‘What did you buy as an adult because you were denied it as a child?’ – 19 empowering purchases that go way back

When you’re a kid, your parents are these almighty arbiters of what is and isn’t allowed. And even though they might have always acted with your best interests at heart, you always remember what your parents denied you.

Fast forward to adulthood and you can make your own decisions. This often includes buying the things you didn’t enjoy as a child, whether it’s that computer game you missed out on or a food that was unfairly banned. It seems to be a universal experience, as plenty of people responded to this question asked by Reddit user dirtymoney –

‘What did you buy as an adult because you were denied it as a child?’

Here are some of the most relatable – and somewhat bizarre – answers…

1.

‘Box of 64 Crayola crayons, the one with the sharpener
Also all the chocolate’
-accordionwidow

2.

‘I bought an ice cream cake for no reason once. The freedom is palpable.’
-buds4hugs

3.

‘A metal detector. I always wanted one as a kid, but my dad said I’d use it a handful of times, then it would sit and collect dust forever.
I bought myself one, and it turns out that my dad was right.’
-Repulsive-Pomelo7077

4.

‘An American Girl doll. I had a childhood friend who took a trip to NYC and surprised me with an American Girl Doll. It was a Just Like You doll, I loved her so much. I didn’t come from a great home life – being raised by a single parent, we had financial struggles. One day, my mom went behind my back and sold the doll. I was heartbroken, but my mom argued that we needed the money. I’m now 27 and just purchased my first American Girl doll, it was second-hand bought through Ebay, but I have no regrets.’
-Numerous_Fox_2909

5.

‘I couldn’t always eat fast food as a kid so when I became an adult I ordered a ton of it all the time and that was a mistake ’
-TazzzTM

6.

‘Not for me but for my wife before we married. She mentioned to me as we were talking about a certain type of Barbie Doll she had always wanted when she was very young but her family was really poor and she never got it. During the Christmas that we were together for 2 years and would be getting engaged the next year and her age of 31 years old, I searched and searched the internet for that damn doll. After much searching I found it and bought it. I think I paid a couple hundred bucks for the still in the unopened box Barbie. I gave it to her that Christmas. She was over the moon. She still has it unopened and tucked away in our bedroom closet. I am kind of disappointed she never opened it and at least kind of played with it. LOL’
-xxSpeedsterxx

7.

‘I finally bought a house and have left it largely empty because I grew up in a hoarding household. So I guess I technically bought space.’
-skyphoenyx

8.

‘PlayStation. As a kid, having a console was always my dream. I finally bought one(PS5) last year, and it made my inner child so happy.’
-fckmenowz

9.

‘When I was little my grandma bought one of those fiber optic flower lamps. I was obsessed with it and always asked her to turn it on. She ended up putting it in an empty fish tank so I couldn’t touch it. I now own three of them and I turn them on whenever I want.’
-Shellyj4444

10.

‘Paid the adoption fees for two kitties.
They are a happy healthy pair of siblings that I literally wake up to go to work for.’
-zumba_fitness_