r/DecidingToBeBetter • u/mstheze7 • 18h ago
Seeking Advice How to make peace with my past self and my twenties?
I can’t stop thinking about how I spent my twenties, constantly battling the thought: "If I had just had the courage to get out of my comfort zone and change things earlier, my twenties would have looked completely different."
I stayed way too long in a toxic friend group. I struggled with an alcohol and drug problem. On paper, it looked like I was living it up—going on vacations, hitting festivals, and going out all the time. But I wasn't making good memories. Most of them were just blackouts driven by pure escapism. Every sign in my body told me I needed to change, but I was to afraid to leave my comfort zone.
It makes me so deeply sad. I’ve never been in a relationship. My early twenties were swallowed by COVID, and after that, things just went downhill as I stayed tethered to toxic environments. Before all of that, my life felt great. My conscience keeps telling me to change, but the grief over lost time is agonizing.
Last year, I finally took the leap: I moved away and started therapy. At least I'm almost finished with my part-time college degree now, but still... the haunting stays.
People often romanticize partying too much in your youth, but when it’s pure escapism, it isn't even fun. It’s just running away. I carry so much regret because I didn't make meaningful memories, didn't date much, and let fear run the show. I kissed lots of people and slept with a few, but almost always while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. I even blew real chances at getting a relationship because I kept self-sabotaging. It is extremely painful.
How do I cope with this? How do you forgive your past self for wasting years you can never get back?
It’s not that I was depressed or anything every single day. It’s just that I made way too few memories.
These thoughts suddenly resurfaced over the past few weeks. Before this, I wasn't really dwelling on it. Is it possible this is coming up now because I'm lacking certain things in the present?
Maybe things weren't even that bad back then—I did have good moments, after all. And these thoughts are suddenly hitting me because I'm afraid of missing out on things now, or because of my current situation. I honestly don't know anymore.