‘The pretty ones get picked first at the market’: Family makes nasty remarks to 22-year-old because she isn’t married yet

Author image for Olivia Arocena
Olivia Arocena • Writer and Editor
Aug 24, 2026 4:00 PM EDT

Those dreadful family gatherings where everyone is suddenly interested in your love life

I don't know if it's just me, but I'm always on this side of family gatherings, and I have to say It's genuinely soul-crushing, and it's something that has to stop.

It's enough to have an entire society telling you what you should or shouldn't have accomplished by a certain age; we don't need our closest family members repeating the message.

Quite frankly, the message itself is dated. In the best-case scenario, the person receiving it genuinely doesn't want a partner or isn't looking for one, so the comment lands on deaf ears. But what happens when someone who is actively looking for a partner and can't find it has to listen to something like that?

Whatever happened to being kind? Do those people really think they are helping us find a partner by rushing us or saying that we can't do it because we're not pretty enough or are not trying hard enough?

I don't think commenting on anyone's relationship status is a good thing if it's not something the person being questioned generated themselves.

There is nothing worse than feeling lonely and rejected in the place you should feel protected and cherished. We all have our failings and our pains, and if we really see someone struggling in an area of their lives, we should try to find a way to help them, not mock them for 'failing', really.

Also, 'failing' for who? Who installed those standards and time limits in the first place? I'm not going to say she should 'cut everyone off', because I know that's extreme, but what would you do in her situation? Because I know trying to be strong isn't enough; those comments hurt even if you have the healthiest self-esteem.

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  • Only valid experience

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    What her family expects her to be doing

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  • APPARENTLY, Being 22 and single is a family emergency...

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  • Waiting for the lovely comments

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    A lovely family gathering where everyone is commenting on what you should do with your life

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  • my Father's day
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    The girl after the unfortunate comments

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family drama family feud family
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