20 things i learned before turning 20

april 19th, 2025

in honor of my 20th birthday tmrw + mourning my teenage years a bit. sad face

  1. 99% of the people you look up to for having their shit together/doing better than you are entirely faking it til they make it
  2. every girl has a little pooch on the bottom of her stomach, they just learn to suck it in a certain way in photos
  3. you will eventually get over it even if it feels like the end of the world right now
  4. as soon as you graduate high school you immediately realize how meaningless high school popularity and drama is
  5. laying in bed all day, being hopeless, having no passions, etc, is probably depression and you should reach out for help
  6. pluck your eyebrows, but only from the bottom. get your mom or sister to help!!!!!!
  7. you will inevitably cringe at anything you do in these years and then cringe at the person who cringed at the earlier one. so stop trying to be preemptively cooler and just enjoy the awkwardness.
  8. kissing can feel like actual fireworks if it’s with someone you have chemistry with and you should feel it in your heart
  9. your firsts will be VERY AWKWARD unless you’re lucky
  10. people jump into jobs/opportunities that they’re not technically qualified for all the time. apply and take the risk
  11. friendship breakups will probably hurt worse than romantic breakups
  12. if you’re asking yourself enough times, you’re probably a little gay
  13. you can (and should) unfollow people who make you feel bad about the way you look
  14. liquor before beer, and don’t mix dark and light liquors. also nothing good comes out of pink whitney or fireball
  15. if they’re shit talking other people to you, they’re shit talking you to other people too
  16. seeing your parents/siblings every day is a blessing. cherish it for as long as you can because they are not young forever
  17. trying to hyper control your appearance/punish yourself for your appearance will do NOTHING for your self confidence
  18. don’t ever let a guy talk you into something you’re not 100% comfortable with, or insult you even once, even ‘jokingly’
  19. loving yourself doesn’t mean loving the way you look, it means treating and respecting yourself as if you were your best friend
  20. if you don’t ask, the answer will always be no