A 29-year-old California homeowner is questioning whether long-term financial planning even makes sense anymore.
Posting on Reddit recently, the woman described feeling trapped between traditional financial advice and fears about climate change, economic instability and social decline.
She built good credit, contributed to retirement accounts, saved money and bought her first home with her partner last year. But instead of feeling secure, she says, “It feels absolutely pointless.”
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Between Planning And Escaping
“I know that collapse isn’t overnight. It’s like watching a car crash in slow motion,” she wrote. “But the uncertainty, the constant worry, and the ever accelerated rate at which things are digressing makes me seriously question the traditional route we’ve taken with our life.”
She said she often fantasizes about selling everything and leaving modern society behind, “joining an eco village or back to earth movement that’s established in a climate better suited for agriculture and farming.”
The post quickly filled with replies from people wrestling with many of the same fears. Some advocated for learning practical skills like gardening, raising livestock, storing water and installing off-grid power systems. Others argued that financial planning is still the most rational option because no one knows when or if a true societal collapse would happen.
“If the world doesn’t end, then I will be really glad I planned for my future and would be really unhappy if I didn’t and had to go into old age with no cushion at all,” one commenter said.
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Others felt the opposite.
“I’m not putting forth energy for me no longer just want to enjoy life what’s left of it,” another person wrote.
A surprising number of commenters described abandoning long-term thinking entirely and focusing instead on present-day happiness, relationships and experiences.
Searching For Meaning In An Uncertain Future
The thread revealed how deeply collapse anxiety has blended into conversations about money, housing and adulthood.
For the original poster, and some other commenters, homeownership no longer feels like stability, especially in expensive states like California, where rising insurance costs, droughts and wildfire risks add constant financial pressure.
Others focused less on money and more on community. “In extreme collapse, the most valuable thing is a strong relationship with your immediate physical neighbors,” one person wrote.
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That idea resonated with many people in the discussion, especially those who said they no longer believe individual wealth or retirement accounts can fully protect anyone from large-scale instability.
Still, even among the pessimism, some commenters tried to strike a balance between preparing for the future and appreciating the present. A few people also pointed out that talking with a financial advisor could help people build more flexible plans that account for uncertainty instead of making emotional all-or-nothing decisions.
“Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water; after enlightenment, …
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