‘I am 30 in my head’: Seniors reveal when they realised they’d entered their golden years

No one wants to admit that the years have crept up on them, however, sooner or later the milestones continue to pass and become a stern reminder that you’re not as young as you used to be.

Posting to the subreddit Ask Old People, one user posed the question: “At what point did you realise you were ‘old’? What helped you embrace it as a new identity?”.

The consensus was largely unanimous amongst the seniors who responded, with many saying they didn’t feel the age shown on their birth certificates.

“I’m 70 and the funny thing is that my inner age ranges from 14 – 30. Sometimes it’s a shock when I look in the mirror. It’s also funny when I look at someone in the news and think wow they’re old now, then it turns out they are younger than me. But I think I feel old when something I used to do with relative ease now really knocks me out for a few days,” one user said.

“A young man quick-stepped ahead of me to hold the door at a store the other day, and as the door opened I caught my reflection in the glass… and had to do a double take because there was an old man standing where I thought I was.”

“I hate the feeling of seeing a photo of myself and thinking ”who is that fat old lady in this picture?” But I don’t feel old until I stand up and my knees creak. Once they are warmed up, though, I am 30 in my head,” someone said.

“Once I held the door for an old lady. It was a slap in the head when I realized we were probably the same age,” commented another.

However, others said they realised they’d aged by how little “fucks” they had left to give.

“The older I get the less fuck I have to give. My fucks are all gone. Gone. Vaporized. And I don’t try to hide it either,” one person wrote.

“Flip side is the loss of my fucks to give. I’m not bitchy or intentionally mean, but I’m real quick to say no when it’s needed, I’m pretty damn firm with it, and when pushed (I work with the public and generally, they don’t like to hear the word no) I get a Don’t Fuck with Me tone.

“I have even let slip what I really wanted to say, and it set some repeat offending assholes back on their asses – they’re much more polite now.”

Some users offered more enlightened thoughts on ageing, saying people shouldn’t let age dictate who they are.

“Stop defining yourself by your age and just be you. It truly is just a number,” one person offered.

“We are really just here to experience life. That’s all. And we have choices that affect our experience. And we also get hit with others’ choices and seemingly random events,” someone said.

“It’s just all an experience that I can view through this body at this time. I have no idea if we choose our circumstances or we just suddenly pop into existence and have to figure it out from there. It doesn’t matter.

“I do think our choices have huge effects overall and choices that benefit are ‘better’ than choices that harm. That gets complicated because good intentions does not equal a good choice. And what’s good for me may not be good for you or that bacteria over there.

“Anyway, I don’t really think about ME being old – but my body is old and has given me lots of experiences. I’m just the kid on the roller coaster.”