Do You Ever Feel That Life Is Pointless?

[Virtual]

Growing up I thought anything was possible, because that’s what they teach you, you know. But also I just intuitively felt that I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. I guess that’s the naivety and ignorance of childhood

 

Learning about things like evolution and other related realities has pretty much destroyed my spirit and hope. To know that at my age I basically can’t achieve anything great because my brain is not plastic enough anymore. To know that I’m not capable of anything because my genetics determine my boundaries and capabilities. To know that I’m not in control of my life because of the reality of determinism. It all just crushes me.

 

Now in my late 20s, I’ve not yet began to pursue my dreams, and I’ve been informed by the scientific consensus that I might as well not even try because it’s too late. I’ve even heard that learning something like math is next to impossible by a certain age.

 

All of this just crushes me. Makes me feel like life is not worth living because I’m just some incapable slab of meat. The realities are too harsh to deal with. I truly wish it weren’t so. I feel like life is wasted and I’m just waiting to die now.

 

So in essence, life is ****ing bullshit! It’s not the world you’re sold in grade school where everything’s possible and your efforts determine your success. Rather, it’s a capricious, futile thing wherein everything is set from the moment you’re conceived. It makes me not want to live.

Edited September 23, 2018 by Virtual

[exchemist]

Growing up I thought anything was possible, because that’s what they teach you, you know. But also I just intuitively felt that I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. I guess that’s the naivety and ignorance of childhood

 

Learning about things like evolution and other related realities has pretty much destroyed my spirit and hope. To know that at my age I basically can’t achieve anything great because my brain is not plastic enough anymore. To know that I’m not capable of anything because my genetics determine my boundaries and capabilities. To know that I’m not in control of my life because of the reality of determinism. It all just crushes me.

 

Now in my late 20s, I’ve not yet began to pursue my dreams, and I’ve been informed by the scientific consensus that I might as well not even try because it’s too late. I’ve even heard that learning something like math is next to impossible by a certain age.

 

All of this just crushes me. Makes me feel like life is not worth living because I’m just some incapable slab of meat. The realities are too harsh to deal with. I truly wish it weren’t so. I feel like life is wasted and I’m just waiting to die now.

 

So in essence, life is ****ing bullshit! It’s not the world you’re sold in grade school where everything’s possible and your efforts determine your success. Rather, it’s a capricious, futile thing wherein everything is set from the moment you’re conceived. It makes me not want to live.

Snap out of it, Eeyore. 

[A-wal]

Snap out of it, Eeyore. 

Good thinking! That's what people with depression should do, just snap out of it, it's so simple.

 

Growing up I thought anything was possible, because that’s what they teach you, you know. But also I just intuitively felt that I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. I guess that’s the naivety and ignorance of childhood

It's a matter of perspective. I'd argue that it's the jadedness of adulthood making you think that you can't. If you feel like you can achieve whatever you want to again then you probably will be able to. I wholeheartedly recommend [admin-censored, sorry A-wal do not want that the site gets into trouble], it will change your perspective in a way you can't begin to imagine. It doesn't last of course but you should be able to take enough from the experience for it to make a real difference.

Edited September 25, 2018 by sanctus
do not want to get into trouble for allowing incitement to drug use

[Maine farmer]

Growing up I thought anything was possible, because that’s what they teach you, you know. But also I just intuitively felt that I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. I guess that’s the naivety and ignorance of childhood

 

like life is not worth living because I’m just some incapable slab of meat. The realities are too harsh to deal with. I truly wish it weren’t so. I feel like life is wasted and I’m just waiting to die now.

 

So in essence, life is ****ing bullshit! It’s not the world you’re sold in grade school where everything’s possible and your efforts determine your success. Rather, it’s a capricious, futile thing wherein everything is set from the moment you’re conceived. It makes me not want to live.

Growing up on a farm, like I did, you learn that life is tough.  I never learned that everything is possible.  What I did learn is that it is up to us to find out what we can do.  We can't do everything, but we can all do something.  I don't measure success, I don't use any benchmarks to tell me if I am where I should be in life.  I just relish in the struggle.  Yes, I suffer sometimes, but I view it as part of the process.  I don't know if this is helpful to others, it is just my take on life.

[Vmedvil2]

All you must do is work hard to succeed, what they told you in grade school is true. Now it may be harder as you get older, but I know of some people that made 1 billion dollars from ages 50 to 60, They worked 84 hours a week, if money is what you seek. If you work hard enough at any age anything is possible.

 

 

 

Edited September 25, 2018 by VictorMedvil

[Maine farmer]

All you must do is work hard to succeed, what they told you in grade school is true. Now it may be harder as you get older, but I know of some people that made 1 billion dollars from ages 50 to 60, They worked 84 hours a week, if money is what you seek. If you work hard enough at any age anything is possible.

 

 

 

Not true.  Success is never guaranteed.  You can plant and fertilize a crop and do everything right, and have a storm come through and wipe it all out.  You can put forth all effort in tending livestock, and a new illness can appear.  The point is to know that you put forth your best effort.  

[Deepwater6]

I think the first issue here is for you to determine what do you define as success? A mansion, a huge hot tub, big gold chains hanging off you neck? Was mother Theresa successful? Was Hitler?

 

What do you seek? Wealth? power? an admiring public? What is your definition of success? If you suddenly fell and hit your head and woke up a math prodigy at 50-60yrs old would that do it for you?

 

You need to sit down and determine your own self worth. Are you worse off financially than Bill Gates? probably, are you better off than some Syrian child who just saw his parents blown to dust and his house demolished? I'll hope for your sake, yes.

 

I'm not going to sit here and tell you that if you're not where you want to be then get off your ***, get out there, and get what you want. I prefer this perception of life, I actually heard in a movie yesterday.

 

"The things we touch in this world have no permanence. There is nothing we can hold onto in this world. Only by letting go can we truly possess what is real in this world."

From the movie: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

[A-wal]

"The things we touch in this world have no permanence. There is nothing we can hold onto in this world. Only by letting go can we truly possess what is real in this world."

From the movie: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.

It's been a long time since I saw it but wasn't everybody in that film basically trying to possess a particularly awesome sword, Green Destiny? :)

 

You should watch House Of Flying Daggers next if you haven't seen it. I wouldn't bother with Hero, tis shite.

[GAHD]

Growing up I thought anything was possible, because that’s what they teach you, you know. But also I just intuitively felt that I could achieve whatever I wanted to achieve. I guess that’s the naivety and ignorance of childhood

 

Learning about things like evolution and other related realities has pretty much destroyed my spirit and hope. To know that at my age I basically can’t achieve anything great because my brain is not plastic enough anymore. To know that I’m not capable of anything because my genetics determine my boundaries and capabilities. To know that I’m not in control of my life because of the reality of determinism. It all just crushes me.

 

Now in my late 20s, I’ve not yet began to pursue my dreams, and I’ve been informed by the scientific consensus that I might as well not even try because it’s too late. I’ve even heard that learning something like math is next to impossible by a certain age.

 

All of this just crushes me. Makes me feel like life is not worth living because I’m just some incapable slab of meat. The realities are too harsh to deal with. I truly wish it weren’t so. I feel like life is wasted and I’m just waiting to die now.

 

So in essence, life is ****ing bullshit! It’s not the world you’re sold in grade school where everything’s possible and your efforts determine your success. Rather, it’s a capricious, futile thing wherein everything is set from the moment you’re conceived. It makes me not want to live.

1: You're wrong about learning becoming "impossible" with age. It only becomes impossible with a bad attitude. That's not something age-specific. It seems like you're making an excuse, and then publicly whinging with that excuse for attention. Go do that at a wine bar, maybe you'll get laid and solve the attitude problem.

2: You're wrong about genetics. Your genetics, just like everyone's genetics, have variation in expression over life based on external factors. Eat less sugar and more starch and you'll change your expressions. Keep your trace minerals up and your vitamin complexes fresh and you'll change them again. Eat like a trailer park slob and you'll change them yet again.

2a:You most certainly DO need to step up your learning game if you want to use genetic shackles as an excuse for your own laziness. That might work to make you seem smart around people who like buzz words, but it's just half assed excuses. Go read more.

3:If you are an incapable slab of meat, the capable ones still need to hire you to get their dreams built. Doesn't take much more than actually listening to your betters to be a useful(re; capable) person in modern society. If you don't like that, Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

4: Life is futile. Period. End of line. You are a speck of dust on a speck of dust orbiting a speck of dust in a swirling cloud of dust among a vast vast emptiness your feeble mind is not equipped to fathom. So is literally everyone else you might measure yourself against. You probably don't even know why August is named the way it is; that's how bloody worthless a human life is(and that's funny in a few ways once you learn how and why it was named that). 

4a: Welcom to adulthood. Mind your first few steps out of the kiddie pool, they're well-worn.

 

[OceanBreeze]

 

 

 

 

 

 

With my wife's help, I have achieved that goal

 

[Vmedvil2]

With my wife's help, I have achieved that goal

 

 

 

Ya, I think that is the phone number that most people's bank accounts look like to be honest, which is concerning.

[sanctus]

In German there is this saying:
die at 20, get buried at 80.

You describe yourself as one of that case. But it does not have to be that, the goal is not to be amongst the best in something but just to have a life YOU (not society) think was fullfilled. And that is easy to achieve. Got a hobby? Invest more time in it. Don't have one, find one by just trying out stuff. Or say you are crap at dancing but love it, who cares just take courses and enjoy.

[hazelm]

You are missing the one thing you can do:  Prove the naysayers wrong.  There are thousands of judgemental naysayers out there ready to tell you you can't.  That's  because they don't want your competition.  Ignore them.  Look around.  Find the one thing that really interests you and dig in JFF (Just For Fun).  The rest will follow.  You may never be rich and famous but remember those rich and famous have to sit up  nights guarding the chicken coops.  Sleeping comfortably nights is healthier.

[Virtual]

1: You're wrong about learning becoming "impossible" with age. It only becomes impossible with a bad attitude. That's not something age-specific. It seems like you're making an excuse, and then publicly whinging with that excuse for attention. Go do that at a wine bar, maybe you'll get laid and solve the attitude problem.

2: You're wrong about genetics. Your genetics, just like everyone's genetics, have variation in expression over life based on external factors. Eat less sugar and more starch and you'll change your expressions. Keep your trace minerals up and your vitamin complexes fresh and you'll change them again. Eat like a trailer park slob and you'll change them yet again.

2a:You most certainly DO need to step up your learning game if you want to use genetic shackles as an excuse for your own laziness. That might work to make you seem smart around people who like buzz words, but it's just half assed excuses. Go read more.

3:If you are an incapable slab of meat, the capable ones still need to hire you to get their dreams built. Doesn't take much more than actually listening to your betters to be a useful(re; capable) person in modern society. If you don't like that, Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

4: Life is futile. Period. End of line. You are a speck of dust on a speck of dust orbiting a speck of dust in a swirling cloud of dust among a vast vast emptiness your feeble mind is not equipped to fathom. So is literally everyone else you might measure yourself against. You probably don't even know why August is named the way it is; that's how bloody worthless a human life is(and that's funny in a few ways once you learn how and why it was named that).

4a: Welcom to adulthood. Mind your first few steps out of the kiddie pool, they're well-worn.

You don’t have to give me a “grow up, kid, welcome to adulthood” speech pops. I live and work on a 225 acre farm, I work the fields/crops, operate heavy equipment, and work my butt off from dawn til dusk. I pay my bills and I’m independent. My op was not coming from a place of spoiled, millennial brattiness. It’s just the realization of realities of biology and the universe that are getting me down.

[A-wal]

Edited by sanctus, 25 September 2018 - 01:38 PM.

do not want to get into trouble for allowing incitement to drug use

Wouldn't want to be seen to be condoning freedom over our own minds and bodies, our must basic and fundamental right as people.

 

I wasn't even suggesting illegal drug use. I'm going to Holland later today for four days of ayahuasca and I'm not breaking any laws by doing it.

 

Living our lives without exploring our own consciousness is like going on a world cruise and never getting off the boat.

[Maine farmer]

 

So in essence, life is ****ing bullshit! It’s not the world you’re sold in grade school where everything’s possible and your efforts determine your success. Rather, it’s a capricious, futile thing wherein everything is set from the moment you’re conceived. It makes me not want to live.

Sometimes you have to seize the word "success".  You can define success on your own terms, you know.  I don't live my life in search of success, and I don't fear failure.  The most important thing to do with life is to experience it.

[DFINITLYDISTRUBD]

Relax, there is a point to all life, which absent of religion is easy to figure out and understand.

 

You, like every other living entity are here to live long enough to reproduce as many times as possible, raise your offspring to sexual maturity, then die.

 

That is the whole purposes of living... the point.

Edited November 8, 2018 by DFINITLYDISTRUBD