Rewind you life to when you were 20.

[Tulipsroses]

If you could press a magical Time Machine switch and rewind your life to when you were 20, what would you have done differently?

Change to a different study and career path. Go inter railing. Stay living in one of my preferred cities. Take up running 20 years sooner!

Ohhh have had a few more shags especially with women.

Ditched "Brian", my horrible boyfriend at the time. He made me cry the night before my 20th birthday (one of many times in our four year relationship) and if I could rewind time I'd go straight back to that bus stop where he was berating me and making me cry, I'd stand up for myself and I'd tell him to fuck off to the far side of absolute fuck.

I wouldn't have started dating my husband. It was a huge mistake.

Stayed single, I met my bf when I was 20, married at 25, I regret ever allowing myself to get into that relationship. Should of had years of fun, it would of been more fun than 40 odd and single!

Not move out of London on because of break up ... so would have to rewind to when I was 18 and thought a certain male twatt was gods gift to me!

Same

Seek counselling for childhood and family trauma.

Try to be more confident and invest in friendships, which I didn't have the skills for due to the above.

Move out of the family home.

Got pregnant with my son as I did. But not tell my vile, misogynistic, violent, abusive waster of an ex. Bring my son up on my own, start my business the same, be successful. Be happy, marry the man I'm with now. No trauma, no abuse, no PTSD, no CPTSD, just a great life with a wonderful son, daughter and husband

Would have been too late by then. Go back a couple of years more and I'd have had a chance to make a difference to my life, though.

Stopped worrying I looked hideous, I was gorgeous

As said by CheepCheepCheep

Also as others said, the mistakes made then are what made me who I am now. Which is grand. Of course with the knowledge I have now I'd have made better investments or decisions but then I'd be other then I am today and I am okay with who I am in this version of events!

Of course she could be thinner, wealthier, fitter, earn more, live in a sunnier climate and definitely have less wine running through her veins. But all in all it could have gone 90° in the other direction too.

Start using YNAB - I’d have so much more money now!

And realise that people will take all you have to give if you give them the chance, not necessarily in a mean way, more through laziness or lack of thought. Counter this by setting boundaries.

I would tell myself to stop listening to my parents. They crushed my self confidence, ridiculed and infantilised me.

I would tell myself to have more ambition, more self belief.

call out the sexism at work - don’t put up with being patronised.

spend less money on nonsense, spend it on experiences - travel - and travel alone.

don’t worry so much about what other people think.

get better friends

If I had to change something I guess I'd cancel quite a few of my boyfriends

And I'd probably try to find more hobbies and things to do within my community to give me more self esteem and also stop me from focusing on boys so much

I'd have spent more time learning to like myself rather than finding my worth in what men thought of me

I'd try to widen my circle of friends to people that enjoyed doing things other than going to the pub (although I did have a lot of fun doing that)

I probably wouldn't have started smoking (although I have now! 4 years ago)

I do kind of miss the men and the smoking and the pub though 😂

Not one thing.
Kissing all those frogs in my 20s was fun.

Started a bloody pension.

Persevered with driving so I could actually drive today.

I would’ve had cbt for the ocd bubbling away inside me that I had no idea about because I thought it was just about cleaning. I’d have not bothered with uni, got a job in accounting and worked my way up training on the job, bought a house when they gave mortgages out like sweeties and shagged around, a lot.

The major sticking point to all of this is all my shitty life choices led to me creating two wonderful humans, who never would’ve come into existence if I’d not made the shitty choices I did. And that feels unbearable, so I’d only go back and change everything if they were guaranteed to exist otherwise I’ll stick where I am.

Got out of my first marriage sooner

Kept in touch with my BF from school

Opened my eyes to what I didn’t think was possible

Not kept the secret

Stay with her when she died

Worked harder on my professional exams instead of wasting my time on my ex-H.

Having said that although I now have a lot of shit in my life it might have taken me down a path where I wouldn't now have my lovely DD so I don't know really.

Quit smoking weed, taken more risks.

Spent that £25 I could not afford on the Live Aid ticket! 😡

Not been immature and so self assured - a little self awareness and humility would have been better

Oof.

Dumped the boyfriend, gone back to university, focused on my degree and then my career.

I fucked up a lot when I was 20, and I can't even say I had fun doing it - I was miserable.

Not spent so much on ‘stuff’. To have realised that little voice in my head that I didn’t need it and it was just a burden, was actually right.
That choosing minimalism as a life choice was the best thing I ever did.
Shame it took me another 15 years to actually work that out.