Being in your 30s is not 'old' by any stretch of the imagination. Research suggests that your mid 30s is one of the best times of your life. That's why a recent encounter ✍️@violalevy had at a work event left her with so many unanswered questions.⁠ ⁠ "In the space of a week, two younger women looked shocked when I told them that I'm 37 after they had asked my age. Each time it was followed by the remark: "Oh? But you really don't look it." These observations almost always come from much younger colleagues and industry peers."⁠ ⁠ The comments don't really bother her. What strikes her as concerning is that while many young women demand inclusivity and reject unrealistic beauty ideals, others see 30 as over the hill. We're encouraged not to be hung up on terminology like 'anti-ageing', "so why are the young women I've come across so quick to associate age with looks? And why do they assume that I want to appear younger?" Levy asks.⁠ ⁠ This mindset is reflective of a wider problem: a heightened anxiety and fear that 'prime years' are a real thing — and that they are running out. "I asked my mum when she was her prettiest and she told me she was her prettiest when she was 30," said one 20-year-old in a viral TikTok video, "so then I'm thinking I have, like, at least 10 good more years where I get prettier." ⁠ ⁠ Other TikTokers observe that age is a contentious topic. "The way people go absolutely feral when a woman mentions her age on this app," wrote Fifi Martínez. "Men run from the confines of their mothers basements to tell you that you're used goods and they don't want you. Mean Gen Z kids will say you look older than you are. Kind hearted elder Gen Z girlies lie and say you look 19 [...] y'all are so obsessed as if ageing is not inevitable."⁠ ⁠ Why are we scared of ageing? What does being in your 30s really look like? Are injectables to blame for our fear of ageing, and how do we embrace it? ✍️@violalevy investigates, 🔗 in bio. ⁠ ⁠ #R29Regram via @timorous.me on TikTok