5 Of The Realest (And Hardest) Things You Won’t See Coming In Your Early 20s

You are entering a critical stage of life. You are no longer living care-free where all you had to worry about was school work. You have now crossed the starting line to adulthood. Apart from all the typical boring stuff that you have to face like getting a degree or planning your future career, one major factor that will impact you the most is your social life. It will not be all rainbows and butterflies, so here is 5 of the realest things you’ll have to tough out in your 20s:

1. You will lose your friends

This might come as a surprise but yes, you will lose some of your friends. Some, who you thought would be there for a lifetime, will eventually leave. I know your teenage years have been all about them and you probably have one of those “BFFs Forever” friendship bands which is an assurance that the relationship will last forever. I am sorry to say that people change, as cliché as that sounds, yes they do. All of you will go your separate ways and some of your friends will drift apart from you. They will no longer have enough time to just hang out or reply to your text faster than the speed of light or answer your call at three in the morning. They will be too caught up in their own busy schedules and this is the period where you can tell who your true friends are. They will be the ones who bother to make time out of their crazy schedules, who will make it a point to celebrate your birthday every year, who stalk your social accounts to find out if you are doing okay, and they’ll be the people that you will end up growing old with, so treasure them.

2. Being alone is NOT a bad thing

When everyone else is too busy for you, you will end up doing a lot of things by yourself. You might find that getting all of your friends together becomes an amazing hassle so doing things on your own is much more convenient. This DOES NOT mean that you are a loner. You will be amazed at how having some me-time will benefit your well-being. You will get to enjoy your cuppa at your favorite spot while indulging in a really good read without anyone bothering you. You can reflect on life and how to go about achieving your goals. Get a notebook, a pen, sit down and start writing down your goals. It is a process of self-discovery.

3. It is okay if you are still single

At this phase, it may seem like the majority of people around you have settled down with “the one”. You probably have to engage in conversations where your friends talk about how they are doing future planning with their partner and, of course, you are so happy for them, but it sucks when you end up asking yourself, what about me? It is totally okay if you are still single and oh-so-available. This gives you the freedom to explore your options and to be able to meet people at a more mature age. Go on dates and most importantly, have fun! You will definitely find your soulmate when the time is right. You will be surprised who you end up falling in love with!

4. Your parents will be your Best Friends

Who knows adulthood better than the two beings that brought you into this world? You might have a love-hate relationship with them, but trust me they will be the ones that you can count on no matter what shit you are going through. You might have hated them for grounding you, confiscating your phone, setting curfews and banning you from attending parties but trust me, you will end up turning to them when you are dealing with adult woes. They will give you the best advices you have ever received yet, after all your parents do know best.

5. Drinking will NOT solve anything

It is okay to let loose once in a while, everyone needs a break sometimes but it definitely does not solve your problems. DON’T RUN AWAY FROM THEM. You might have the habit of getting wasted at parties every weekend and then tweet about your nasty hangover the next morning because it used to be cool. It might be a little escapade for the night but that is all you will ever get from that, a hangover and your problems will still be right there. Reality check, it is not cool to destroy your liver. Have some balls to face your problems and start living a healthy lifestyle, your body will thank you for that.