My Story: My father used to hit my mom so hard that the walls were red with blood...

Being anonymous gives me a safe space. But life is getting tougher than ever each day. I wish I had a better paying job. I wish I had time to have slow mornings. I wish I could provide for my family and give them the things they much deserve. I wish I had a chance to rewire rewind and restart. I wish I could do more than I wish to do. It's all wishes guys . It's all hopes. . Nothing seems fulfilling. Nothing seems to make me happy. I have forgotten what carefree days were like. Adulting is kinda hitting hard. I am not able to cope up. Can someone relate?

During my B.Tech, I balanced my studies with active participation in clubs and committees, and also engaged in sports and exploration. Aspiring for a non-core placement, I didn't participate in hackathons or apply for internships. After graduation, I pursued various paths, including preparing for the CAT exam with only three months of preparation time, but I didn't succeed. I then applied to several companies for data analytics roles but kept making new mistakes in each attempt. In one instance, I was rejected for oversharing my passion for data science in a final interview. To improve my chances, I optimized my resume and completed significant projects, but these efforts haven't yet yielded the desired results. Realizing the challenges of relying on a single target, I also started preparing for the GATE exam. Reflecting on my journey, I recognize that I should have applied for on-campus opportunities, as off-campus job hunting is challenging and unpredictable, regardless of one's preparation. Tell me your story? In order to get some hope that we can make it and it's never too late

One of the toughest day of my life started on 03rd September, 2024. I just did not want to leave my bed at all. The world that I imagined has just crumbled. The future that I envisioned no longer cease to exist. Sense of failure in all aspects of my life has hit me. A failure in professional life, a failure as a son, a failure as a brother, a failure as a friend, a failure as a partner. A complete failure in a nutshell. This is the lowest point in my life where I want to run away, from everything. Not care about anything, not face anyone, and just run away.

I think I'm losing my mind. I'm a 32-year-old guy in tech, graduated from IIIT Delhi, earning 78L annually, but I feel like I'm fooling everyone, including myself. It's as if I'm constantly waiting for someone to burst into the office and shout, "Hey, fraud! We've finally figured out you're actually useless!" I know it sounds like I'm humble-bragging, but trust me, I'm not. This feeling is eating me alive. Seven years ago, I started as a regular software engineer. Somehow, I kept getting promoted. Now I'm leading a team of 15 people, handling critical projects, and sitting in meetings with the higher-ups. But every time I'm in those meetings, I feel like a kid wearing his dad's oversized suit, pretending to be an adult. I work my ass off - late nights, weekends, you name it. But I always feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water. When my team comes to me with problems, I'm secretly panicking, thinking, "Why are you asking me? I'm as clueless as you!" The worst part? Everyone around me seems to think I'm some kind of wunderkind. My boss is always praising me in front of others. My team looks up to me. Even my parents are bragging about me to all our relatives. But inside, I'm constantly terrified that I'll make one tiny mistake and everyone will realize I'm a fraud. I see my college batchmates on LinkedIn, and they all seem so confident and successful. Meanwhile, I'm here, earning more than I ever thought I would, but feeling like I don't deserve any of it. I can't even enjoy my success. I bought a nice house last year, but instead of feeling proud, I keep thinking, "What if they fire me tomorrow? How will I pay for this?" It's like I'm waiting for everything to come crashing down. I know it's ridiculous to complain about a high-paying job when so many people are struggling. But this constant fear of being "found out" is driving me insane. I can't even talk to my friends about it because they'll probably think I'm just showing off. Has anyone else felt like this? How do you deal with feeling like a fraud when everyone thinks you're successful? Is this just part of adult life that no one talks about? This is what eats me alive during weekends, realised it's Friday and panic typed this here

So I’ve been a below avg. looking guy my entire school and college life. Got a decent job offer (8LPA) during my campus placements. This was the story till January 2023. Now It’s been around 1.5 Years. I’ve been working out 6 days a week (rarely skips), eat super clean food (monthly 1 cheat meal), started a skincare routine and tried to learning new technologies in search of a better job. This is the routine I followed for the entire 1.5 years. Right now, I’ve a high paying job and a great physique. (Went from 68Kgs to 81Kgs) A few women have approached me in last 3-4 months. In the gym, people come and talk to me regarding my diet and workout. A lot of people are sending me linkedin connections requests, asking for referral and guidance. But now I don’t wanna talk to anyone because no one wanted to talk that ugly, lean and broke me. Wish someone would’ve came to that old version of me and said “You are enough”.

29F, IIT & IIM grad. Thought I had it all figured out. Boy, was I wrong. Post-grad, I went full-on hustle mode. Guru worship 24/7. Gary Vee, desi "entrepreneurs" on Insta - you name it, I followed. Their mantra? Work 20hrs, sleep 4, crush life. Sounded legit to my overachiever brain. My life became a freakin' checklist: - 5AM wake-up: Check - Cold shower: Check - Meditation: Check - 12hr workday on my "revolutionary" startup: Check - Networking events instead of family time: Check - Endless online courses: Check Rinse and repeat. Every. Single. Day. Guilt was my constant companion. Watching a movie? Slacker. Attending a cousin's wedding? Waste of time. Celebrating Diwali? Think of all the work you could be doing! The kicker? Being a woman in tech. Felt like I had to hustle 10x harder just to be taken seriously. Result after 3 years of this madness? - Forbes 30U30 Asia: Check - Failed startup: Check - Nonexistent social life: Check - Chronic anxiety: Check Guess what: All that hustling led to jack shit. Now, at 29, I'm unlearning this toxic BS. Realizing success isn't about IIT tags, funding rounds, or how little you sleep. It's about actually living. To all the desi kids killing themselves over JEE ranks and CAT scores: STOP. Your life is worth more than a percentile. Success without happiness is worthless. Don't waste your 20s like I did, chasing someone else's definition of success. Anyone else been through this hustle culture hellscape? How'd you break free?

I am 28 M. I was born in a poor family and to make matters worse my father was diagnosed with a terminal illness when I was still in college. As if watching my father dying was not enough I came to know that my mother was having an affair with my father's friend. I never caught them but I saw their whatsapp messages. My father eventually succumbed to his illness leaving the family responsibilities on my shoulders. I never got to enjoy college. My first paycheck was spent on the medical bills and subsequent paychecks were spent on clearing my brother's education loan, paying back relatives (we borrowed some money for my father's treatment) and just taking care of my family. I want to get married but honestly I don't have any money for it now and I don't want to take a loan. I never had any relationship. It could never become a priority. And it's not about just sex. It's something deeper. Maybe intimacy, maybe human touch, maybe something else. I don't know. I tried hard to focus on my work and hobbies but It merely proved to be a temporary escape. I don't even know why I am narrating all this to a bunch of strangers but then again aren't we all in the same boat at the end?

I woke up with a notification that started with “Hope you had a great weekend. Unfortunately…” I didn’t have the courage to open the entire mail. I knew what it was. A little context here, i have been unemployed for the last 5 months. I got laid off from my first job with not even an year of work experience. We all know how bad the market condition is, and how harsh it is for freshers. Me being the optimistic person that i am, ignored all these setbacks and began my hunt for my next dream job. With the help of my friends, I started preparing for interviews. I was lucky enough to get shortlisted for few good companies. But somehow or the other things always went south and i ended up without an offer. I made sure to not get disheartened and keep trying my best with a positive attitude. And then i interviewed with this one company, that perfectly aligned with me. All my interviews went well and made it till the final round. Now it was a call from the leadership. I strongly believed that this is my shot. After months of feeling stuck, I thought this is going to be my moment of relief. Even though this journey was hard i made sure to enjoy every bit of it. But now here i am with another rejection mail. I am now questioning my entire belief system. And not sure what to do next. Any advice/suggestions are welcome :)

This question is to people who are in their late 20s or older. Life shows its ups and downs to pretty much everyone. And when you are younger, living with adverse situations that impact your mental peace and health, paving your way becomes difficult. All this can lead to uncertainty about future, can make you doubt yourself and your decisions, or can make you think whether you would be able to make something of yourself or not. If you ever felt like this, how did you handle it? What would you tell your younger self about how to navigate through these situations and feelings?

It can be anything related to not doing something you always wanted to but never did, a mistake you realize you shouldn’t have made, or feelings of not being successful enough. Feel free to share your thoughts.