I wasted my early 20s and I'm struggling with the regret. Has anyone rebuilt their life from here?

Venting

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I'm 27 years old, and I feel like I lost most of my early adulthood to inaction.

I had plans to study, build a career in software development, and create a good life for myself, but I never followed through consistently. Years passed, and now I'm still living with my parents and working in my father's shop. I don't have a degree, and watching my younger siblings graduate and start their careers is both inspiring and incredibly painful.

Recently, my younger sister finished her architecture degree and is about to start working. I'm genuinely proud of her, but at the same time I feel like I'm mourning the life I could have had if I had made different choices.

A few days ago I realized that constantly replaying the past isn't changing anything. I've decided to start again from the beginning. Tomorrow I'm restarting my habits with just 30 minutes of German and 30 minutes of coding every day. It sounds ridiculously small, but after years of inconsistency I think rebuilding trust in myself is more important than trying to study 10 hours a day and burning out.

My long-term goal is actually very simple: I want to become a developer, move to Europe, build a stable life, and eventually have a family. I don't need to be rich or famous. That's genuinely all I want.

Part of me worries that I'll only get there in my 40s. Another part of me thinks that if I stay consistent for years, maybe I still have a real chance.

Has anyone here completely changed the direction of their life after 27? How did you deal with the regret, the comparisons with younger people, and the feeling that you had thrown away so much time?

I'm not looking for false hope. I'd really appreciate honest experiences from people who've actually been through something similar.

Posted Jun 29, 2026, 11:29 PM UTC · locked

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