I'm in my mid 30s and have almost nothing to look forward to. Anyone else in the same boat?

Call the suicide hotline.

800-273-8255

Call now if you need help.

You gotta enjoy just getting out each day and doing stuff, otherwise life isn’t fun. Forget the politics and all that stuff, it can be interesting but it’s a waste. Just go out and live.

I'll weigh in here.

At 35, i was scared i would be fatter, slower and insignificant.

At age 41, after a difference in attitude and training, I set a few PRs

After a back spasm incident in the 2011 San Diego Rock n roll marathon (a DNF)..i thought i was done..in 2017, i beat my 2009 time by 29 minutes.

Finances? I've never made more than 21k in a year.

Personal? I have one best friend...we've been friends 36 years....I'm 48. Count on your real friends

As for extreme...I've always been extra...it gets you noticed

Just be you. Things may fly away but you know you.

And push your own envelope.

You might surprise yourself.

When I was 10, i wanted to be part of a choir and my mom said i couldn't sing.

I stopped trying

28 years later, while working with a professor, we did raps and songs about grammar lessons..

For six years and 3 conferences.

Keep trying. Keep being.

I'm not glamorous but I'm here.

Kinda in the same boat! Cheers Bro!

You didn't mention sex. Are you getting any?

The Conquest of Happiness (1930) by Bertrand Russell is a good read if you want to find ways to find new meaning for your life.

Some quotes:

"The secret of happiness is this: let your interests be as wide as possible, and let your reactions to the things and persons that interest you be as far as possible friendly rather than hostile."

"The more things a man is interested in, the more opportunities of happiness he has, and the less he is at the mercy of fate, since if he loses one thing he can fall back upon another. Life is too short to be interested in everything, but it is good to be interested in as many things as are necessary to fill our days."

It's all downhill until 45. And then it picks up again:

margithenderson.com

The Paradox of Aging: the Happiness U-Curve - Margit Cox Henderson, Ph.D.

margithenderson

When imagining aging, most middle-aged people look ahead with trepidation. But take heart: the best is likely yet to come! Satisfaction surveys have found that happiness increases after middle age, and this pattern shows up a...

Open link

I’m in that situation due to a health problem. I don’t think about it like you. I live for the fight.

Get a hobby or go on a vacation.

This is a legitimate question. You don't have to answer it here OP, but at least privately consider whether this might be at least a part of your issue.

Vacations are fun, but I and many others only get 3 weeks of vacation a year. That's 3/52 weeks = less than 6%.

As for hobbies, they're also fun but not as entertaining as they were in your teens and 20s. That's when everything is new and exciting. First time climbing a mountain, first time riding a motorcycle, first time sandboarding, first time driving a snowmobile, and so on. There are ways around this, but they're either out of my risk tolerance (going from skydiving to base jumping to wingsuit proximity flying), out of my price range (driving, flying, or riding ever-more expensive vehicles), or both (exploring ever more remote areas).

Have something to look forward to. Put it on your calendar, two or three things.

Go help someone.

Do you have a pet? Get an aloe vera plant. You might think I'm joking, but I'm not.

I feel you man.

However, I hate to break it to you, but you are a pessimist. You could still PR. Meb won Boston at age 38. Your doom-and-gloom about fossil fuels is pessimistic speculative BS at best. Your claim about "new and exciting" means you just stopped trying new things. Seriously, why can't you try base jumping? There's a base jumping school in Idaho, nobody dies -- https://www.snakeriverbase.com/. People "exploring ever more remote areas" are not rich, but they are willing to sacrifice a normal 9-5 life for an adventure. The world is a huge, strange, and varied place. Go experience it. This is not a dress rehearsal.

maybe try new things? i suggest reading books that interest you or research an interesting topic, only because that helps me. i also try to look for little positive happenings every day and i occasionally play the guitar.

wish you all the best

What is your personality type? Introverted vs Extroverted? I moved to a place where I can do as much outdoor exploring 24-365 as I want on feet, skis, wheels or water. The price to have all of this out my front door is very minimal. I can do these things by myself or with groups of people I find interesting and fun to be around. I only go to work so i can get caught up on my rest and plan my next adventure. I dont want to die alone, cold and hungry but i will have a party with my friends and family before walking off into the woods to let the bears and lions have their way with me so im not a burden to anyone else. They know me and what I want so all is good. Just live beneath your means and stack cash but live a full life without expense. Its worked for me.

32 here

I decided to quit a good but stressful job of 5 years for an opportunity to build news skills at a job totally different from what I was doing. Got let go last week after 9 months.

In that time I also decided to move to a new apartment after my bathroom ceiling fell in. I bounced around from a friends place, where I ran over something on the highway and lost two tires and didn't have a car for two months.

I also had a break up that kinda stung and felt like I made the biggest mistake of my adult life.

And now there's. war, gas is skyrocketing, and its getting harder to just be "a person"...


But, I get to run tomorrow!

You're a putz. This doesn't start happening until the mid 40s if you keep working hard.