Calling all Time Travellers.... what advice would you give your teenage self?

I suppose this is one for any oldsters that happen by the young persons' board..... but younger people might find it gives them pause for thought.   Imagine if you had access to a time-machine that would take you back to your teenage years.   What nugget of advice would you give your teenage self?   And do you think they'd have taken you seriously?

I'd love to go back and tell my teenage self that she was much more beautiful than she thought and to stop fussing about a few freckles. 

I wish I could go back and tell my eleven year old self not to listen to what the bullies in my new school start telling me, and when they get physical not to bottle it up and wait for my (useless) school to do something about it but to go straight to my parents and get the hell out of there while it's still a viable option to move schools.

I would tell myself to pursue modeling and to plan for my future education instead of just going to school because everyone says you "have to" go to college

I would tell myself that just because a boy wants to hook up with me doesn't mean he likes me, and that if he's not trying to see me outside of hooking up, he probably doesn't like me at all.

Although, with my insecure high school self, I would probably have still reveled in the attention and made the same mistakes.

Good question, GI Jane...I guess I would tell her to stop feeling sorry for herself.  Being self-pitying doesn't make a person deep, it just makes him or her difficult to be around.  I would also tell her:

-stop dating people you don't like

-focus on what your body can do, not how it looks

-take some responsibility for your psychological well-being

I know my mother tried to tell me these things, and I just didn't understand, so maybe it would have been a lost cause anyway.  On the one hand, I feel that I wasted so much time being depressed as a teenager, but on the other hand, maybe a person only progresses as they become ready to handle it.  I like where I am now, so I won't spend too much time regretting how I got here.

Oh, there is NO WAY she would listen to me, but here's what I would say:

-Don't take crap from people;

-You don't HAVE to go to college.  Think about what you want to do before you waste all that money;

-Being the smartest does not equal being the happiest.  And being happy is so much better.  Really.  Seriously.

-QUIT WASTING YOUR TIME WITH THAT MORON!!!  It's not love, it's obsession, and you are gonna wish you had those 5 years back...or, better yet, never date him in the first place.  You can't fix his crappy life, he will drag you down with him, and there is NOTHING about him that is worth it.

-Oh, and think about studying.  It might be useful, y'know, getting scholarships, building good work habits...

Too bad I thought I was miss smarty-pants when I was a teenager and wouldn't let anyone tell me anything and thought I was the most brilliant and complex person who has ever lived.  Thank God I grew out of that.  (Not that I'm not still a self-absorbed goofball...)

OH and I would teach my teenage self how to bleach her eyebrows. I only discovered it in the past year. Lordy, what I was missing...

i probably wouldnt have taken the advide, i was such a shy little mouse back then. But i would have told myself toget into more trouble lol. Now that im an adult and have responsibilities i cant be a wild crazy kid. And my dad was so overprotective and kept me so sheltered that i didnt have any chances to do normal teenage stuff. I dont even mean drugs, but parties, i wasnt allowed to go to any, no bonfires at the beach, nothing! (and i only mean a little trouble, nothing arrest worthy LOL)

Original Post by emilyd22222:

OH and I would teach my teenage self how to bleach her eyebrows. I only discovered it in the past year. Lordy, what I was missing...

 Haha!  Great one!

I'd say to go with the first instinct and major in journalism.  Or education. But definitely NOT Criminal Justice.  And definitely still go to Shippensburg..and definitely still move in with the strangers who became the BEST freinds I've ever had.  But just don't major in Criminal Justice...journalism or education girl, or you're going to regret it 10 years from now...trust me! 

- Everyone gets rejected sometimes; it is not the end of the world.

- Don't sleep through Senior year, you will hate community college and nobody wants to give you grants ever. You're life is ruined.

I'd tell myself that you're not actually fat - that the scrawny girls I compared myself to were not as pretty as I thought and were really just underdeveloped.

If thinking about something causes you to be depressed or unhappy or feel even worse about yourself, then DON'T THINK ABOUT IT!  It's not your job to solve all the world's problems, it is not "deeper" to be unhappy. 

Just because you are different doesn't mean that it matters!  You have lots of similarities with people if you look for them. 

It wouldn't kill you to be friendly!  You spend so much time expecting people to reject you - really, most people are decent people and they probably won't mind if you talk to them.  Assume the best from people.

I would tell myself to slow down a bit and enjoy the easy going moments. That the thrill of the hunt (although fun) isn't what it's all about. Take the time to get to know others and you'll also get to know yourself and learn to love yourself. 

I would tell myself to appreciate the toned, athletic body that god and sports had given me and to stop comparing myself to ANYBODY else.  Especially those girls on the cover of Seventeen. (That Damn Twiggy )  I would also tell myself that I could be what ever I wanted to be when I grow up but that I would have to apply myself. 

Cool question Jane, thanks for asking!

I would tell myself to be good to my mother. Oh, and that I was never busy like I thought I was. And to save some money and stop shopping so much. I have lots lol and to stop eating junkk

I would tell her to figure out who she is before she has a serious relationship...not to get married at 19 fresh out of a foster home. (I know she wouldn't have listened though) I would tell her to follow her passions and do what she loved. And she should have taken the kind lady up on her offer to pay her way through college. Silly her. :(

I would tell myself...  not to take anything for granted!!  I would tell myself to really appreciate and enjoy the boundless energy, ability, and passion that youth and health bring.   I would tell myself to enjoy it...  but also to DO something with it, to accomplish something with it.  Because you never know when something will happen and everything will change.

Dear stupid younger self,

The only thing stopping you from being whoever/whatever you want to be is you.

"If you want it you got it, you just got to believe. Believe in yourself"

-Lenny Kravitz

Oh, and just because a guy likes you, that doesn't mean you have to like him.

Sincerely,

Your stupid older self

:D

great thread gi-jane!

I would tell myself not to get married during Tech school. It's not worth it and your military career will, in the end, be over. There isn't enough counseling and meds in the world to undo what that man will do to you head.

I would tell my 12 year old self that no one needs to eat a whole tin of brownies and I'm getting fat. :)

I would tell my 13 year old self to tell my best friend to quit riding while she has the chance( she passed away when I was 15, trampled to death)

I would tell my 15 year old self to date that spanish exchange student even though my parents are against it. He will grow up to be an international soccer sensation ( he plays for FC Barcelona and has a nike endorsment now)

I would tell my 16 year old self that going to you science teachers house to play video games is creepppyyy, and people will assume your sleeping with him(especially since you have a key)

I would tell my 17 year old self that I look beautiful just the way I am and I dont need to starve myself.