My Journey With:

Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) ~ Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) ~ Focal Impaired Awareness (Complex Partial) Seizures ~ Fibromyalgia ~ Chronic Myofascial Pain (CMP) ~ Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) ~ TMJ Dysfunction ~ Bipolar Disorder Type I Rapid Cycling With Psychotic Features ~ Migraines ~ Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) ~ Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) ~ Keratosis Pilaris (KP) ~ Complex-Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) ~ Panic Disorder ~ Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) ~ Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) ~ Self-Harm ~ Bilateral Piezogenic Pedal Papules ~ Hashimoto's Thyroiditis ~ Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) ~ Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) ~ Specific Phobias ~ Chronic Daily Headache ~ Eczema

Saturday, March 28, 2015

15 things you learn in your 30s (and maybe late 20s)

I'm 33 now, and I've compiled this list of things I've learned since I've turned 30:

1)  All those years of forgoing moisturizer, especially on your neck, start showing when you hit 30.  Now you moisturize, moisturize, moisturize, but it's harder to fix things than prevent them.

Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream for Dry Skin
The moisturizer I use: Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream for Dry Skin


2)  By the time you reach your 30s, you will need to start considering dying your hair to cover the gray.  You used to think that wouldn't happen until your late 40s, but this is simply not true.  Of course, if you are trying to get pregnant you'll either have to use henna, which kinda sucks, or you'll have to wait until you're pregnant and in the second trimester, because you won't know you're pregnant until it's already happened.

Woman going gray
Going gray


3)  Starting in your early 30s you realize it's getting harder to see things close up.  I know you thought that you'd be around 50 before that happened, but again, that's simply not true.

Please tell me reading glasses are a long way off!
Please tell me reading glasses are a long way off!


4)  You will start feeling the urge to visit "home," which in my case is the Ozarks.  Honestly I'm not close to my living relatives there, it's the land I miss...hills, trees, rich soil, fresh, crisp air, wildlife, rivers, caves...these are the things I can't stop thinking about.

The Ozark Mountains
The Ozark Mountains


5)  Your older relatives, all the ones that mean the most, will start dying off.  It's heartbreaking and unfair.  Also, you become aware of your own parents' mortality and it terrifies you.

I miss everyone who has left this world so much
I miss everyone who has left this world so much


6)  The little things don't matter.  Things that once meant so much to you, like buying cool new toys for yourself, start to not mean as much anymore.  "Grown up stuff," like paying your bills and getting practical items suddenly take precedence, and it doesn't bother you that much.

Paying bills
Paying bills


7)  You become more thankful for things in your life.  Things you used to take for granted now mean a whole lot, like a phone call from your mother.

Woman on the phone
On the phone


8)  You'll become more open minded.  You put yourself in other people's shoes a lot easier, and can empathize with others even easier than before.

Become more open minded
Become more open minded


9)  Family becomes more important.  While you used to crave time with other people, now you find that you crave family time much more.

This Awkward Family Photo reminds me of DH and me in a few years
This Awkward Family Photo reminds me of DH and me in a few years


10)  You'll start having more friends pass away.  This needs no explanation.

I miss you terribly
I miss you terribly


11)  Getting pregnant in your 30s is harder to do, and at 35 your pregnancy will be considered a "geriatric pregnancy."  Your fertility decreases (your eggs are 30 years old!) and it will be harder on your body to carry a little one for 9 months.

I'm gonna be old when you graduate, future baby
I'm gonna be old when you graduate, future baby


12)  You'll start caring a lot about world news, when before it was hard to imagine why something on the other side of the world would effect you that much.  You start to realize how interconnected we all are.

Gay rights activists in Russia
Gay rights activists in Russia


13)  Your political opinions will change.  It becomes more important to you to have a well defined set of ethics and politics, and you will become even more passionate than before about making the world a better place.

I've always voted, but I am more politically active in my late 20s and early 30s than I ever have been


14)  You will start taking pride in your home, your baking skills, and other domestic things.  You'll start to enjoy things you never did before, even doing laundry, because it is a calming task to do.

Baking is fun kids!
Baking is fun kids!


15)  You'll stop caring so much what other people think of you.  You'll want to lose weight to be healthier, not because you can't stand your body if you aren't thin.

I love myself (most of the time) and I just want to be healthy and happy
I love myself (most of the time) and I just want to be healthy and happy


Of course, these are my experiences, and not everyone is the same.  In all honesty a lot of these things began in my late 20s and became more solidified in my 30s.  I imagine some people are the opposite of everything on my list, but everything on this list obviously applies to me.

Me now, at age 33

1 comment:

  1. Good list! I feel like I wised up and became more confident in my 30s. In my 20s I still acted like a stupid kid!

    ReplyDelete

Comments? Questions? Please show class and respect in your comments. All comments are previewed, but anyone can comment. I welcome your comments!

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...