hard-knock life

A life defined or characterized by real and practical experiences, especially those involving hardship or adversity. Your uncle has had something of a hard-knock life. He had to overcome a lot of challenges to get where he is today. I ask you to do a couple chores around the house, and suddenly you think you've got a hard-knock life? You're delusional. You obviously don't have a hard-knock life if you're so worried about dumb stuff like prom dates and gossip.