Anybody wish they could go back in time and change things?

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supernova88

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Does anybody ever wish they could just go back in time and fix all their mistakes? There hasn't been a day gone by in the past two years where I haven't wished I could just redo a significant portion of my young adult life. I know I shouldn't be angry at myself for making decisions I had no way of knowing how they would affect me later on in life, but in hindsight there is so much I did wrong or could have handled better.

A big issue I'm dealing with is the fact I went to school in a whole other state, and am paying the price now where all my friends live 6 hours away at best. Back then I was not very popular in high school and chose to "escape" my home town by going to college as far away as possible. I had a wonderful time and made tons of friends, but now that I'm out of school and back home I haven't got a single friend in the area. I even ended up breaking up with my girlfriend, a really wonderful person, over the long distance, and haven't been in a relationship since. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and choose a different school where I wouldn't be dealing with this same issue two years after graduation.

Other issues I'm dealing with are missed opportunities or incorrect choices. I once had the chance to live abroad for a year but did not follow through. Now that I'm a working man I can't just up and travel around the world for 12 months, and I very much regret not tackling that while I had the chance. Another issue was my first semester in grad school after college. I knew right away it wasn't the right program for me - I was uncomfortable and hated my professors and wasn't learning. I should have dropped out and started anew but I wanted to prove to everyone I could handle it. I ultimately did drop out, but not until the semester ended, and by that time I owed the school 20 thousand dollars and didn't get a thing out of it. Plus it narrowed down what jobs I was eligible for, and now I'm working not because I necessarily like my job but because it was the only one that fit my skill set.

All this, and so much more, keeps me up at night wanting a do-over. The thing is, life isn't really that bad for me. I make money, I have a roof over my head, I've got my family, I have hobbies, etc. But the road I had to travel getting here, and all the things I missed out on or which knocked me down along the way, have made for a really bitter ending. I just don't know if anyone else feels the same way and how they cope. Let me know what works for you.
 
If I had the chance to go back in time and change things I would. I made so many bad choices when I lefted School, at that time I was just a stupid teenager who didnt know what she wanted, there are so many times Ive sat and thought about how different my life would be if I would of just took a chance, if only I'd tried harder. But all the things I've experienced have made me the person who I am today and as stupid as it sounds I sometimes think that everything that has happened to me might of happened for a reason, maybe it will all work out for the best. My life wont turn out the way I thought it would, but maybe it will be good in its own way.
 
All that I have experienced has made me the wonderful person I am today, I wouldn't change a single thing, not even the massive mistakes....I might take the odd trip back to relive some particularly fine moments though! ;)
 
There is not a single person alive - with the exception of Alma and her lost spoons - who would not change things they have done in the past, take up opportunities they missed, etc, if they had the chance.

But we don't. That's the point. Life only goes one way.

The trick is to learn from the past and not regret it (something I am not much good at myself).
 
In one hand there are so many things that I now know I should have done/shouldnt have done and I really wish I could change, missed oportunities, things I've said and done, keep some people in my life, help, talk, live... But then again, we're human. We're not perfect, if we fix one mistake, we'll do another down the road. And our past, good or bad, is what made us the people we are today.
To answer the question, yes I wish I could go back in time and change stuff. But I wouldnt do it, I'd just want to have the oportunity to do it, maybe some day in the future, when I fully lose hope on "this version of my life".
 
There are many things I wish that I could go back and change. If the theory of multiple universes is true, I like to think that some of the different versions of me have made a better job of things.
 
Not really. While the idea is comforting, (that of correcting a past mistake,) it's a bit of mental masturbation, really. Regret is a part of life. And while I try to subscribe to the notion of having no regrets, I have made errors, but thinking about how nice it would be to change them seems pointless to me.

I'm making the point that I don't find it useful to dream about alternate worlds that might exist if I had not made a mistake. To me, that's the territory of fiction. (And if we want to write a piece of fiction about changing our mistakes, I think that's a great idea.)

Mistakes make us who we are and I am glad I stumbled to become the person I am today. And I do all I can to look ahead to brighter days and better experiences.
 
All of the time, but then we'd never have anything to learn from if we could go back and fix our mistakes and never make them in the first place. Making mistakes is how we learn and grow as people, I wouldn't want to live in a world where people never made mistakes. It would be full or pretentious perfect pompous know-it-all jerks. But there are a few things I'd like to go back and do differently or things I wish I took advantage of at the time instead of letting the opportunity slip by.
 
Well...it's not all about fixing mistakes.
There are things in my past that took a huge toll on me personally.
They were not of my own doing, so not mistakes to be fixed.
I did not need to "learn" that no should always mean no. I knew that already.
So not everything from the past is a "learning experience."
 
If I could go back, I would remove so much pain from my life...but...then I wouldn't be the person I am today. No, I wouldn't change anything...
 
My only regret is missing the boat on having my own kids. Otherwise no, I'm with Alma on this one (we're both fabulous people today).
 
I regret nothing, in my life. Even though my past was full of hurt. I still look back and smile, because it made me who I am today.. Bright Blessings ^.^
 
There is not a single person in the world that doesnt regret what he did or didnt do in the past... i say, baahhh too much emotional stress and energy consuming. I try to learn from the past and dont overthink it... besides i cant be sure that i would be better if i made the other choices.
 
I don't need to go back in time to change things, I mean, if they start changing from "now" that would be great too
 
No, because of the mistakes I am the strong person today. If I would have gotten an ''easy life'', I wouldn't be the same. I wouldn't change anything because those mistakes were good learning experiences and made me grow as a human being both mentally and spiritually. I cherish the memories, both good and bad.
 
EveWasFramed said:
So not everything from the past is a "learning experience."

I totally agree. Many bad things happen to us and the world at large for no particular reason and there is no lesson to be learned or silver lining. Sometimes things happen also that are not really in our control, although we like to think they are.
Wishing you could go back in time to change things speaks more to your dissatisfaction with something that is happening currently. The decisions and choices we make are often the best we can do at the time.
I've made a lot of mistakes in judgment (mostly with men!) but the only decision I really regret is buying a property a dozen years ago that I can't sell at the moment. Right now, it's just an albatross around my neck and a drain on my budget. But this too shall pass and I eventually will be able to sell it.
If you're not satisfied with where you are today, all you can do is change your current course. Thinking about what you would change in the past is a waste of time, in my opinion.

-Teresa
 
If I could change one thing in my life that I know would have made all the difference, I would have studied harder in high school, gotten a scholarship and moved far, far away from my family. They basically ruined my life, but I let them. I should have left long before I finally did, before most of the damage was done.
 
I agree with Eve....also there are some things beyond my control which I wish could be changed by going into the past.
 

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