Written by Daniel Nkado
In a rather hilarious life twist, one of the biggest thrills of our childhood appears to be the excitement of growing into adulthood. For some of us, it was the feeling of absolute freedom that adults enjoy. For others, it was the power that comes with it. Some people even only just wanted to grow a beard or develop full breasts and experience the adventure of intimacy. Whatever it was, the joy of becoming an adult held endless opportunities for excitement for us.
And then it finally happens and we realize – “Oh…that wasn’t so great!” There would be evenings you sit on the couch in your room and be like: “What’s all these?”.
Here are 5 horrifying things about adulthood we never saw coming – or, in other words, five reasons adulthood suck:
1. Pain is more intense for adults
Remember when you cry over a toy Daddy didn’t buy or drop to the floor to wail because Mummy had left you behind when you went to pick your slippers – think about it – the next hour or less you have already gotten over the pain and dried your tears and already playing and bouncing around with your playmates.
Well, in adulthood, pain lingers. The things adults cry over, or struggle not to cry over, are often things that don’t get a quick fix. Think unemployment, managing debts, not finding joy with work, no luck at love…and many others. Things like these can keep you up at night but the worst of it is that you’d wake up to still meet them.
2. Happiness is more expensive for adults
There were many of us who orgasmed at the mere sight of simple gifts like a mobile game or a handset or even just the new CD of African China. Finding joy in simple things is harder for adults. And even now, the era of social media has even made things more unbearable. Our wants seem to change by the second and you see many people denying themselves sleep at night because they’ve set unrealistic expectations.
3. Heartbreak will crush you
Children often get jealous when they lose playmates but they usually move on quickly. You would think adulthood would have probably come with a manual for emotion control and domination – the reverse is the case. You’d be surprised at how crushing new things like heartbreak will do to you as an adult. Some people don’t even survive it.
4. Confidence is a big issue
As an adult, you are more self-aware and you’d soon realize that there are so many things struggling to take your esteem – where you live, what you drive, how much you got in your bank account, the pimples on your face…sometimes it feels close to madness. For the first time, you will begin realizing what anxiety truly feels like.
5. Health is a big issue
During childhood, everything heals fast. Cold, malaria, an injured toe, etc. Adults worry more about their health…it might not necessarily be the condition itself but its implications. Imagine having a job presentation and then waking up with a cold. Anxiety mode activated. Adults also have more fear of dying. As an adult, you would have realized that people can just die. Just like that. The Reaper won’t provide any explanation. Religious adults will also have to worry about what happens to them after they die. Remember many of us felt invincible as children.
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About the writer:
Daniel Nkado is a Nigerian writer and the founder of DNBStories.com. Get his books on DNB Store, OkadaBooks or BamBooks!
