There is a popular psychological exercise called “Writing to yourself at an earlier age”. This actually helps a person to realize what mistakes they made in the past, accept them and, if possible, become more calm and balanced in the present – after all, in fact, these mistakes cannot actually be changed.
Well, we all make mistakes – especially in our teenage years, when life energy literally overflows, our own life experience is still very small, and someone else’s advice seems so insignificant and, let’s be honest, so stupid. Some of these mistakes just remain in the past, causing only a feeling of shame over the years. Some of them, on the contrary, affect our entire subsequent life.
A popular thread recently appeared in the AskReddit community with over 12.7K upvotes and nearly 8K comments. The topic starter suggested that redditors perform the same exercise, only in a simpler form, by just answering the question “What was your biggest teenage mistake?”
Bored Panda has collected for you the most popular answers from this thread, where there are both sad revelations and funny moments that are shameful to remember, but at least fun. And perhaps the most correct comment in this collection is from a teenager who thanks people for listing the mistakes that they will try to avoid in their life. We hope they succeed…
Anyway, now scroll to the very end, like your favorite submissions and, of course, share your own stories – after all, we know that nobody is perfect!
More info: Reddit
#1 Not Taking Better Care Of My Teeth
Not taking better care of my teeth
Image credits: LedTasso69
#2 Starting Smoking
Started smoking.
Image credits: fislakka
#3 Marrying A 40-Year-Old Being 18 Years Old
Marrying my 18-year-old self to a 40-year-old who’d been grooming me for three years, just to spite my mother.
0/10, would not recommend.
Image credits: Late_Again68
#4 Being Cruel And Thoughtless To A Girl
Looking back at the way I treated this one girl. I was cruel and thoughtless. I’m 50 now and it still hurts me.
Image credits: Trek1973
#5 Being Concerned About What Others Were Thinking
Worried too much about trying to “fit in” and being concerned about what others were thinking.
Image credits: Back2Bach
#6 Learning From Other People’s Mistakes
I am in my teenage years rn and i realised i can learn from your mistakes, thanks redditors
Image credits: baumstammreiniger
#7 Not Getting The Hint That My Friend Wanted To Be Way More Than Friends
Not getting the hint that my friend, the beautiful Patricia, wanted to be WAY more than friends.
Image credits: dwane1972
#8 Not Being A Rebel
I did not rebel. My parents incessantly accused me of rebelling and general debauchery despite being in a huge club sport on scholarship, being involved in school councils, having extra curriculars like orchestra, and art (which I always won awards for), having a 3.6 GPA, being the first in my family on track to go to a huge university, etc etc etc.
I spent my high school life hopping in between crying, self-loathing, and suicidal ideation when I could have been having fun and enjoying my childhood. I spent too much time wondering why my parents didn’t love me instead of doing something about it and refusing to respect them.
Image credits: anon
#9 Taking Teenage Stereotypes Too Seriously
I took teenage stereotypes too seriously. Like I thought the kind of dynamics you saw in teen moves were real- jocks were all dumb a*sholes, nerdy kids were smart virgins, etc. It took me an embarrassing amount of time to realize that people are people and that I was severely limiting myself by assigning myself a “role.”
Image credits: If-By-Whisky
#10 Coasting Through School On Being Bright And Never Learning To Study
Coasting through school on being bright and never learning to study. University was a shock and just about managed my 2:2
Image credits: stubbleandsqueak
#11 Not Going To Study But Deciding To Work Instead
When I had the opportunity, I did not go to study, but decided to go to work right away
Image credits: NaughtyAnastasia007
#12 Not Losing Kilos From The Beginning
Not losing kilos from the beginning, i know it may be sound stupid but being an overweight teenager made me become an outcast everywhere, kids and adults can be cruel and even self esteem was bad. I only lost those kilos near the end wish i did it much sooner
Image credits: FamiliarLettuce3858
#13 Forcing Themselves To Fall In Love With A Girl
Forcing myself to fall in love with a girl. I didn’t love her, I was in love with the idea of a girlfriend. Now to be fair, she made the same mistake. She didn’t love me. It was a bad relationship.
Image credits: mr-blindsight
#14 Not Being More Sociable
Not being more sociable. I’m 25 now and I have no f*****g idea how to make friends
Image credits: cosimascherry
#15 Not Realizing That One’s Parents Weren’t Doing The Best Job
Not realising that my parents weren’t doing the best job raising me/preparing me for adulthood and realising I should maybe take matters into my own hands.
Image credits: peanutismint
#16 Trying To Play Negativity Off As Sarcasm
I was a rather negative person as a teenager, but tried to play it off as sarcasm instead. I somehow had grown into this weird bubble where I made fun of almost every little thing, but didn’t really realize that I was also hurting my friends by doing that.
I did lots of growing up after high school, and I’m a bit sad about not keeping in touch with my old friends. They might have liked me more today than they did back then.
Image credits: -manabreak
#17 Not Pursuing One’s Passion When One Had The Age, Health And Time
Not pursuing my passion when i have the age,health and time with me
Image credits: elegantloba
#18 Not Noticing The Signs When A Girl Was Clearly Into Me
Not noticing the signs when a girl was clearly into me
Image credits: VocationFumes
#19 Being Way Too Far In One’s Shell To Have Fun
I’m actually more worried about the mistakes I didn’t make. Making mistakes means you’re experiencing life. I was way too far in my shell to have fun.
Image credits: Andyle611
#20 Never Having Had The Courage To Pursue Girls Or Ask For Help In Figuring Out How
Never having had the courage to pursue girls or ask for help in figuring out how
Image credits: Anooj4021
#21 Not Playing Even More Video Games
Not playing even more video games.
Image credits: ISPY4ever
#22 Trying To Be Someone Who One Wasn’t
Trying to be someone who I wasn’t
Image credits: JosephBayot
#23 Getting Uncle’s Beautiful Restored Classic Car Impounded
I took my uncle’s beautiful restored classic car for a drive when I didn’t have a license and got it impounded.
Image credits: throwawaysmetoo
#24 Not Being Kind To Themselves
My biggest teenage mistake was not being kind to myself. My teenage years were some of the hardest in my life( hopefully).
Trauma after trauma, disappointment after disappointment. And i always blamed myself for them all.
It wasn’t until recently i could start looking back and realized that it really wasn’t my fault. I did a lot more than most would have in my situation. And that even though i had terrible teenage years, its not a reflection on who i am, but more a reflection on what i was going through.
It makes comming to terms with losing out on that part of your life much easier. And i wish i had this mindset much earlier.
Image credits: thomasrat1
#25 Not Seeing Women The Same As Men
Not seeing women the same as men.
Turns out, we’re all people.
Image credits: panteragstk
#26 Having An Online Relationship With A Girl Throughout High School
Having an online relationship with a girl throughout high school who broke up with me after I flew out to visit her. Those were years I could’ve spent dating the girl I’d had a crush on since fifth grade.
Image credits: falconsomething
#27 Sharing A Bank Account With A Girl At 19
Shared bank account with girl at 19.
Image credits: SpicyDoritos92
#28 Treating High School As A Obligation And Not A Opportunity
Treating highschool as a obligation and not a opportunity. Not just social but economical gains and your own development are way greater effected by how you view your highschool years.
Image credits: likea_yeti
#29 Spending A Large Inheritance One Got
Spending a large inheritance I got when I was 18 in 2009. Could of owned a property outright by now
Image credits: bKingas
#30 Started Having Sex Too Young And Losing A Baby As A Child
Started having sex too young which lead to mistakes and pregnancies too young, and losing a baby as a child was too much. I’m still not sure I’ve recovered.
Image credits: Jensi_is_me
#31 Being Afraid Of Girls
Being afraid of girls. Didn’t realize that they were normal humans too, who just wanted to have fun and be liked. They were mysterious and scary, and I lost a lot of years being self conscious and shy.
Image credits: Unsimulated
#32 Playing Football In High School
High school football. My doctor advised me against it but I was 14 and knew everything. Putting my body through four years of abuse was not worth what I got out of it.
Today I’m 33 and wake up with a stiff neck every day, my right shoulder has a ton of scar tissue, my elbow has a bone chip, my jaw clicks/pops if I open it too wide, and both of my knees ache when it gets too cold.
Also our team sucked.
Image credits: weinerwayne
#33 Brushing Off A Girl Who Liked Me
I was teased a lot when I was younger…I was chubby, and socially awkward. When I became a teen, I grew a lot, and lost a lot of weight. But, the damage to my self-esteem had been done.
One time, when I was in grade 11, I was sitting in the cafeteria. There were a group of girls sitting further down the table from me, looking at me, and giggling to each other. One of them passed me a note that said, “I like you, [my name]”…but they spelled my name wrong (a common mistake for my name). I tossed it back and coldly said, “You spelled my name wrong,” got up and walked away.
God, I felt like a d**k afterwards. I thought they were teasing me, leading me into a trap, where I’d hit on one of them, and they’d all laugh at me at my expense. But…one of them (maybe all of them) really did like me, and they were all super cute. I crushed some girl hard.
#34 Getting Old
Getting old
#35 Trying To Be More Mature
Trying to be more mature.
Since childhood, I prided myself on being an extremely smart person who was above things like “cartoons” and “playing”. Of course, I still liked those things, but I desperately tried to hide it even though literally nobody actually cared. While everyone my age was dashing to tab away from porn, I was tabbing away from Minecraft let’s plays.
Even though I’m older now and know that people don’t care, I still find myself tabbing away from cartoons and pausing games when people try to see what I’m doing. That instinct is still there. I usually just force myself to resume what I was doing, but I feel like I’d be better off if I didn’t have the desire to prove myself to others as a kid.
Image credits: MaxG623
#36 Not Letting Myself Have Much Fun
I didn’t let myself have much fun. I always thought about things like I was already an adult and always had to be responsible and mature. There are a lot of things I passed up that could have been really fun had I just let myself enjoy life a little.
#37 Trying To Escape From The Police While Driving Too Fast
Back when I was just a young hoodlum I was out for a very late evening drive.
Nice cool air and my car was making good power. Which for a turbo 5.0 Mustang is quite a bit of power. I was cruising at 100 mph+ with occasional jaunts to much higher speed.
Came up to a town and saw a police road block. About the same time I saw lights about a mile behind me. I was pretty sure they couldn’t have id’d me by that point so I took off. Did a little fancy driving and gave them the slip…..for awhile. Long story short it came down to wrecking my car or giving up an I decided to give up.
Felony fleeing the police in a motor vehicle, reckless endangerment and a couple other charges is what I ended up with.
I was 19 at the time.
Now I’m 33, I’m an engineer, married to a wonderful man who unfortunately I am not able to have children with. We looked into adoption, but with one of us being a former felon it’s a bit of a nonstarter.
Image credits: littleredhoodlum
#38 Doing An Unsuccessful Backflip On A Trampoline
Doing an unsuccessful backflip on a trampoline
#39 Selling $200 Worth Of Bitcoins To A Friend For Tickets To A Music Festival Back In 2011
Sold $200 worth of Bitcoins to a friend for tickets to a music festival back in 2011.
Image credits: Spaceman_Beard
#40 Robbing A Gas Station
I robbed a gas station. 
Image credits: pauluzu
#41 Probably Downloading Reddit
I didn’t really do much of anything as a teenager. So it’s hard to point to anything in particular as that big of a mistake. I would probably say downloading reddit is my biggest mistake.
#42 Driving Under The Influence When I Got My First Car
Driving under the influence when I got my first car. I used to drive when going out with friends under the guise of not drinking, but inevitably I would end up having a couple drinks and would drive home anyway. Never got drunk to the point of being a severe danger behind the wheel, but it was still stupid as hell.
My 33yr old self shudders now at my own idiocy.
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