Signs of aging can come in many forms, and I think we can all collectively agree that excessive back pain for seemingly no reason is one of them. But when redditor u/Levnorn asked the people of r/AskReddit to share some of the more subtle reminders of aging, there were more than I thought. Here are some of the more low-key signs that made people hyper-aware that they were getting older:
1.
“When the trendy clothes from your teen years come back in style. Seeing ’90s fashion come back was quite surreal.”
2.
“When you’re watching a family sitcom and realize that you agree with the parents more than the kids, and that what the kids are doing is actually stupid and reckless behavior.”
3.
“When the music you used to party to starts playing in an elevator.”
4.
“When you realize just how far you have to scroll to find your birth year in a drop-down menu.”
—u/wunderduck
5.
“When people say you were born in the 1900s.”
6.
“I had a young person give me a senior discount at a museum. Mind you, I’m in my 30s. Like, really? Thank you for the savings, but I don’t know if my ego will recover from that hit.”
—u/nooneishere2day
7.
“When kids start calling you miss, ma’am, or sir.”
8.
“I did a hit from a bong and threw out my back from coughing. That’s when I knew.”
—u/illestrated16
9.
“I stopped drinking and partying. Nowadays, I love quiet evenings with jazz playing in the background. I’m only 31, but the partying lifestyle got old REAL quick.”
—u/Zexy_Genius
10.
“Your joints sound like popcorn in the microwave every time you move.”
11.
“You make ‘getting up’ and ‘sitting down’ noises. Also, the degree to which you allow gravity to help you couch-plop.”
—u/Action_Seal
12.
“Not being able to handle too much sugar or eat lots of candy anymore.”
—u/humantype8681
13.
“Realizing the kids and babies you once knew are now old. That trips me up all the time since I don’t see people often. The last time I saw one of my cousins was when he was, like, 8 years old. That was 25 years ago.”
14.
“When you need to start googling words and slang people are using because you’re out of touch with the times. When I was in high school, older people didn’t know what ‘LOL’ or ‘xD’ meant. Now I’m the older people.”
—u/OldLadyT-RexArms
15.
“When famous people advertise on TV, I have no idea who they are, and often times, I don’t know what products they’re selling, either.”
16.
“Finding the smoothness of younger people’s faces off-putting. Not ugly, but in a way that turns on your parental instincts. To me, a smooth face means that you’re young; therefore, I must protect you.”
—u/inksmudgedhands
17.
“I’m a middle-aged man, and a while back, I went to the grocery store. The girl working the checkout counter looked like she was in her late teens, and she was wearing a Smashing Pumpkins shirt with the classic design. I said, ‘Hey, I like your shirt.’ She replied, ‘Oh, thanks. It’s a band called Smashing Pumpkins. Super old. They’re from the ’90s.’ I felt the vein in my forehead throb.”
18.
“I was driving by a bar on a chilly Friday or Saturday night, and some people were outside smoking. One of them was an attractive college-aged girl wearing thin clothes, and my immediate reaction when I saw her was, ‘She should be wearing a jacket! It’s cold!'”
—u/Mundane__Detail
19.
“The increasing amount of ear and nose hair. I pull some out every day. You’d think it would only have to be done once a week or so. I literally don’t know where it all comes from.”
20.
“The frequent heartburn or acid reflux. Nothing good sits well anymore, and I hate it!”
—u/superrichkidssss
21.
“My nephew started to get me things without me even asking. He’d be like, ‘Hey, Uncle, why don’t you sit down and let me get you your drink.’ I was fine with him getting me a drink and charging my phone and all that, but one time I was going downstairs, and he waited at the bottom for me, stretching out his hand like I needed help coming down. I was like, ‘You’re 14, and I’m 32. Why are you acting like I need to move into a care facility?!'”
22.
“Going out on a Friday or Saturday night feels more like a hassle than fun.”
—u/Shop_4u
23.
“I can’t see the prompts on debit card readers anymore. It’s all a blur. I had to upgrade my readers so I could see well enough to even tie a fishing line. One time, I was trying to read if a can of tuna was packed in oil or water, and I had to hand it to someone else to make sure I got the one I wanted.”
24.
“When you see one of your favorite childhood actors or singers in a recent photo and notice how old they’ve become.”
—u/exsea
25.
“I’ve gotten a beer and a glass of wine before and wasn’t carded, but the other day, I bought three four-packs of IPAs that had a 9% alcohol content and wasn’t carded. That hit different.”
26.
“Hangovers are easier to come by and harder to bounce back from.”
—u/beakerx82
27.
“My hair doesn’t feel or style like it used to.”
28.
“All of your favorite bands have retired. One of mine just played their last concert, and I wasn’t even able to go. It’s so sad realizing that the people you watched and admired growing up also aged, too.”
—u/grammar_fixer_2
29.
And finally: “When you start realizing that the things your brain thought happened ‘only a few years ago’ actually means decades ago. For example, 9/11 seemed like it was about 10 years ago, but nope — it has been a lot longer. Time is an illusion.”
Time is definitely an illusion because every time I meet someone who says they’re born in, like, 2003, I just assume that they are 13. But nope, that is definitely a whole 20-year-old. What are some things that subtly remind you that you’re getting older? What are some not-so-subtle things? Let me know in the comments!
Source: https://www.buzzfeed.com/dannicaramirez/people-share-subtle-reminders-of-age