It's my birthday today feeling low as always no one to celebrate except family but I want to enjoy feeling stuck oh god

EDIT: Guys thanku so much never ever I got so many wishes ❤️🥹🫶🏻 My heart is full ❤️....So many people have wished me wholeheartedly.... Thanku for making it my best birthday🥹 I never expected that😭

I'm starting to realize that I've gotten really good at being alone.

I can spend an entire day by myself and be completely fine. I'll work, play some games, watch a movie, listen to music, read about some random thing I'm interested in, and before I know it the day is over.

The problem is that sometimes I don't actually want to be alone. I just don't know how to change it.

I'm introverted, and I've gotten comfortable with my routine. I work in sales and I'm also starting a new business, so I have things to focus on. But none of that really replaces having someone you're genuinely close to.

Someone to send a stupid meme to.

Someone to grab coffee with.

Someone to randomly go somewhere with.

Someone you can sit next to and not even have to talk.

I've been pushing myself to get out of my comfort zone more, but making meaningful connections as an adult feels surprisingly difficult.

And I don't just mean finding people to talk to for a few days. I mean actually finding someone who thinks, "I want this person in my life."

I'm 26. I don't think my life is over or anything dramatic like that. I just don't want to wake up at 30 and realize I spent my entire 20s becoming extremely good at entertaining myself.

I miss having people to look forward to.

Does anyone else feel like they're not necessarily bad at being alone... they're just tired of always having to be?

I find I feel a lot of resentment for people who have good or social things happening in their lives. Going to a fun event with friends? Good for you... Oh you are getting married? Please never talk to me again! You are having a baby? That's disgusting and I don't feel happy for you.

The biggest problem is not that I feel this way. It is because I think these feelings are going to make me more lonely because I obviously can't build positive relationships with people if I am so angry with them for being happy or not lonely. I also acknowledge that it is pretty selfish to only want to feel happy for others so that I won't be so miserable or alone. I don't feel this way all the time. I have just noticed it getting worse in the past year.

Does anyone else feel this way or something similar? What do you do about it?

I can't handle it anymore. Nobody would pick me first for anything. I'm nobody's favorite person. I wasn't even my best friend's best friend.

My sister won't come over. My parents are deceased. All my grandparents are gone. My aunts are in their 70s.

Nobody checks on me. No one reaches out first. Nobody messages me to make plans unless I initiate. My coworkers forget about me once we leave work.

I feel so unloved and worthless. If a disaster happens, I will stay put and let the chaos consume me.

If I had a gun? It's a good thing I don't.

If i get even more lonely I'll consider going out by cop. I don't wanna be here.

I just want my parents.

I wanna hug my grandma.

I call the crisis line at least once a week. They don't know how to help me anymore.

I can't remember the last hug I got.

I miss my ex girlfriend, but she cheated on me amd moved to Philadelphia.

Guys just use me for sex. They say it's not about that, but how can I believe them? I don't wanna be anyone's friend with benefits. I want a relationship.

I want to be loved. I'm so tired of being alone.

I havent done my laundry in 2 weeks and nobody knows because i haven't seen anyone in those 2 weeks.

No family, no close friends, no relationship, just my cat, and he's not enough.

Sigh.

Any idea, how can i pass my time without worrying anything about feeling alone today? Damn... I'm getting my step into 40's next year....
Btw, wish me luck, love, happiness and prosperity guys... Love you'll and hugs...

i want a close friend. a boyfriend/girlfriend. intimacy, emotional or otherwise

in my mind, its a well-kept secret. i don’t want to admit that level of vulnerability

it’s embarrassing, but par for the course for my age demographic—always, that’s the response i find

but the more time passes, the more i feel this way, the more i am convince that there’s something inherently wrong how i behave, how i speak. . . my brain, my thoughts. . . who i am

it makes me want to throw away all ambitions, all dignity; why shouldn’t i live a life of hedonistic self-objectification if it’s the only thing that has pried me away from this misery

What else is there to do for a lonely person other than scrolling reddit and masturbating? Or is that what we all do day in and day out?

I'm all alone, no friends, no good career, just a disappointment in life.

My family loves to make it known that I'm a disappointment. "You're a man; you should know ....", "This is why I wanted you to be a police man or soldier because you ........", "Therapy is a waste of time; you just need breathing exercises", "[ My name] is not very big, so he can't protect us".

I'm the only man in my family, and I understand very well that I'm not the most masculine, or successful or whatever, and it makes me fucking hate myself so bad.

Every day I want to off myself; there's just nothing keeping me here. I sit in my room all day, every day with no one coming to check on me. The only time someone talks to me is when my family comes to remind me that I'm a failure.

I'm a man, so I understand that there are expectations on me that I have to fulfill, but I just can't, even though it's just so fucking basic cause I'm a failure FUCK.

I hate this shit life.

I don’t have any friends. I can’t really even remember the last time I had a friend. I don’t have any siblings either. I only have my grandparents and my mom. I spend most of my time alone. I’ve tried making friends both in person and online but it’s so difficult. I feel like nobody likes me. I don’t understand what I’m doing wrong, maybe it’s because of how I look or because of how I sound. I think I’ve been depressed for a bit now. I haven’t been diagnosed yet but I’m going to talk to my doctor about it. I’ve also been in therapy. I’m still yet to mention my loneliness to my therapist. I think my loneliness is the root cause of all my other problems. I don’t even find joy in the things I used to enjoy anymore. It’s like when I try to play my favorite game I don’t feel happy, I just feel less sad. When I’m left with my own thoughts I feel sad, but when I’m on the game, listening to music, or in the middle of sports practice I just feel emptiness. I worry about my future a lot. I feel like I’m gonna be a disappointment if I’m not already, and as if nothing I ever do will be good enough for the people around me. What makes me think I’m good enough to have friends. I see all these people around me so happy and carefree, like they have no worries in the world. I wish I could be like them. My #1 goal in life is to start a family but I’m afraid I won’t be able to do that. I really wish I was different but no matter how hard I try I always end up failing myself. I’m a 15 year old male. It’s already difficult with puberty and all of that, but this doesn’t make it any easier. Does anyone have any advice or is it always going to be like this? I’ve heard about adults that dealt with the same stuff I’m dealing with now and they’ve carried their issues from a young age into their adult life. I hope that won’t be me

For 4 fleeting weeks, it finally felt like life made sense. We had a good, intense time. For the first time in my life, I had regular sex with a person I liked and who obviously liked me. For the first time in my adult life, I didn't feel alone. I felt the connection between us. I felt wanted and safe, as did she. For the first time, it felt okay to feel attracted to someone. For the first time, I could participate in conversations with my peers about love and sex as an equal. For the first time, I didn't feel like an unlovable loser.

Her avoidant tendencies got the better of her and she ended it today after having been away for 3 weeks.

Now, as always except in those measly 4 weeks, I lie in bed alone. On my chest, I feel the usual weight of a decade of loneliness: the hurt. The anger. the suffering. The coldness. The disappointment. the anxiety. that pressure in your chest. that feeling that the universe is playing a cruel prank on you. the cycle of trying again and again and each time getting harder than the last. the terrifying certainty that this is never going to change. The toll of having to do all this alone.

And where before I had gotten used and numb to carrying this weight, the numbness has been wiped away, and in its place is the most terrifying reality: I know what I've been missing all this time. I know what life could be like for me. What life is like for so many other people I know and don't know.

For 0.6% of the time of my life where I have desired connection, I had it. I felt so alive.

and now the weight is suffocating me like it never has before.

I'm just laying here at nearly 10 PM at the time of writing this. I need to be awake at 4:30 to get ready for work tomorrow.

I can't sleep. Having nobody here to hold really wasn't THAT big of a deal, but now it's turned into physical pain.

I wish I had a GF so badly... for so many reasons... this empty feeling when I'm supposed to be sleeping is just one of them...

Y'all I'm seriously depressed. I'm sure people are going to talk badly about me on this.

I lost my mom in 2019 and I used going on dates multiple times and multiple relationships to ease that pain. I tattooed my whole body as a coping mechanism. I had gotten multiple pets to feel less alone.

Now I broke up with my ex because he was abusive. I don't regret kicking him to the curb. Now I have a guy that wants a friends with benefits type thing. I don't think he's ready for a relationship and I don't think I am either. One thing led to another on our first date Saturday. I barely heard from him Sunday. I told him today make himself very clear with me if he only wants friends with benefits let me know so I don't become emotionally attached. He pretty much made that clear and I agreed to it.

I don't want to date again until I battle my depression and insecurities. I don't feel like I'm ever going to heal from the loss of my mom. People tell me go to church. I'm not going to do that. I'm sorry but why would I if there's a God he ruined my life by taking my mom from me at a young age. I hate myself. I hate that I feel like I'm never good enough for nobody. I hate the mistakes I've made. I'm worthless. Some days I'm suicidal. I can't afford therapy.

I want to get back into exercising, reading, music and work, true crime. I love my job at least. I just don't know how to be comfortable on my own. I've been using other things to feel the void of not having my mom. My dad has never been in my life. Only family I have is my sister and nephew and she's in her own world

I always knew I was different and struggled with a debilitating shyness, and growing up almost in isolation from others wasn't helpful at all. But I had a more or less happy and normal childhood. I even had friends, and a best friend.

On my final year of middle-school, life just seemed to be getting better and better. After six years in the same tiny school, I felt comfortable enough not just to speak in class, but even to crack a few jokes with my favorite teachers. At the graduation, one of them said that I "would laugh at every joke, even the bad ones." That night we went out to eat pizza, just us kids. My mom wanted to go, and insisted so much that it embarassed me. It felt so great to sit at the table with the rest of the class, laughing and chatting, and paying for our own food. It was my dad's credit card, but still. I was 14, it felt like this whole new world was opening itself up for me. And yet now, at 30, that remains the furthest I ever got to being a normal independent and accomplished human being.

By that time I only had one friend left, my best friend. From 2nd grade onwards we were inseparable. There were some bumps along the road, and signs of a senseless meanness that I chose to ignore and forgive because we got along so well. We both loved games, pokemon, anime. We both hated sports, specially soccer. We'd spend all school day together, then spend hours chatting on the phone. On weekends we were always at each other's houses, and sometimes we'd have sleepovers at my house. I remember how hard it was to stay awake to watch Inuyasha and Yu Yu Hakusho. Our parents got along marvelously, and his little brother became like a brother to me as well.

We were moving to a new school together for high school. It was a bigger school, one I always wanted to study at. Already on the first day I could tell things were different. We were placed in separate classes, and during lunch break I had to jog after him to chat because he kept trying to avoid me. For about a month or so there was still a sense of normalcy. Despite actively ignoring me at school, he still called me every afternoon, but now just to ask about homework. I will never forget the last time we went out together, my dad took us to see Shutter Island at the mall. I loved that movie, and on the way home we had some fast food. I remember when we walked back with my dad to the car at night, things seemed almost like they used to be just a month before.

But that was the last time we ever hung out or even spoken. In december I graduated middle school as happy go lucky student who "laughed at everything", and in mere two months I went to the new kid at a larger school, the quiet weirdo who never spoke to anyone. When I chuckled quietly to myself at a professor's joke, someone would point out. "Hey, even [me] laughed!" The other kids asked me what happened between me and my friend, I didn't know what to tell them. When I told my dad I no longer liked going to school, he just told me he never imagined to hear such from his son. He blamed me for the end of my friendship, and my mom, who always found fault with this friend and tried to create drama between us, begged me to befriend him again because she missed his mom. My parents as always, were more concerned with appearances and what others would think. I was a perfect child, I had the highest grades out of all students in my old school, I always obeyed and respected them. But when I needed help the most they just failed me. Our families ran into each other one night at the mall. We were still pretending everything was fine, but it was so awkward. The most hurtful to me was the way my friend's little brother was acting. He was avoiding me, but not in a shy or uncomfortable way, but a mocking one. He had also moved to that same damned school, when I walked past him he'd pretend not to know me.

And then the school got involved. The principal called me into her office to speak to me about this. She had spoken to my now ex-best friend, he told her he now had other interests. He was trying to be popular, and looked utterly ridiculous at it. He suddenly liked all of the things we always hated, like soccer. But the cool kids never accepted him as one of their own, and I don't think he ever realized they were laughing at him, at his desperation to be liked by them, and not with him. When the principal asked me if any of the other kids spoke to me, I mentioned this one boy who did. He was the only one who made an effort to befriend me, he almost seemed desperate at it. But her expression changed as soon as I mentioned his name. I was told to avoid him, that he was no good.

I quickly learned why she told me so. This boy was the son of one of our professors, and both of them were absolutely despised by the students. He had studied in that school all his life, and yet had not a single friend there. Not only that, but many of the students were openly hostile to him. I see now that she was trying to protect me from also being the target of this bullying, but I can't forget it. I was too shy to truly become his friend, but I talked to him whenever he initiated. When we both failed chemistry, I let him cheat off my test and we both passed. I remember he was so excited for summer. He died at the beach, something about a genetic condition on his heart. The same condition that had killed his father years before. I remember his mother sobbing at the mass performed in his honor, many of the sudents who had openly bullied her son were there.

Without my knowledge our parents had staged something of an attempt at a reconciliation between me and my friend. We were going on a school trip, and when I arrived at the train station my former friend suddenly approached me to say hi. I was so taken aback, by that point he hadn't even spoke to me in months. I said hi back and continued on my way, alone, as had become my new normal. I had a miserable time in that trip, sitting alone in the train while all of the other kids were together in groups. During the trip some kids sat down to speak to me, but they were just trying to make me uncomfortable, asking weird questions to get a rise out of me. At night when my mom came to pick me up she was livid. "Why did you ignored him when he said hi? Your dad is outraged." That sealed it, as if he ever needed an excuse to imagine the very worse of me in any given situation.

And that was my high school experience. I sat alone during class, listening to the other kids speak about their plans for the weekend and all of the fun, normal lives they were leading. At lunch break I first would wander the halls alone. Then I started sitting outside, on my own, but close enough to the kids I wanted to befriend so I could hear them chat. I can't forget the image of myself sitting there, trying to take the least ammount of space possible, and chuckling to myself at their funny stories. Eventually I realized how pathetic I looked, and started to spend all of the lunch break hidden in the library, reading old magazines. Then I'd be back home and sit behind a computer until it was time for bed. That was the time in my life when I started to daydreaming at all times. I imagined myself beautiful, interesting, having friends. We had massive schoolbooks, and early on I'd jump to the later pages and doodle little notes to myself saying "Hello future me!" My hope was that by the time I reached those pages, I'd have friends. That never happened. This was also the time when I discovered many health issues that would follow me to this day, as well as a very pressing issue with my identity that I never really fully came to terms to, and chose instead to hide and ignore it.

College was an extension of high school, only that the lack of structure and the more "grown-up" atmosphere made me feel less self conscious. This is when the divide between me and my would-be peers become irreconcilable. They were forging connections, finding out who they were, becoming more and more independent. And yet I kept retreating and regressing. I only got an internship by a miracle, and to this day I think my professors gave me a good grade on my final assignment out of pity. I graudated a few days before turning 21, my mom would not stop talking about how I would now go on to get a second graduation, so I'd have two by the time I was 25. She had spoken about that since I was about 10 or 12, when we met some old coworker of hers whose 25 year old son had two degrees. Evidently that also never happened.

I've been a hermit ever since. I can't believe that in a few months I'll be 31. Time passed me by so fast while I daydreamed and slept my youth away. I still think about these experiences I had in high school almost daily. I keep thinking how differently things could have been. All I needed was some helping hand, an uncle, an older cousin, some kind of mentor who would have noticed I was struggling. But life is not a movie and no help ever came. I became old before I even got a chance to live. I never went out anywhere on my own, or with friends. I never traveled anywhere, never been on a plane. I never went to a club or a party.

I wish so badly I could have lived. I wish I could have laughed, felt the wind on my face, went on an impromptu trip. I wish I had a life worth reminiscing, stories to tell and friends to tell them to.

I’m 19 weeks pregnant and 22, I have a husband and I have 1 friend but we don’t hang out much anymore like we use to and I have no other friends. I feel so sad and lonely and just wish there was a way to get rid of this feeling. I miss going out with my friend and spending time together but I feel we are both in different seasons of life now and I just feel like I’m missing out on experiences I should be having in my early 20s. I just hate being lonely it’s honestly so horrible.

20M and I’m extremely lonely and kinda depressed all the time my mom is never home neither is my brother my mom is always hanging out with her boyfriend and I’m always trying to talk to my mom when she is home but then she’s on her phone all the time and when I do talk I always feel judged all the time I just sit in my room and play world of Warcraft all day with no one to play with I’ve never been in a relationship I feel kinda like a loser because while all my friend have people i have no one

It's my first time using reddit and my first time actually trying to reach out for help.

I feel trapped by my own mind.

Ever since I was little, I was always considered smart, but not a prodigy. I surprised and amazed a lot of people, even doctors and psychologists. Academics are no problem for me.. There's just this feeling that always comes back to gnaw at me.

I'm not lonely as in speaking of people around me that love me. I'm talking about how isolating it feels to be the only one in the room that's brain is constantly overworking itself.

And I hate it.

I sound super edgy when I say this, but it's the truth and what I've always felt. I don't know how to turn it off, my brain just keeps analyzing everything, even if it's something so simple. I can't put it into words of how frustrated I am!!!

I treat everything as complex (which is very much true), I always question why or how something works, and I get frustrated when somebody presents me a problem to solve (mostly about critical thinking) and the information isn't fully, and throughly laid out! I've always thought outside the box, I never liked working with the information I was just handed to, since there would certainly be more possibilities that you would miss---a lot more different outcomes and varying questions that I'd have to ask in order for me pinpoint the exact answer. I'm not very fond with my deep curiosity.

God, I sound like a nerd right now.

Anyway, back to the point. It's hard for me to genuinely like or connect with someone, even though I have a lot of friends. Nobody ever understands me, which introduces the problem I have right now.

Because of no way to actually connect with people, I've been slowly viewing them as lesser beings. The purpose of this post isn't to vent, I want to find the people who are very familiar with this feeling.. People that I'd actually consider as "equals," 'cause I'm surrounded by a bunch of idiots. ..Typing that felt morally wrong, I am trying to change the way I perceive people, though. I don't wanna be a bad person.

As I said, I'm not a prodigy. I don't know advanced math, chemistry, or whatever the fuck impresses you. But I am a fast learner, and with something to work with, I'm sure I can at least get a grasp on it.

After re-reading my post to make sure no typos were made, I have one last thing to say. Humans are so interesting and complex, especially our minds.

Not sure if anyone's actually gonna read this.

Edit: its almost 2 AM for me after i finished typing this idk if this is gonna blow up bye im sleeping

M22, I feel like my whole I've always been pased up for everything. I don't really have any friends irl, I've never been on a date before, not due to my lack of trying or anything, and I've just never felt the sense that I am desired by anyone. Not by my parents, any friends I've had when I was in school, not by any potential love interests, just nobody. I feel like such a hollow shell that is incapable of ever being desired in any context

Im very lonely and depressed. And im dreading my birthday every year feels the same no change. And im honestly just getting by with coping. I want help but I know nothing actually helps 😂. Its crazy how this year is almost over given that 2025 was one of the worst years of my life 2026 was better mainly do to the fact that was very numb most of the time. I wonder what 2027 will be 🥲 — honestly who knows. Im glad I found one thong that makes me smile but its a fleeting one.

I know my partner isn’t the one for me, and we fight constantly, but I stay because the alternative is loneliness. I have no good friends. I hate how they do have friends and would be fine eventually if I left. I’m unhappy but try to avoid fighting because I don’t know what to do if they leave.

I’ve been lonely for as long as I can remember, it comes and it goes but it’s pretty bad right now. Everyone always tells you that you just need to “reach out more” or “go to your campus events”, so I’ve been trying to ask the people I do know to hang out and everyone is just always so busy and can’t do it but then I see them around campus talking and laughing with other people and I just get so mad inside and I hate that I do because I know that’s not healthy and that I should be happy for them but I just want to be like that so bad and I don’t know how. I try and go to the sparse amount of campus events and clubs that happen and there’s barely ever anyone at them and most of the time no one wants to be social with anyone there. I just really wish I knew what to do :(

The quiet of the night is here once more. The thoughts overwhelm. The anxiety mounts. My mind just won’t quiet itself so that I may rest.

Am I just a failure?

I’ve struggled with severe depression for so, so long. As you can imagine, it’s driven me to some of the darkest places one can find themselves in. I frankly don’t even know how I am still here. What I do know, though, is that nobody thinks of me. I am nobodies first thought. I’ve tried my best to be there for others who are struggling as much as I am, hoping that it would give me some kind of sense of worth, but it ends up just draining my soul. At the end of the day, always, I am just…

Alone.

I just want peace, but I only spread misery. Seeing old photos of myself hurts so bad, I can see all the light has left my eyes. I used to have hope back then, but now..

I want to feel useful. I want to know somebody cares about me too. I want to know the pain of this life means something, anything at all. I don’t want to be an outcast.

But it feels like I am doomed to be one.

I've always been alone, the only person I considered my world hurt me a way I don't think that could heal and now I feel absolutely alone because he was the best that happened in my life and I don't wanna continue in this world alone as I always was, I don't want anyone else but him

My roommate and I were going to watch a movie together tonight but he was called into work last minute and had to leave. (He works nights) and now I’m alone and sad. I don’t know quite what to do when I get like this because mostly I just want company but there isn’t really any to be had