Why does everything feel so different now?

[Toffeenosedrangerr]

I’m not sure exactly how to describe it, but something just feels very different and off compared to 5/6 years ago
Even looking back at social media and how friends interacted with each other on Fb and Instagram, how people seemed more connected.
It just feels like something is missing in the world, some excitement or happiness

Is it just me? Looking back at photos, things felt different and much happier

mobile phones are the reason.

I think as more people have more online access than ever before, they are falling for a facsimile of connection, and disregarding real life connection. Phones are the opium of the masses. People are now so busy chasing the next dopamine hit that they'll ignore their own partners and children to scroll away.

Covid only solidified that earlier than it would have probably happened anyway.

I do think things feel different - and all a bit 'meh'. No definitive musical feel to any decade since the 2000s, no real fashion styles since then, just stupid fads like those Stanley cups, and plastic-looking eyebrows. But you can wear your clothes from the 2000s and no-one would think you were retro-looking like you would have looked if you'd worn your 80s clothes in the 2000s, for example.

I kinda think the theory is true - the world is a simulation, and it ended in 2000 - all that's left is the decay and glitching before it conks out completely.

I do feel like thigs have got more individualistic. People don't want to be as connected with others. It's worth trying but it's hard when it mostly feels one sided.

I'll sound a bitch here but so many people claim to be "too busy" but what are they actually doing that makes them so busy? Most seem to be living very unremarkable lives.

Brexit, Trump, Covid, Farage, Trump.

It's this country. I split my time between UK and an EU country. Whilst they also have issues, the people there are more considerate of others, children are better behaved, healthcare functions properly, society still works properly etc, etc. There is a lack of cohesion over here, it feels like a race to the bottom.

The healthcare system that works well - do they pay some element via health insurance? Like in France?

Everyone here is obsessed that the NHS is the "envy of the world" 🙄

Things don't feel safe or familiar anymore. I think the constant threats of war don't help. The feeling that nobody sensible is actually in charge and that many leaders are either evil, incompetent or both.

I went to the supermarket the other day and there were two people that I saw that were dressed in the most strange outfits (grown adults, not youngsters) and it made me feel weird to be honest. Everything feels odd and disjointed, almost surreal at times.

People and places have become very rough and edgy. Even the nicer places aren't so nice anymore. I'm sick of seeing people going around in their dressing gowns, swearing, yelling and drinking at all hours of the day. I wonder where all the normal people hang out now. Perhaps they've left the planet and are living somewhere nice, reading books, drinking loose leaf tea and listening to Bach.

@smallglassbottle: "The feeling that nobody sensible is actually in charge and that many leaders are either evil, incompetent or both.” Yes, this, absolutely.

They do, however there are exceptions and ceilings. I would willingly pay a small amount to receive the level of care and speed of provision in this system.

The NHS is not "the envy of the world". During a recent hospital stay in said country, the staff were horrified when I described how things work (or rather don't) in the UK.

They were puzzled when I thanked them for the level of care and diligence shown, saying they were just doing their jobs. The food was nourishing and accompanied by a dietician to ensure it met patients' needs and tastes. It was also appetising and hot. 😯

It highlighted how very disjointed and fragmented the NHS has become. My sibling lives in this country. They confirmed my experience was quite normal.

Everything about this country is mediocre.

I’m 47, why?

I do relate to this somewhat.

Covid. Cost of living. WFH (I know some people love it but it has disrupted working patterns and social relationships, leaving some people isolated). Difficulty in finding jobs, especially for young people. Increase in housing costs. Enshittification.

www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3341-enshittification?srsltid=AfmBOoqYzLgoIM-OSS43Zu2fR8Nni-GDyF8CutuaUKecNtmrHpgFwTQR

Oh yes and healthcare. Stories coming out of hospitals are terrifying. And I haven't seen a dentist for 5 years due to the shortage of NHS dentists.

My fb just shows ads and insta reels now. I don't use it anymore. Probably the same with friends so it lost its appeal as no one's posting and everyone's just seeing ads.

Less money
Less time
More work, less staff, more stress
Constant negative news that gets worse each week

Something has got to give. It just too much stress.

Working longer and harder, less money.

AI and trolls are taking over the internet - it's not as nice anymore (in the nice areas, I mean. There's have always been bad areas)

This. 100%

It was the pandemic, followed immediately by war in Europe - an invasion of a European country by a nuclear state - and now the threat of WW3 (with everything else that’s been going on in the ME too).

The world as we knew it - stable and comprehensible, for those of us in the West - doesn’t exist any more.

Plus I think the pandemic accelerated our decline into reliance on SM and our phones for social interaction.

But we’ve had mobiles for quite a long time now?

Not in the way that we have now. I assume they specifically mean smartphones and apps with algorithmically driven content which we are all addicted to.

Johnson, Brexit, Covid, Truss , Ukraine , Cost of living , Gaza, Trump. The Wonder Years

Your main problem Is your mobile phone. Put it down, stop reading the deliberately sensationalist headlines and get out there. You will see there are still real human beings, having kids parties, going to church, holding book clubs.

The internet is an echo chamber. Log off and start living your life again.

I get out there and live life as I did before..its different, it’s flat, people are different, no one seems truly happy and I don’t feel truly happy..as before

I’m so curious about what the outfits were like! Please tell!