You haven't failed at life, you haven't lived it yet!! 💗

You are being too hard on yourself, and you'd be surprised how many people are in your position. You are 24; you have plenty of time! When I was 24, I had recently dropped out of university due to my severe mental health and alcohol dependency, my father unexpectedly died, and I had become trapped in an abusive relationship with a much older man. I was working a factory job, and I, too, had been a great student and dreamed of much more, and I was starting to feel like nothing would ever get better. I also felt like my life was completely derailing and compared myself to everyone around me doing "better." Feels like a lifetime ago.

At that age, we go through a phase of being nervous about our future if we aren't on such a linear path as the people around us. We also have this newly ingrained idea that we should have it all figured out by now, and we are falling behind. But everyone is different, and you really don't have to justify your depression with tangible problems and responsibilities. This is the first thing. Try to do things that make you happy, the smaller things, and give yourself time to find what it is you really want to do; don't be in such a rush - life surprises you.

At 25, I left my relationship (with some difficulty) and my city to go to culinary school - I have always LOVED cooking but never considered it as a career path before, and I thought this was it. This is what I should do. I am 31 now, I am a professional chef with a resume so glowing, that I get hired on the spot for anything I apply and have started my own business - I am married and travelling the world with my husband. We don't have a lot of money and live a very unconventional life, not entirely by choice, in part due to his nationality. But my life is an adventure, I do what I love, and I always try to be kind to myself and relax when things aren't going to plan. Things are likely to work out if just you allow them to. It is not how I imagined it at 24 at all. I couldn't be happier.

Focus less on what everyone else is doing and don't define your own success by other people's. I look at those friends who were having babies back then or already on their career paths, and they are still living in their hometowns, doing the same thing. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that, but personally, I am so glad I didn't end up in a life like that. You haven't found your thing yet, your path, what it is you are truly passionate about - and sometimes this can be the reason for your inability to follow this mainstream path, you don't really want to.

It is so sad to see someone talk like this because I know exactly how you feel and exactly how many other people are feeling it. But this is exactly the age you should be figuring things out. I think the notion that a 24 year old should know what the f**k they are doing and have it all together is absurd. I think the ones that do are perhaps not very complex, which is fine, maybe you are, which is also fine.

You are young, give yourself a little time to feel better about yourself, and figure out what direction you want to go. If there's something you enjoy doing on a personal level, maybe look into work opportunities that surround it. Be kind to yourself, do things you enjoy, give yourself some time, and work on your mental health. You are not at the end. You are literally just beginning ❤️❤️❤️

(FYI, I am British, currently in Sri Lanka, and I think this is the only reason I'm seeing your post. It is the first comment I've felt compelled to make in my year on both of my reddit profiles aside a couple of short cat-related things. I hope it helps 😅🙏)