey and/or they don't really know what someone of 56 "should" look like.

I had it until I was about 47, then I suddenly aged into myself

I used to get this - I always looked young for my age, absolutely hated it at school when at 18, I looked about 12 ! When I was in my mid 30's, married with 2 kids, someone asked me if I was still at school. I also sounded young, my voice wasn't very grown up, especially over the phone - a real pain when doing phone interviews for jobs etc.

Any way, I'm now 66 and the youthful looks continued until I was early to mid 50s, then I suddenly aged, hair went grey, wrinkles appeared, sagginess around the neck, quite a shock to the system, I'd catch sight of myself in shop windows and think 'who's that old woman who looks a bit like me ?'
I wish I could go back to my looking young days.
I have a very dear friend who always looked her correct age until she hit about 45 then she seemed to stop ageing, she's the same age as me and look totally fabulous.

Ageing is a very odd thing, and stress, life events, illness and genetics all play apart I think. I think people meant o be complimentary when they say you look young, but it does get a bit tedious, I'm also pretty short and people frequently comment 'you're very small aren't you?' like I hadn't noticed !

I get it too, people actually think I have done botox… i just say “thank you, got a good skincare routine going on!”

I've had a salesman come to my front door before and ask if my parents were home, as he wanted to speak to them about new windows. I think I was mid thirties at the time and had a child to collect from school 😅 he was so shocked someone that apparently was so young could have their own house

In your predicament I'd just say "oh yeah I get that all the time. I use X face cream, perhaps you should try it" etc. Use it as a boast to your ego, not something to be embarrassed or frustrated over. But I understand why it would annoy you.

We look much different than people our age did 30, 40, 50 years ago. Different clothes and hairstyles. Plus being stuck indoors working a lot means our skin looks better as less sun damage generally.

I am nearing 40 and always get mistaken for being in my 20s. I don't find it offensive or anything.