We spend so much of our lives working out which box we fit into in society. Everyone wants to be “normal,” whatever that means, but does it really matter all that much? After all, even the most well-adjusted people have these strange thoughts from time to time.
1. “Does that person like me?”
We’re all insecure in some ways — pretty much no one is ever as confident as they outwardly appear. I know all the charismatic movie stars make adulthood feel cool, but we still spend as long wondering if people like us as we did at school. What about whether or not we like them? That should matter too!
2. “Are they ignoring me?”
The age of social media has made it really hard to deal with space in relationships. You know when people are avoiding you because you can see their read receipts or “last active” stats, and it’s enough to drive you crazy. It’s hard but you have to take it on the chin and accept that space is natural.
3. “What if I fell off that cliff right now?”
Intrusive thoughts feel weird and isolating at the time, but they’re actually very common. Lots of people think random, even violent thoughts that they would never act on. It’s the brain’s way of recognizing how much power we all have as individuals, as well as reflecting on the randomness of each decision we make.
4. “Why is my sibling better at sports than me?”
Jealousy is a natural, if unpleasant thought. We’re all wired to compare ourselves to other people, and although you may think that everyone else is better than you, know that we’re all secretly thinking the same thing. We’ll always wonder why we’re not as smart/pretty/funny/skilled as so-and-so, but we have to move past that in the end.
5. “I never want to grow old and frail.”
This is random (and a little harsh) but we’ve all seen that moment with the older people in our lives when it becomes clear that they’re no longer independent or “with it.” It’s not weird to reflect on your own future and mortality. We all do it — chat to your older friends about it to demystify it. After all, we’re all going to get old if we’re lucky, so we shouldn’t fear it.
6. “I miss being a kid.”
At the same time that you reflect on the inevitability of aging and death (light stuff, I know), it’s also common to look back on your childhood years with real nostalgia. It might seem weird because you can drink and have your own money now, but we all crave those simpler times.
7. “I wouldn’t want to relive my school days if you paid me.”
Not everyone has great memories of school, but hey, better to articulate how miserable school was than to have peaked in high school, anyway. No matter how many years have passed, some experiences just stay with you.
8. “I don’t think I’ve achieved any of my goals yet.”
These are moments of crumbling, crippling self-doubt which are totally normal, unfortunately. It often happens after one glass of red wine into an evening that the vulnerability sets in. Everyone thinks that they’re weird, out of place, a failure, or worse off than the people around them. Know that you’re perfect as you are and there is plenty of time yet to come.
9. “Am I behind everyone else?”
It’s the city-slicker rat race that attracts us all in our 20s, but by our late 30s, we see that hustle culture for what it is. They let you all think that you’re behind so you work even harder. Trust me, you’re not weird for thinking you’re falling behind. However, that doesn’t mean you are — remember that!
10. “I could totally live a screen-less life.”
I have these thoughts regularly when I’m doom scrolling TikTok at 3 a.m. on a Tuesday. It’s not a weird thought either — people who go screen-less tend to have a more balanced exercise routine and less brain fog. Maybe next week I’ll start… Or not. So many of us like to kid ourselves that we could go tech-free. How many of us actually could, however, is another issue…
11. “How can anyone be vegan?”
It’s not that we judge people who care about the environment or animal welfare. It’s more that we know how hard we’d find it to change our lives that way, and we admire the strength it takes. It’s not weird to wonder how they do it, though! Cheese and ice cream are so good!
12. “I can’t cook and I’m nearly 30.”
Everyone loves a self-improvement lifestyle boost to kick off their mid-life crisis. You’re not alone or weird, although your meal prep may be. Buy yourself a cookbook and put on an episode of “MasterChef” and you’ll be grand. If you can read, you can cook. It’s as simple as that.
13. “Does everyone pick their nose and pee in the shower?”
I know we all think we’re the most disgusting person in the room – we know all our dirtiest secrets, after all. Who doesn’t love a gremlin phase now and then? It’s grim, I know, but you’re not as weird as you think. Human beings are gross. We just need to embrace it.
14. “I wonder if they washed their hands after going to the toilet?”
Don’t you love it when our minds wander and speculate about the inner lives of a random person in a coffee shop. I love to people-watch; it lets me creatively unwind and it feels like a fun, rebellious way of stopping to look at the world around you.
15. “Isn’t coffee just bean water?”
These are the totally normal directions that my brain takes after starting the pre-game too early before girls’ night. It’s fun to let loose and embrace random thoughts like these — we all do it.
16. “Some days I hate my body.”
This isn’t fun. There are so many ways in which we are all made to feel weird in our bodies — very little of this narrative is up to us to control from the outside world. All you can do is feel your feelings in the moment but know that you’re not alone. Remind yourself that you’re beautiful and perfect just as you are.
17. “I feel like I have the greasiest hair in the world.”
Maybe you’re asking yourself this at the end of a long week of working from home and your whole environment has become a pig stye. Don’t beat yourself up, just take a shower and go for a walk. These spirals are not weird — they’re totally normal — but chat to a friend to get you out of this rut.
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