TikTok's "Time Traveling" Trend Changes How You Look At Daily Life

The next time you find yourself rotting in bed or going through the motions of another boring day, think about your older self. This is what TikTok creator @sonyatrachsel does when she’s in a funk. She’ll have what she calls a “time traveling day,” and it’s an outlook that’s resonating on the app.

On a time traveling day, Sonya will pretend that her 80-year-old self gets to come back to this exact moment and relive it. “You have to get real with it,” she said in the April 4 video, which now has over 2.3 million views. “Close your eyes, imagine yourself sitting in your mansion on a chair, and then poof — you’re here today.”

The idea is to vividly picture what it would feel like to get the chance to redo a day from your past. Since this mental exercise encourages you to envision your older self as comfortable and content, it’s also meant to free you from the everyday stresses that are dragging you down today. “How would you spend this day knowing everything worked out? Probably a little less worried,” Sonya said in the clip.

In her comments, someone wrote, “You just changed my life.” Another said, “This is genius! Don’t take your youth for granted.” Others wrote, “Why did this make me tear up lol,” and “Okay, life hack!” In follow-up videos, Sonya has described her time traveling days in more detail. Here’s what to know.

The Benefits Of A “Time Traveling” Day

There are so many reasons why Sonya’s “time traveling” trend has struck a chord. For one, it might make you emotional to think about your older self getting the chance to come back to a younger body for a day, kind of like a second chance.

This is a really beautiful way to frame your thoughts, practice gratitude, and think about what you would do if you had youth on your side again. Would you ride a bike? Go for a walk? Learn something new? Be more adventurous? “Thank you,” one commenter wrote under the video. “When I read this I got up out of bed so fast.”

Sonya’s time traveling practice is also an exercise in not taking things for granted. Similar to TikTok’s “meeting yourself for coffee” trend, which asks you to imagine grabbing a drink with your younger self, this one encourages you to meet with your older self. What might she wish you had done differently? This question could be all the inspiration you need to make the most of your day.

If you picture yourself as a fabulous older person in a fancy mansion, then this hack could also help you feel a little lighter. If you knew for sure that everything would eventually work out for you in the future, how might that change the way you live your life right now? Would you take more risks? Would you be less stressed? Would you linger longer in the park and stare at the flowers? Even if you can’t guarantee what the future holds, the idea is that you can change your mindset right now.

Since posting her original TikTok, @sonyatrachsel shared that her time traveling approach also helps her stay grounded. “If I think about my days as if I get to relive it, [I] become more in tune with what’s happening,” she said in an April 7 video. “You think about what actually sounds good. Going to a pastry shop? Maybe getting a coffee? You get this alertness. You start paying attention to the details, the people. You also get this extra boost of patience.”

Even mundane moments, like waiting in line, can become more meaningful when you think about how excited your 80-year-old self would be to come back to do it all over again. “It just becomes part of the experience,” she said.

This sweet and thoughtful approach to living can help you notice and appreciate the little things around you, but it can also inspire you to do more, live more, and have more fun. So get up, get out there, and give your 80-year-old self a story to tell.