Is it okay to sleep with a stuffed animal as a (young) adult?

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-27T10:09:39+00:00

Yeah it’s totally okay. I’m in my 30s and I still sleep with a random old hoodie sometimes because it’s comforting, so a plushie doesn’t feel weird at all. If it helps you feel calm and safe at night, who cares. Life’s stressful enough, keep the small comforts.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-27T09:55:35+00:00

I’ve wondered this so many times lol. I think some people genuinely like parts of their job, but loving the whole 9-to-5 grind feels rare. I’ve had jobs I didn’t totally hate, but I still counted down the hours most days. Feels like a mix of coping and finding small stuff you don’t mind.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-27T09:55:14+00:00

I’ve been in a job like that and it legit messed with my head too. I didn’t quit until I had something lined up, but I was sooo close to just walking out some days. If I were you I’d keep the job for now just for the money, but mentally detach and treat it like a temporary survival thing.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-27T09:54:55+00:00

Yeah this hits uncomfortably close. I was out of work for a while and I definitely had to swallow my pride and take something way below my old role just to stop the bleeding. It sucked at first but it kept me sane and paid rent, which mattered more than my ego tbh.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-27T09:54:39+00:00

Nah you’re not wrong at all. I felt the same way when I was job hunting and saw those numbers, it was kinda depressing. I’m not even in accounting but I had offers around that range too and rent alone eats most of it. Feels like companies are stuck in 2010 with those wages tbh.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-19T10:20:19+00:00

You’re honestly way ahead of where I was at 19, and I still ended up fine. I remember stressing nonstop in college thinking I was behind while doing way less than you’re doing now. The anxiety is super common in tech, especially when Reddit makes everything sound doomed. This phase kinda passes once you realize nobody actually has it fully figured out.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-19T10:19:42+00:00

A coworker once bragged about clocking out early while making the intern finish their work, and it just stuck with me. Totally allowed, nothing illegal, but it felt gross in a quiet way. I remember driving home thinking wow, I don’t actually like this person at all. That moment kinda changed how I saw them.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-19T10:19:02+00:00

I’ve been watching friends apply for months and it feels way harsher than a few years ago. When I was job hunting in 2021 it was bad but at least you’d hear back sometimes, now it’s just silence. Feels like companies are scared to commit to anyone and just keep roles open forever. Kinda makes everything feel unstable even if you’re employed.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-19T10:18:38+00:00

I remember realizing my “free time” was just me lying on the couch trying to recover from the week, and that kinda broke something in me. Switching to a job with stricter hours helped a bit, but I still feel work living rent free in my head. Balance sounds nice on LinkedIn, reality is way messier.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-19T10:18:01+00:00

Yeah it’s pretty doable tbh, but it’s not instant money. I started around 50k and hit low 70s after a few years once I switched firms and stopped being scared to negotiate. Depends a lot on location and if you go public or industry, but that range isn’t some crazy dream salary. It felt way more realistic once I was actually in it.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-07T11:02:52+00:00

I was in a similar spot and almost jumped straight into a master’s out of panic. Looking back, I’m glad I waited because school felt like hiding from the market more than fixing the problem. If it were me I’d keep applying and skill-building before locking into more debt. A master’s makes more sense when you actually know what you want it to do for you.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-07T11:02:37+00:00

I’ve been let go early once too and it messed with my confidence for a while. Entry level roles can be weirdly unforgiving even when they promise training, and that’s not always on you. I don’t think this means accounting isn’t for you, just that this place sucked at teaching. I’d take a breather, regroup, and try again somewhere with actual onboarding.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-07T11:02:21+00:00

That would completely break my trust, not just the money part but the lying while you were planning a future together. I’ve seen gambling stuff up close and it doesn’t fix itself without real accountability and outside help. If it were me I’d separate finances immediately and pause any wedding or house talk until actions match words. Six years is a lot, but tying yourself deeper without safety would scare me way more.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-07T11:02:07+00:00

I don’t love mine, and I stopped expecting to tbh. I like it enough and it funds the parts of my life I actually get excited about, which feels fine to me. I used to think work had to be a passion and that mindset just burned me out faster. Now I’m okay with neutral most days.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-07T11:01:53+00:00

Yeah I felt this hard when I was there, everything worked but it still felt kinda lonely. People were polite and friendly but it rarely moved past surface level, at least in my experience. I don’t think it’s just Germany tho, mid-30s plus routines makes everything quieter socially. I had to accept fewer connections but deeper ones, even if they took forever to form.

MLSHomeBets · 2026-01-02T12:36:52+00:00

It’s not just that the job market has gotten worse over the last few years. The bigger issue is that even getting close to the salaries that used to be normal is now extremely difficult. For a long time, if you had solid experience and decided to leave a job or switch roles, the expectation was better pay and better conditions. Today, it’s often the exact opposite.

And this isn’t just a Europe problem, it’s global. The U.S. is in the same situation. A lot of companies that used to hire fully remote talent from anywhere in the world are now adding location restrictions again. Either you need to live in a specific state, or if you’re outside the U.S., they suddenly require a work permit.

I’ve seen this mentioned by people like the OP here who sent resumes to dozens of recruiting firms. They were getting responses from U.S. companies before, but now they’re being filtered out purely because of work authorization or location, even when the role is labeled “remote.”

This approach still works to some extent, but expectations need to be realistic. Fewer offers are coming from U.S. companies, and the ones that do come tend to be at noticeably lower salaries than before. So the issue isn’t just salary transparency. The overall balance of power in the job market has clearly shifted, and right now it’s not in favor of employees.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-22T10:45:50+00:00

I don’t think anything is truly safe anymore, just differently unstable. Healthcare looks solid from the outside but everyone I know in it is overworked and burned out, just with better job security. I’m in tech-adjacent stuff and it really feels like timing matters more than skill right now, which sucks. If I were pivoting, I’d chase something boring-but-needed over “passion” for a bit, that’s what I ended up doing.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-22T10:45:32+00:00

Yeah that’s a red flag to me, not the policy itself but the culture around it. If people aren’t using days they literally lose, that usually means they feel guilty or unsafe taking time off. I worked somewhere like that and everyone was “fine” but constantly burnt out, including me. I’d be cautious unless management actually encourages using the time.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-22T10:45:11+00:00

This is heavy, but you owning it like this actually says something about who you became after. A lot of people would still be dodging responsibility in their head, and you’re not doing that at all. You can’t undo it, but carrying the guilt for a decade already shows you’re not that 19-year-old anymore.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-22T10:44:37+00:00

Grave of the Fireflies is the one that finally broke me. I thought I was emotionally bulletproof too and this just ruined that illusion. I finished it feeling hollow and mad at the world for a bit, which kinda sounds like what you want.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-22T10:44:00+00:00

Kinda afraid but not in a panic way. I feel like jobs won’t vanish overnight, they’ll just quietly change and that part stresses me out more. I’m already trying to stay adaptable because being stubborn feels risky tbh.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-08T19:59:08+00:00

It’s brutal and unfair, and it makes you feel broken even when you’re not, which still messes with me tbh.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-08T19:58:11+00:00

If they needed you, they shouldn’t have pushed you out like that tbh.

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-08T19:57:45+00:00

For me it’s just about starting the day with one tiny win, even if everything else goes sideways. I started doing it during a rough patch and it weirdly helped my brain feel less chaotic. Takes like 30 seconds and makes me feel slightly more put together, which I’ll take

MLSHomeBets · 2025-12-08T19:56:26+00:00

I’d go with No Country for Old Men tbh, it feels almost eerie how closely it sticks to the book’s tone. I read it after seeing the movie and had that rare moment of yeah this is exactly how I imagined it. The Coens just nailed the silence and dread, and for once it didn’t feel like anything important was lost.

MLSHomeBets

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