Discussion Time Traveller: Would you give your past self sage advice or, kill them on the spot?

[Forever Sleep]

I've posted this in off-topic because it's probably too silly and hypothetical for the suicide discussion tab.

Again- nothing new really- just wasting time...

So- you know the phrase- 'What advice would you give to your younger self?' If this were possible- if you could go back in time and face your younger self- what would you do?

Was there a particular thing you did or didn't do that set you on this course? What are the chances- that with some hindsight- you could have lived a better life?

Would you have even listened to a future version of yourself or did you feel like you knew best even then?

Would you just kill your past self on the spot? Got to be easier in a way than killing your present self maybe. Plus, how would you do it?

For me- I don't actually have that many regrets on decisions I have or haven't made in my life. I could have made a better career choice certainly- although I'm pretty sure I would have ended up even more miserable if I had done that.

I don't think there's anything I could have told my younger self to have made things easier.

Of course- I know there were things I probably should have worked on to become more 'normal'- like self confidence, socialising, learning to drive. Still- I know who I was back then- I was just as fearful but stubborn as I am now. I wouldn't have done those things just because someone told me I should (even if that someone was me...)

So- I think (for me) it would be better if I just killed my younger self. Still- when I think of the practicalities- I don't think I would even be able to do that! I'd want to die before I reached 10 (when my Dad remarried = likely narcissistic step sibling.) Still, under that age, a lot of people were still alive that cared deeply for me. I couldn't actually do it then either. That's frustrating- I'm screwed in my daydreams too.

I know it's a silly thread. Still, I suppose it's my way of working out if things were ever going to take anything but this path to where I am now. I suppose they could have if I had put more effort into myself and especially my social skills. I was actually far more inclined to hide in being creative- which has continued to this day. I don't regret it though really because I suppose I identify with my shyness. I think it would have been a mammouth struggle to overcome my various 'defects' which may never have been successful anyhow. I think it would be kinder to me if I hadn't lived the past 32 years. Still- it wouldn't to my family I guess.

Anyway. Silly post but what are your thoughts? Would you help your younger self with some hindsight or put both of you out of your misery?

 

[StolenLife]

I'd just kill my past self so that it never came to this. There is no scenario in this realm that would make me content with myself, and if I died young I would die as a person who was still good and kind.

 

[ksp]

i think that life is a lottery; ever decision is a lottery

my personality, intelligence, physical capabilities - lottery, and totally unfair to many

i don't know if i would change anything (maybe i can consider myself lucky in >50% in my choices)
any new information would probably help in same ways, but would have negative consequences in others; i'd fix some of my regrets, but i have no doubts about new and unexpected regrets

i would force myself to study the philosophy of my life, and consider my options; was it worth it? (with current knowledge); the first part of my life (youth) - i might try it again but under a better society, with ultimate freedoms, ultra advanced technology, etc, but reality will never be like that

humanity was, is, and will be always doomed, so i'd probably end my younger self then (knowing what i know now) - my life was a continuous distraction and, in the end, wasn't worth it; i gained nothing, just a futile exercise in suffering at various degrees; useless experience…

 

[lionetta12]

I've posted this in off-topic because it's probably too silly and hypothetical for the suicide discussion tab.

Again- nothing new really- just wasting time...

So- you know the phrase- 'What advice would you give to your younger self?' If this were possible- if you could go back in time and face your younger self- what would you do?

Was there a particular thing you did or didn't do that set you on this course? What are the chances- that with some hindsight- you could have lived a better life?

Would you have even listened to a future version of yourself or did you feel like you knew best even then?

Would you just kill your past self on the spot? Got to be easier in a way than killing your present self maybe. Plus, how would you do it?

For me- I don't actually have that many regrets on decisions I have or haven't made in my life. I could have made a better career choice certainly- although I'm pretty sure I would have ended up even more miserable if I had done that.

I don't think there's anything I could have told my younger self to have made things easier.

Of course- I know there were things I probably should have worked on to become more 'normal'- like self confidence, socialising, learning to drive. Still- I know who I was back then- I was just as fearful but stubborn as I am now. I wouldn't have done those things just because someone told me I should (even if that someone was me...)

So- I think (for me) it would be better if I just killed my younger self. Still- when I think of the practicalities- I don't think I would even be able to do that! I'd want to die before I reached 10 (when my Dad remarried = likely narcissistic step sibling.) Still, under that age, a lot of people were still alive that cared deeply for me. I couldn't actually do it then either. That's frustrating- I'm screwed in my daydreams too.

I know it's a silly thread. Still, I suppose it's my way of working out if things were ever going to take anything but this path to where I am now. I suppose they could have if I had put more effort into myself and especially my social skills. I was actually far more inclined to hide in being creative- which has continued to this day. I don't regret it though really because I suppose I identify with my shyness. I think it would have been a mammouth struggle to overcome my various 'defects' which may never have been successful anyhow. I think it would be kinder to me if I hadn't lived the past 32 years. Still- it wouldn't to my family I guess.

Anyway. Silly post but what are your thoughts? Would you help your younger self with some hindsight or put both of you out of your misery?

I'd kill myself at the spot when I was 11.

 

[bed]

kill myself because I'm going to have a chronic pain condition in the future and it's going to significantly lower my quality of life regardless of what advice I give to younger me. yes maybe i wouldn't be as depressed/anxious and mentally I could be doing slightly better but my physical health plays a large role in my mental health since they're interconnected.

 

[TAW122]

If I went back in time (with the knowledge and hindsight I have now) I would certainly have ended my younger self since I know it doesn't always get better and that temporary reprieves are not worth the gains in the ultimate end, suffering and oblivion. People who are far better off still lose at the end, albeit just in a different manner and circumstance. Existence was never something any living organism consented to, but was rather imposed upon.

 

[Someone123]

I would give myself advice- I know what I needed to know when I was younger to make this life work, but I've gotten too old to fix this life. There was too much abuse when I was younger, and I got too far off track in dealing with this.

 

[hungry_ghost]

What are the chances- that with some hindsight- you could have lived a better life?

High chances.

There's many things I would warn myself to do, or not to do.

Saying, "I should have killed myself at such and such age" does me no good, because even though my life has gotten worse with age, there are things I know now that I didn't know many years ago, and I guess I'd rather die with the knowledge than without it.

 

[FuneralCry]

Of course I would wish to voluntarily end my existence if I was able to go back in time. I hate the fact how I've managed to exist for this long and didn't end my life when I was much younger. Under no circumstances could I ever actually wish to delay the inevitable, at least to me the sooner I'm gone from this world the better. Even one second in this world is one second too long.

 

[Per Ardua Ad Astra]

High chances.

There's many things I would warn myself to do, or not to do.

Saying, "I should have killed myself at such and such age" does me no good, because even though my life has gotten worse with age, there are things I know now that I didn't know many years ago, and I guess I'd rather die with the knowledge than without it.

yes me too

 

[WorthlessTrash]

I would tell them to not break up with their ex in 2015, or else the dysphoria would hit them sooner (the relationship was a distraction from the dysphoria).

Though, I'd be better off killing my past self as a form of mercy killing.

 

[ConstantPain]

I'd absolutely kill myself. I've dealt with wanting to ctb since I was 14 and have experienced so much more anxiety, depression and painful physical conditions. Something that has always stuck in my mind is a pin I had on a jean jacket back in the 90's that said "Live fast, die young and have a good looking corpse". My mother hated it and I obviously know it doesn't matter whatsoever what my corpse looks like. 30 some years later I still love that saying though and regret that I didn't make it happen.

 

[aforestfire]

i don't think giving myself advice would stop things from getting so bad, maybe it would slow down, but my life is faded to be shitty, soon or later. the only good thing i could do for my past self is to kill them, so seeing everything getting worse could be avoided.

 

[GettingOut]

Hats off to OP for this intriguing topic! It really made me think.

My parents were finishing high school when I was conceived. Back then they "had" to get married. I was the ball and chain that kept two people together that didn't want to be together, and they took it out on me.

If I could go back, I'd comfort a little abused boy, warn him of dangers, show him unconditional love and make him feel safe. For whatever amount of time I have with him, I'd be the affectionate parent he has always longed for.

Hopefully this would help prepare him for the rocky road ahead so that he grows up not let a girl who loves him fall through his fingers.

 

[Leiden]

Without a second thought...kill myself on the spot.

 

[Supersadmommy90]

My tragic outcome in life could have been avoided.
100 go back and tell myself what i wish i'd done diff

 

[PleaseTakeMeAway]

I'd normally say, that I'd tell myself how to fix everything. Though I'm not so sure anymore. The things I think about aren't enough to fully fix me if I did it right. As much as it would make everything better.

 

[hamvil]

Not sure really, I guess I could go back to the point were all went bad, but I am not sure if the root of all problems is there or not, maybe I could have avoided the specific mistake that made my life so miserable now but who knows I would anyway make some similar mistake down the road. I could try to give myself some specific advise but I doubt I would follow it, when I make those errors I do not really feel like myself or in control. I realise later of the mess I made but at that point is usually too late. Also I do not really get when I do something bad. I think I would need to go back in time and completely reprogram me... but if I could do that I would reprogram my current self and be content with my current situation.

 

[Celerity]

Seeing as I still don't know wtf to do with my life, the safest choice would be to kill them.

I am also such a different person now due to past events that it's hard to even know what direction my life would have taken if I gave my younger self advice.

Would my alternate, same-age self in such a timeline even appreciate what I had set up for them in the years previous? If the massive changes to my character I have sustained were inevitable, maybe we would agree. If, however, I had to suffer through the specific things I did to become me, then alternate "me" might think my priorities are absolute dogshit.

Finally, if I am doomed to be unhappy no matter what because I am a loner and hopeless curmudgeon, then I'm fucked regardless.

 

[makethepainstop]

I'd wait for me to come out of a store or mall. I'd use a high powered rifle and blow the back of my skull off.

 

[Monkeyman]

Maybe I'd try to get my younger self into a different career path. I studied what I enjoyed in college but it ended up getting me nowhere, so maybe something with "more future" to it would get me in a better position. Or maybe it would just frustrate me more... I guess there's still a big possibility things would still go to shit nevertheless.

 

[not-2-b-the-answer]

I would end myself when I was an infant. Why wait until life gets really shitty.

 

[Rainy_days]

I'd tell them what major mistakes to avoid to at least give them a shot. I don't see the way I've ended up as being inevitable.

 

[Source Energy]

I almost CTB 8-9 years ago. With Tylenol and alcohol. I stopped it during the last minutes. I thought it can be fixed. Well, looking back, I would tell my 9 years younger self to lie down and transition in peace, for it doesn't get better. I regret all these years of suffering, only to end up in the same position, but worse now.

 

[sick.faery]

i'd basically force them to make the right decisions to avoid how getting to where i've got. if i just didnt do certain stuff i'd have litterally no problems at all. just a couple little stupid decisions ruined my life so

 

[ilovecats]

I'd tell myself to never change and to keep working. I bet if the young me saw how pathetic I am, he would be very disappointed.