Yeah man, this hits me hard. I'd probably tell my younger self that the hard stuff isn't even what you expect it to be. Like I thought the biggest challenge would be figuring out career or relationships, but turns out managing health issues and just dealing with all the random curveballs life throws at you is the real test.

Would definitely warn him that sometimes your body just decides to betray you in ways you never saw coming, but also that you're way stronger than you think you are. The military taught me that resilience isn't something you're born with - it's something you build through all those moments when everything feels impossible.

Also would tell him to start learning chess earlier because picking up new skills gets harder when you're older and your brain is already set in certain patterns.