[thunderbear]

So on April 2nd 2011, I turn 30. It gives me panic attacks. I keep thinking back to when I turned 20, I celebrated the end of my teen years. 10 years (was that really 10 years ago??) ago I was happy to be 20. But 30. Well, 30 is scary. I know, it's still young enough to be cool, but 30 feels to me like the beginning of being old. My grandpa-in-law is 73 and I wonder if he ever gets depressed about aging and thinking back to the good old days. He does'nt seem like he gets down about anything. But I get depressed for him. Anyway, just needed to talk about it

[Skully]

I was nervous as well but all went well. That was 4 years ago now I am worried about the big 4-0 lol. The worry never stops!

[Rhiannonsmoon]

(thunderbear)

I never worried about ageing until it started to happen. Now I am told I look much younger than I am and one doctor called me "extremely well preserved". So I don't worry any more because it happens to everyone who continues to have birthdays.

Don't stress dear thunderbear being happy is more important

“Don't trust anyone over thirty." ~Jerry Rubin, anti-Vietnam War protester”

I made it back from Vietnam before I was thirty. So many years have passed the memories have faded. Now, I try to live each day. As the Chinese Proverb tells us, "It is later than you think."

[Perna]

I just turned 6-0. I liked turning thirty because then I knew my stepmother and other adults would HAVE to treat me like an adult; 21 wasn't quite old enough, old enough for me, but I felt adults still felt I wasn't really grown yet but at thirty, no one can deny it.

Each decade brings its own newness to it and can't really be compared to what came before or what is imagined after. Remember, you can't really know what it's like to be forty or even thirty-one, because that's future for you. I thought, especially when I was taking care of my stepmother when she got senile and I was in my late forties, that I knew what it was like to be old. When I got in my fifties, I realized I had had no idea whatsoever and I wake each day now astonished how ignorant I was at even fifty-five!

Think of it as an exciting new world and an adventure, not as getting old or regretting your youth; what you remember now has been well-filtered through time. Did you ever see "The Kid" with Bruce Willis? That's somewhat true I find. The problems you had in your "youth" teens and twenties will start to get fixed in your thirties and forties but it won't feel like it then :-)

I know the secret of all things now that I'm sixty but I'm sixty and not thirty when I could have used a lot of those secrets!

[(JD)]

The 30s are a WONDERFUL time!

You're no longer just a twenty-something wanna-be teenager without responsibilities. You're an up and coming success!

People market to you for the latest fashions, and ideas. You have opinions and other people will begin to listen. You have some college, usually, behind your thoughts, you have good thoughts on where you want to be in life --or where you don't want to be when you're old.

You know what you like to eat, wear, watch and who you want to hang out with....and what others think doesn't matter as much as it used to because you're becoming your own person, not a mock up of other peers.

You have enough knowledge and wisdom behind you to get you to where you want to be, and the young energy to get you there!

Now's the time to begin adding in the extras to your life that make it more complete: savings account, place of worship, favorite restaurant, etc.

Don't fear it, embrace it! It's a great time of your life!

[lonegael]

I honestly never thought I'd live as long as I have, so I haven't really gotten around to worrying about it yet. Except... I have to make an appointment about retirement planning. I certainly never thought I'd be alive to do that. It's not scarey, just, odd.
Really, Thunderbear, thirty was pretty painless. I found that I feel pretty much inside as I always have, inspite of a few extra aches and things that, yeah I could do without, but all in all, hey, it kind of works. Just sort of take it as it comes. HUGGGSSSSS!

[ECHOES]

I think sometimes the milestone birthdays like 3-0 are jolting not so much because of the age achieved (which is much better than not achieved!) but because of how it makes you realize that 10 years have passed so quickly--as you are thinking back to turning 20. It feels like the years go by in the blink of an eye.

My friend and I refused to grow older at a certain point, instead we referred to our age as a hyphenated number. For example, at 52, I was 40-12

I got VERY depressed at the thought of being 30 it was just terrible so I can really understand.

Then it actually happened and you know what ? Nothing. Not a darn thing happened I still felt the same...

Turning forty was a breeze no where near as scary as turning 30.

I wish you well and have a great birthday.

[eskielover]

My husband was one of those "I don't want to grow up, I'm a toy's r' us kid"......well, it was his lack of growing up & taking responsibility that drove me away from him. Know you don't have that problem.....but growing up & older is not that bad. I never had problems....never remembered what birthday I was celebrating anyway most of the time. But I can honestly say at 57 & where I am in life, I couldn't be more content with there really being only one thing I really want to resolve to feel complete (getting my horses here with me). I have never been happier & feeling more sure of myself....even though I still do go through anxiety attacks that aren't as bad as before. The fact that things are becoming more clear in my life makes any older age so worth it.

Hope you find the peace in a few months & don't worry your self to pieces before April 2. I was going to say if your Birthday had been on April 1, you could have looked at it as an april fools joke...lol.

[flamingo5821]

[QUOTE=thunderbear;1587237]So on April 2nd 2011, I turn 30. It gives me panic attacks. I keep thinking back to when I turned 20, I celebrated the end of my teen years. 10 years (was that really 10 years ago??) ago I was happy to be 20. But 30. Well, 30 is scary. I know, it's still young enough to be cool, but 30 feels to me like the beginning of being old. My grandpa-in-law is 73 and I wonder if he ever gets depressed about aging and thinking back to the good old days. He does'nt seem like he gets down about anything. But I get depressed for him. Anyway, just needed to talk about it[/QUOTE

Everyone feels "nervous" about getting older. Instead of worrying about it make a list of goals that you want to accomplish, short-term and long-term. Like it or not you are going to get "old". I think it is better to focus on using your time constructively.

[AAAAA]

I have never had issues with age, I've always been an old soul so the years are just catching up with me. However there was something different about turning 30, it was quite liberating! You are no longer a "young woman". By that I mean people cannot take the liberties treating you more like a child than an adult as they do while you are still in your 20s.

About a week after my 30th birthday my father and I had a disagreement. It was stupid, but it was at that point that I declared my independence. When he got louder I said "I am THIRTY years old, there is not a person on this planet that is allowed to speak to me like that, including YOU!"

Turning 30 gave me permission to declare to the rest of the world (mainly my parents) that I was well and truly an adult. I still wish I knew half of what I THOUGHT I knew at 18.

[splitimage]

I was at a party tonight and I was the youngest there at 42 - most of the other's were late 40's and up into their 60's. None of us have children. We were all talking about how freaky it is that our friends who do have children, the kids are all getting ready to start university and when the heck did that happen. I liked turning 30, threw myself a big party, came out, and finished my MBA. The rest of my 30's were downhill. Turning 40 really freaked me out mainly because my life at 40 was not what I envisioned it would be. My eye Dr. has said my next pair of glasses will be bifocals, now I have to worry about going for periodic mameograms, and discussions with friends now include commentary on our cholesterol levels. But being in my 40's has it's advantages. I'm emotionally healthier than I have been in a long time, I don't feel like I have to prove anything to anyone, and I have confidence in my own decisions. Growing older doesn't have to be bad, it's what you make of it.

--splitimage

[Dark_Dreams]

30 freaked me out in a huge way because I didn't know what to do. I hadn't planned on surviving that long so when it happened It was like some place that I could never imaging being in. However, I managed to make it through 30 ok. The 35 hit and again I was a little freaked out. However, here I sit. I am and forever will be a Toys-R-Us kid. I am without a doubt proud of that fact. I know when I need to behave and act like an adult. More importantly I know when to stop taking things too seriously.

Age is only a number. If you don't feel 30 and still want to have fun and enjoy the little things then just ignore the number. You have plenty of time ahead of you

[sewerrats]

30 is cool, im sixty but in my mind about 40, when i go into relaspse time stop,s still so when remission comes i am back to before illness ,So over the year i dont count the lost time. At 30 i was a cool dude, your sex life is peaking an you look the best you ever will again. At 60 your bones creek an things start to drop off its not cool.

[AAAAA]

You haven't weighed in for a while thunderbear, how are you feeling now?

[mj778]

Originally Posted by thunderbear

So on April 2nd 2011, I turn 30. It gives me panic attacks. I keep thinking back to when I turned 20, I celebrated the end of my teen years. 10 years (was that really 10 years ago??) ago I was happy to be 20. But 30. Well, 30 is scary. I know, it's still young enough to be cool, but 30 feels to me like the beginning of being old. My grandpa-in-law is 73 and I wonder if he ever gets depressed about aging and thinking back to the good old days. He does'nt seem like he gets down about anything. But I get depressed for him. Anyway, just needed to talk about it

Hey Thunderbear,
I turned the big 3 0 a couple of years ago. I was terrified to turn 18, then 20, and then 30, because I felt that people would expect me to grow up.

I take my responsibilites seriously, I do not go out or party, but I love to have fun and laugh, and do silly things. Now, I know no one expects anything different of me, and I was the only one expecting me to 'grow up'.

It's all in how you preceive it. As Einstein said, it's all relative to the observer. See it how you want to see it, be who you want to be. This is your only chance at life.

Best,
mj

[sewerrats]

Originally Posted by mj778

Hey Thunderbear,
I turned the big 3 0 a couple of years ago. I was terrified to turn 18, then 20, and then 30, because I felt that people would expect me to grow up.

I take my responsibilites seriously, I do not go out or party, but I love to have fun and laugh, and do silly things. Now, I know no one expects anything different of me, and I was the only one expecting me to 'grow up'.

It's all in how you preceive it. As Einstein said, it's all relative to the observer. See it how you want to see it, be who you want to be. This is your only chance at life.

Best,
mj

at 30 you dont go out an party .wwwwwwhy???? is 30the new 70 or something .30 is cool your peaking, your defo not to old to party, you will be a misarable person at 50 with that atitude.

[Junerain]

Would a hug help?hugs & more hugs

[little*rhino]

i celebrate every freaking birthday because i am alive - an awful lot of people aren't

every year i age because i survived when millions did not

a childhood friend died 2 days before christmas last year... and i sat here alone, unable to go home for the holidays and unable to tell my family that i had been diagnosed with uterine tumors and had no idea if it meant i was about to die.

this year - 6 days after my birthday when I turned FORTY (GO ME!!!) - i got the news that i am officially cancer free

i celebrated my birthday twice... once for turning 40 and once for the green light to live another year

so yes.. i will age.. and boohoo to anyone who thinks 40 is old. i will age and be grateful for every birthday i have... every single sweet birthday means that i was blessed enough to survive

if anyone thinks birthdays are terrible let me give you the number for my friend's two kids or her parents... i'm sure they can explain the alternative better than i can

AMEN FOR BIRTHDAYS - BRING 'EM ON!!!!

[OrangeMoira]

Aww, it is scary to turn 30! I just did it this year and before it happened I was freaked out and felt sooo old. Especially since I'm in grad school with 22 year olds all day.

But then my birthday hit, and it was awesome! I realized I'm in the youngest part of my thirties. That feels way better than being in the last part of my twenties!

And now when I hear the 22 year old drama at school I get to think "thank goodness I don't have to deal with that anymore--I'm 30 and grown."

Hope you feel that way after your bday, too!

[susan888]

I am facing the big 50 in 3 years and have been thinking a lot about my mortality. I have decided to grow old gracefully and embrace this part of my life as much as I embraced my youth. I am a deeper, richer, sexier woman than I was in my 20's!

[sewerrats]

http://i817.photobucket.com/albums/z...age00241-1.jpg THIS IS A PIC OF ME AN MY WIFE , at a sons wedding , im 41 at the wife is 39 . now i have had 2 breakdowns up to that point an was on meds. i think we look cool, an your moaning at being 30. im now 62 an still think in 40, its that or give up, you saying you dont go to parties at 30 as you think thats old. i still go to rock concerts at 62 your a long time dead,

[englishteacher]

My 30s were awesome! But turning 40 freaked me out big time! It just seemed like I was not where I had planned to be 20 years earlier. However, I really wouldn't trade my experiences for another chance to do things the "right" way. Really, age is just a number....how old do you FEEL? Most days, I feel about 28, but tomorrow I turn 43. Don't worry about the numbers....they don't really define you.

[thunderbear]

You guys ROCK! I have been reading y'alls replies and some made me warm and fuzzy and some made me LOL! It was really cool to hear you guys' experiance. I hope I have that kind of grace at each new milestone