To ask what you wish you did while you were young?

[wishingona]

I'm 24 and I keep getting the feeling that this is my time and I should be making more of it.

What do you wish you did while you were my age (not even sure 24 counts as young)?

Not traveled more, though. I guess I mean the more day to day stuff.

Any advice?

This is a brilliant thread!
I'm glad I -
Got wasted
Shagged lots of men
Fell in love with a woman
Worked on a ranch in America
Sang in rock bands
Had lots of kids

I wish I'd -
Got my teeth straightened
Worked harder at school and trained to be a Vet.,
Lived with my DH before getting pg. I might have backed out. Lol.
Written a novel (still time..)
Earned enough money to buy a farm!

Sorry to be boring, but I wish I'd got fitter and drunk and eaten less before I had the dc rather than waiting until afterwards when it was harder. Plus it may have helped me avoid the blood pressure issues I have had since my first pregnancy. Rock 'n roll eh?!

Excellent question. The one thing I wish I did when young is to get a mentor.

I wish I had travelled and just been free instead of an uptight young adult

I am glad I:

• Have not yet had kids
• Got far enough in my career to be financially comfortable
• 'Lived' my twenties with lazy weekends, going abroad, nights out, etc

I wish I had:

• Lived abroad again
• Had a few more flings before properly settling down and marrying
• Done a masters straight after my undergraduate. I know I can do it any time but I wish I'd gone for it; now I will always have the excuse of I can't afford it, don't have time in my job.

I am feeling at a strange crossroads where I feel too young to settle down but too old to take advantage of opportunities I would have done 5 or 6 years ago. I'm 30.

Hello

In my 20s I had a sports car, spent money going out and on clothes, had some lovely holidays, took up skiing, got drunk a lot and danced a lot.

I wish that I had started my family younger as it was really really tough and now I am 42 with a one year old!

I wish I had got married and had children at 24. I didn't have dd til I was 43.

I wish I'd gone to the Fuji Rock music festival in Japan before having kids. I know that I probably won't ever go now which makes me sad.

We take the kids traveling with us all the time but I wish that we'd gone to India before they were born. We'll wait until they are much older now before taking them.

I'm ok with all I did. Maybe had my nose pierced?

Wish I had had more sex with more people.

Realised how fit and healthy, and gorgeous, I was!

And done stuff: scuba diving, rock climbing, horse riding - anything really that brought me more in touch with my body.

Been FAR KINDER and nicer to myself generally!

I cant think of anything specific, just reveled in being young a bit more, of course it's only in hindsight that you see how fleeting youth is

Not got married.
Played the field.
Moved away from my home town.
Made a career for myself.
Was independent.
Had a better beauty regime.
Gosh, so much more in fact just been completely different to what I was really, then maybe I would be far happier than I am now.

Wish i'd lost my virginity earlier to someone i fancied and actually wanted to.

Why so much I wish I'd shagged around so you could brag.
. I shagged around until I met dp, but I don't think.
Oh Ive had him and him and him. Very much the opposite. I think. Well there's another one that didn't work out. I actually envy women who've only been with one man. It shows dedication and devotion which is far far far better than trophy shags, imo.
Now on to what did I wish for. A rollercoaster in my back garden.

Why so much I wish I'd shagged around so you could brag

I think it's more that people wish they'd had more fun and sex is fun, variety can also make life more fun, hence wishing that you'd had more sexual partners

I actually envy women who've only been with one man. It shows dedication and devotion
if that your thing then fine, personally I'm not keen on devoting my life to one other person, I want to live it for myself and have the freedom to have sexual experiences with a variety of people

grab life by the throat with both hands and shake it hard
have it large people :o

(but also look after your teeth :o)

I'm glad I had lots of nights out, moved to London for a year, and generally enjoyed my 20's.

I do wish I'd travelled a bit more though!

I'm glad I did the following through my twenties:
Lived abroad in 2 countries
Moved to London
Danced a lot
Went to loads of gigs
Stayed up all night
Had loads of boyfriends
Tried a few careers
Wore sexy clothes while I looked great in them

I wish I had:
Seen more of my parents - one got a terminal illness when I was in my late twenties
Not spent quite so much of my money. Could have done with less debt at that age!
Stopped occasionally and realised how much fun I was having.
Dumped that one no hoper boyfriend I was with for 3 years

But to be honest - at the age of 44 I look back and I'm glad I did all of that partying but I can still say I feel more like me now then I ever did in my twenties and thirties. After a period of child rearing I'm starting to live life a little - with the kids involved this time - and it's amazing.

I'm pretty happy with what I did. I guess if I could do it again I'd

• go nc with my mother much earlier. Best thing I ever did for my mh.
• dye my hair crazy colours (can't in my line of work)
• live in another country
• possibly have dc earlier

I ran away to sea.
Spent my 20s bobbing about the ocean in the Merchant Navy.
Used my shore leave to take cheap flights to various bits of Africa and Europe.
Realised it was ok to enjoy sex and practised it plenty.
Had a 'year of yes' where I went on any date I was asked on. Led to fun times like ditching a silver fox when he went to the toilet in a restaurant in Copenhagen

Am I the only one wishing I had less sex, drugs and rock n roll?

Lois I also wish I'd had less sex and wish I'd had more self esteem.

Wish I'd stayed with the love of my life.
Travelled more.
Worked harder.

I'm glad that I:

• travelled extensively
• went to uni - though I wasn't particularly wild at uni and I wish I had been
• went to loads of raves, could have gone to more concerts though
• had a good career and earns decent money, despite side stepping a little. Meant I could buy a flat on my own when I was 29.
• took a wide variety of drugs, but was always really 'sensible' compared to many around me.

Things I regret:

• wished I would have read more - I think being widely read is a real plus.
• wished I'd moved out sooner from my family home. There was serious DV in my home and I stayed home to 'protect' my mum and siblings.
• slept around a little more. I walked away from a few good opportunities. Fortunately, I also capitalised on a few good opportunities
• studied more. I have little self confidence (shitty childhood) and I wished I had pushed myself a lot more generally.
• I have lived in the uk for 14 years - something I never dreamed I would do, but I wished I had had stints in other locations. I can be pretty sensible.

-not spent 7 yrs with a very conservative boyfriend who ended up dumping me. Wished I'd built up my emotional resilience.

• learnt to swim decently.

I'm now 45 with 4 dcs, one of whom has ASD. I'm a sahm and I want to work again, but life feels v complicated at times, so I'm glad I can look on the past fondly and not really with regret.

"Am I the only one wishing I had less sex, drugs and rock n roll?"

Ha ha! No Lois, you are not. Maybe not less sex, but certainly fewer drugs and musicians!

This is a good question OP, and interesting to note that we tend to regret the things we didn't do more than the things we did.
I have practical things I wish, like I wish I had bought a flat in London in the late 90s when I had the chance instead of thinking "nah, im not ready to be tied down" [Doh!]
I wish I had started a pension in my 20s.
But mainly, when I think about it, I just wish I had (as others have said) believed in myself and cared less about what people thought.
I had the most incredible opportunities in my 20s, that I just casually glanced at and tossed away, partly because I was insecure and partly because when you are young and beautiful you take for granted that the world is at your feet, and that opportunities are like buses-another one will be along in a minute.
When you grow older (especially as a woman) people are not so willing to give you a chance on a job you never did before, give you money for your short film, introduce you to that influential person etc.
Having said that, the other thing I have learned is that you don't have to be young to do certain things, that's just others expectations.
When my dc is grown (a few years from now) I am planning a round the world trip, backpacks and all.