u/TheGreatFatso

Hay una realidad innegable en este país y es que la vida social entre los 15 y los 30 años gira en torno a la fiesta y al alcohol. En España, salir a beber es el mecanismo principal para conocer gente, formar tus grupitos y expandir tus círculos de amistades. Es en esos botellones, en los bares de copas y en las discotecas donde realmente se forjan los vínculos. Nos guste o no, el ocio nocturno es el gran punto de encuentro donde todo el mundo interactúa, se mezcla y crea esa red de contactos que te va a acompañar durante la juventud y el resto de tu vida.

Y esto es vital porque, aunque tengamos fama de sociables, la verdad es que somos un país bastante cerrado a partir de cierta edad. Los grupos de toda la vida se consolidan en esa etapa y luego se vuelven tremendamente herméticos. Si durante esos años clave no sales de fiesta, no bebes y te quedas fuera del circuito, estás bastante jodido de por vida. Intentar integrarte en pandillas ya formadas cuando pasas de esa edad es casi imposible, y eso afecta directamente a tus posibilidades de tener vida social, encontrar pareja o simplemente no quedarte completamente aislado cuando todo el mundo ya tiene su círculo hecho.

Luego siempre está el típico que te viene con el cuento de que él sale de fiesta, no prueba el alcohol y se lo pasa de puta madre. Muy bonito sobre el papel, pero la cruda realidad es que con 18 años nadie quiere ser el único rarito que está con un vaso de fanta en la mano mientras absolutamente todos en su círculo están bebiendo y en otra sintonía. Puede sonar lamentable tener que seguir la corriente para encajar, sí, pero es la realidad que hay en la calle. Desentonar de esa manera en pleno apogeo de la juventud te acaba apartando de las dinámicas del grupo y de las conversaciones.

Al final, participar de todo esto durante esos quince años es casi un trámite obligatorio si quieres tener unas bases sociales sólidas en España. Negarse en rotundo a formar parte de esa cultura del alcohol y la noche es jugar la partida en modo extremo. Es la época de integrarse, de conocer a muchísimas personas y de asegurar tu entorno. Quien decide quedarse al margen, por el motivo que sea, se va a dar cuenta unos años después de que se ha levantado un muro invisible que le va a impedir encajar con normalidad en la sociedad tal y como está montada aquí.

The sad reality of my life is that my unhappiness is a direct consequence of these three factors.

I am poor because I come from a very low-income family, and even though I've been working full-time for several years, I've had to help my parents out a lot financially. Because of that, I currently have about €35,000 less than I would have if my parents had been financially "normal" (for context on these figures, I live somewhere in Southern Europe).

Not only that, but I'm also not someone with exceptional skills, so my career prospects aren't great. The jobs I can aspire to (administrative work) all pay, and will continue to pay, around €25k–€33k gross a year. Even in Southern Europe, that salary is simply insufficient given the rampant inflation we have right now, especially considering I won't inherit anything and my parents will never be able to help me financially.

On top of that, I have struggled with severe, chronic overweight for many years. I've tried nutritionists, diets, and nothing has worked. Nothing. I am fat at heart, and my favorite hobby is eating unhealthy food. In fact, I'm currently on Wegovy and I still eat junk, not even medication can cure me. My weight means that at my age (late 20s) I haven't had a single relationship with the opposite sex, because I am ashamed of my body (on top of having poor social skills). It's something I've tried to change for many years and failed miserably at, and I've completely lost hope that it will ever change.

Finally, I live in a small town. I've always been the "weird kid," the one who didn't go out with the main crowd, the one who stayed home on the computer while the rest of the kids in town had fun and developed a normal social life. I don't have many friends, and I've failed at meeting new people, whether online on sites like this (Reddit) or in real life, like at a vocational school I attended. I feel pretty lonely, and in my town, there is a 0% chance of expanding my social circle, since people already have their lifelong cliques and breaking into them is impossible. In cities, people are more open, there are more people in situations like mine, and it's easier to form new friendships.

However, I can't move to a big city because of the prohibitive cost of housing.

For these 3 reasons, I am unhappy. The worst part is seeing everything as "bleak," feeling like nothing is going to change in the future, and seeing every birthday as a reminder that things will only get worse, since it gets harder and harder to change as you get older.

The sad reality of my life is that my unhappiness is a direct consequence of these three factors.

I am poor because I come from a very low-income family, and even though I've been working full-time for several years, I've had to help my parents out a lot financially. Because of that, I currently have about €35,000 less than I would have if my parents had been financially "normal" (for context on these figures, I live somewhere in Southern Europe).

Not only that, but I'm also not someone with exceptional skills, so my career prospects aren't great. The jobs I can aspire to (administrative work) all pay, and will continue to pay, around €25k–€33k gross a year. Even in Southern Europe, that salary is simply insufficient given the rampant inflation we have right now, especially considering I won't inherit anything and my parents will never be able to help me financially.

On top of that, I have struggled with severe, chronic overweight for many years. I've tried nutritionists, diets, and nothing has worked. Nothing. I am fat at heart, and my favorite hobby is eating unhealthy food. In fact, I'm currently on Wegovy and I still eat junk, not even medication can cure me. My weight means that at my age (late 20s) I haven't had a single relationship with the opposite sex, because I am ashamed of my body (on top of having poor social skills). It's something I've tried to change for many years and failed miserably at, and I've completely lost hope that it will ever change.

Finally, I live in a small town. I've always been the "weird kid," the one who didn't go out with the main crowd, the one who stayed home on the computer while the rest of the kids in town had fun and developed a normal social life. I don't have many friends, and I've failed at meeting new people, whether online on sites like this (Reddit) or in real life, like at a vocational school I attended. I feel pretty lonely, and in my town, there is a 0% chance of expanding my social circle, since people already have their lifelong cliques and breaking into them is impossible. In cities, people are more open, there are more people in situations like mine, and it's easier to form new friendships.

However, I can't move to a big city because of the prohibitive cost of housing.

For these 3 reasons, I am unhappy. The worst part is seeing everything as "bleak," feeling like nothing is going to change in the future, and seeing every birthday as a reminder that things will only get worse, since it gets harder and harder to change as you get older.