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Following a new, hot-of-the-press trend can be extremely enticing. Our need to fit in and belong is perhaps the main reason why. And let’s face it, making a fun little video to a viral song or updating your wardrobe with the latest fashion craze can give us the dash of serotonin we desperately need to get through the day.

But fads come and go, leaving us cringing at our old photos sporting frosted tips or grinning in a room decked out with Beanie Babies. Recently, millennials have been posting about the weird trends they've been a part of that don’t look as ‘dope’ today as they did back then.

Fancy a nostalgic throwback? Then all you have to do is scroll down!

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#1

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day I know the young kids have hated on millennials for their skinny jeans but mf you should have SEEN how baggy the pants were in the late 90s/early 2000s.

BackThatThangUp , Erich Ferdinand Report

Final score:
199points
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#2

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Jeans so long the bottoms were just tatters. Was a weird matter of pride how destroyed your pants were.

ButImNot_Bitter_ replied:
And god forbid it was slightly damp outside. You were soaked up to your knees.

arcanepsyche , Kari Nesler Report

Final score:
171points
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#3

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day I remember when bib overalls were fashionable but you were lame if you actually fastened both straps. I remember my grandma calling it hillbilly air conditioning.

martinsj82 , tubedogg Report

Final score:
169points
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What often drives us to adopt popular behaviors is the desire to fit in and be accepted by our peers. Humans are social creatures, and the need for approval is deeply ingrained in our nature. Following trends and keeping up with them fosters a sense of community among people who have similar interests and preferences and can provide a sense of comfort. 

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There’s also the fear of missing out (FOMO). In a fast-paced and advanced society, individuals may feel pressured to jump on the latest fad to avoid being left out or disconnected from current events. Social media magnifies this by constantly pushing new trends that people would want to imitate and experience.
#4

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Whale tail: where your thong was visible above the waistband of your low-rise jeans.

ButImNot_Bitter_ , silentfuzions Report

Final score:
157points
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#5

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day I have a tribal tramp stamp and waxed my eyebrows so thin they've never been the same. Good times.

MorganLeGay7274 , Letterman Report

Final score:
145points
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#6

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Frosted boy band tips. I'm not proud.

neekogo , istolethetv Report

Final score:
141points
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However, this comes at a cost. And no, we’re not talking about you cringing at your photos sporting chunky highlights, but rather about the negative consequences it has on society and the environment.

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With so many trends coming and going, the number of times an item of clothing is worn has gone down by around 36% in the last 15 years. It was found that the average American consumer throws out 81.5 lbs. of clothes each year, of which 66% end up in landfills, taking decades to decompose. Such wastefulness is not only a big problem for the environment but also causes rising amounts of textile waste.

#7

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Two polos…with both collars popped. I’m ashamed. 🤦🏽‍♂️.

bulitproofwest , Rick Report

Final score:
137points
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#8

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day JNCO jeans. My largest pair had a 69 inch wide leg. I won an award for having the largest pant legs ever.

Killerisamom920 , 7Daddies Report

Final score:
133points
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#9

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Those shiny button down shirts in bright colors like lime green that everyone wore for a while. Frosted tips. Those bowling shirts with flames on them. There was a time when I was for all intents and purposes, Guy Fieri.

Gibson_was_Right , B-M-R Report

Final score:
115points
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The need to be “in vogue” can additionally be harmful to our emotional state, leaving us dissatisfied every time we struggle to keep up with the latest fad. People may start feeling insecure when the fashion craze changes and we no longer get validation from imitating others.

It also limits personal growth and independent critical thinking, as people miss opportunities to improve and uncover their unique abilities when they concentrate on copying others.
#10

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day TYpiNg lyke DiS. What was I thinking? Thank goodness there’s no records of my communications from high school.

SlimShadowBoo , Uncle Saiful Report

Final score:
113points
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#11

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Lace-up low-rise pants. There is a picture of 16-year-old me wearing jeans with an orange lace-up fly that I modified myself, and it is terrible. I thought I was so cute ugh.

Cross_Stitch_Witch , rossella412 Report

Final score:
105points
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#12

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Those plastic choker necklaces and chunky highlights.

Soggy_Willingness_65 , cottonbro studio Report

Final score:
103points
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However, it’s possible to find a healthy balance by using caution when following trends. This can be done by focusing on an individual’s unique style, interests, values, and goals and adopting popular behaviors that really fit and resonate with their personal view.

#13

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Facebook statuses being song lyrics about your mood. Basically we went from moody away messages, moody MySpace post, to moody Facebook post.

SeeSpotRunt , Kelly Schott Report

Final score:
102points
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#14

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Jeans under dresses 😩.

PhoenixDowntown , jdeeringdavis Report

Final score:
95points
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#15

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Posting albums with hundreds of photos on Facebook. Here's every millisecond of the past weekend everyone! Enjoy!

little_canuck , Marcus Quigmire Report

Final score:
89points
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#16

For me, it's *I can has cheeseburger* way of talking.

PrincessAintPeachy Report

Final score:
86points
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#17

Tribal tattoo.

MartialBob Report

Final score:
85points
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#18

Weird pointless asymmetry being the only cool way to wear anything. Wearing your backpack on one shoulder only instead of both because that's for nerds (my poor back!). Wearing your belt with the buckle waaay off to the side. Side bangs. Side ponytails. Baseball cap backwards and off-center.

Wise-Strength-3289 Report

Final score:
84points
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#19

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Gaucho pants and those wide circle belts 😭.

Upset-Love-6346 , amazon.com Report

Final score:
83points
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#20

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day The long sleeve shirt under the short sleeve shirt look 😂.

Majestic_Ideal_2478 , Warner Bros Report

Final score:
83points
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#21

Clear, neon colored furniture. I either ordered mine from the Delia's catalog, or bought it at Spencer's, in the mall. I'd buy a chair, blow it up, it would last 2 weeks, and I'd be out there buying another one.

The "Big Blowup Chair" industry had me by the throat.

Lingerie as a shirt. TY Paris Hilton
Mini denim skirt, leggings, and ballet flats.

PatMenotaur Report

Final score:
82points
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#22

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Puka shell necklaces or spiky hair probably.

Jscott1986 , Mark Report

Final score:
80points
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#23

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Sweat bands on the wrist, the chain wallet, and safety pins everywhere.

TWEAK61 , dualdflipflop Report

Final score:
80points
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#24

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Getting my belly button pierced 🤦‍♀️ my mom was right that the hole never goes away.

Live_Alarm_8052 , Giorgio Montersino Report

Final score:
79points
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#25

Sun-in.

WillingnessOk1797:

My gateway drug to being blonde. But also made me think my untoned, box bleached hair later in college looked good bc i was used to the orange from sun in.

After-Leopard:

I can smell this comment.

smooshee99 Report

Final score:
79points
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#26

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day I planked at the summit of Mt kilimanjaro in 2011 when it was cool. Unfortunately its the only photo of me at the summit.

CobaltBlue389 , m01229 Report

Final score:
77points
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#27

Skater aesthetic despite not being able to skateboard whatsoever 😂 I was obsessed with Blink-182 and pop punk and wore mostly brands like Hurley, Vans, Quicksilver and wanted my mom to buy my clothes from Pac Sun and Hot Topic. The “t-shirt over a long-sleeve shirt,” puka shell necklaces, and studded and seatbelt belts were frequent parts of my wardrobe. What I really wanted was a “skater” boyfriend. I lived in fear of being called a “poser.”.

Ok_Abrocoma_2805 Report

Final score:
77points
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#28

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day The body glitter fad.

Eis_ber , m01229 Report

Final score:
75points
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#29

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day The trucker hats that Ashton Kutcher made famous.

CherishAlways , Joshua Dickens Report

Final score:
70points
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#30

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day All the band buttons on my corduroy vans bag. I recently found it 20 years later and it’s such an artifact.

selectmyacctnameplz , Lorena Cupcake Report

Final score:
65points
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#31

Backwards pants for Kriss Kross.

malphonso Report

Final score:
64points
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#32

Tamagotchi. I didn't even have the real thing. I had some happy meal knock off.
Still wasted time on that instead of my gameboy.

crocodile_in_pants Report

Final score:
63points
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#33

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day LiveJournal. I found my old one once which I thought had been lost to time and had the worst cringe I’ve ever experienced.

plusminusequals , dilettantiquity Report

Final score:
61points
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#34

Those braided rope bracelets that shrunk around your wrist and that you didn't take off for a few months until it got nasty enough and then you cut it off?

Yeah, I loved those 😆.

Astarkraven Report

Final score:
61points
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#35

I’d roll my socks down into my shoes to create ankle socks because my lame parents wouldn’t buy me ankle socks.

Bigbubbajenkins Report

Final score:
60points
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#36

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day That unspeakable moment in history where every white person was suddenly emo.

Select_Total_257 , David Erickson Report

Final score:
58points
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#37

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day I wore the livestrong bracelet but I (hipster voice) wore it before most people because my family are big cycling enthusiasts and we’ve always watched the Tour. So we were already very familiar with Lance Armstrong and supporting him(remember this was before s**t came out) so I was like the first person I knew to have a livestrong bracelet and I wore it for many, many years. Lowkey I wish I still had it for nostalgia sake.

Probably the dumbest fad I engages in was taking edgy MySpace photos lmao. I would go to like, some abandoned construction site or an old building or something “grungy” looking and stand around taking pics at that sky-high MySpace angle lmaooo. The angle where you’re bent over so we see your face huge and then lil legs dangling out below… good times.

u1tr4me0w , Laura LaRose Report

Final score:
56points
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fakeaxv avatar
JBo
JBo
Community Member
6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I put a livestrong bracelet on a human skeleton I had in my office.

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TheGoodBoi
TheGoodBoi
Community Member
6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Had a Livestrong bracelet, till it snapped when I was taking it off. That was that lol.

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Sheena Leversedge Wood
Sheena Leversedge Wood
Community Member
6 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There was (back in the days we HAD disposable income, and festival tickets weren't horrifically expensive) at Glastonbury they gave out the white make poverty history ones, and later at Reading someone outside was giving out make zombies history ones. still got both. I did actually love those rubber bracelets. and shag bands. they were cool too.

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#38

Any diet. Not worth it and definitely not worth my mental health.

lettucepatchbb Report

Final score:
55points
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#39

“Whale Tail”: 40 Millennial Trends People Still Cringe At To This Day Wearing a tie with t-shirts a la avril lavigne 🙃 also popping the collar on my polo shirts (we had to wear them for our school uniform, it was my attempt at being ~fashionable with it).

sockjin , Entertainment Tonight Report

Final score:
53points
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#40

I bought a shake weight. Lol.

LabExpensive4764 Report

Final score:
47points
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Note: this post originally had 86 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.

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