Imagine this scenario, if you will: You’re scrolling along, minding your own business on the internet, when this little nugget comes across your timeline: “1980 and 2023 are as far apart as 1937 and 1980. Sleep tight, old fogies!”

Wait, what? Your first reaction is, “That can’t be right,” so you pull out the calculator and do the math yourself, several times because you’re sure you must’ve missed a number somewhere each time. You remember how long ago 1937 seemed in 1980, and there’s absolutely no way that much time passed between 1980 and 2023. But you’re wrong. As the warped reality of time washes over you, you sit in stunned silence, contemplating the existential crisis you’ve just been thrown into.

Why does it feel like time goes faster as you get older? Is there a scientific reason, or does it just feel that way because we’re busy living life?— Chainguard (@chainguard6) January 28, 2025

Why does it feel like time goes faster as you get older? Is there a scientific reason, or does it just feel that way because we’re busy living life?— Chainguard (@chainguard6) January 28, 2025

Why does time work this way? Why does it seem to accelerate and condense, making decades seem shorter and shorter as we age? And perhaps more importantly, how the heck do we stop time from feeling like a runaway freight train?

Here are several theories about what causes the freight train phenomenon and what to do about it.

Time perception is relative, and kids perceive it differently

“Time flies when you’re having fun” is a saying for a reason. Time also drags when you’re doing drudgery and feels as if it stands still in moments of significance. And yet the ticking of seconds as they go by doesn’t change tempo. We measure it with steady, unchanging beats, but how it feels changes constantly.

This relativity exists in every passing moment, but it also exists in the bigger picture as well. The years felt to pass much more slowly when we were children, and by middle age they seem to pass in the blink of an eye. The pandemic gave us an even greater sense of this relativity as disruptions to our normal routines and the stress associated with the COVID-19 years........

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