When I count my blessings I make it a point to be grateful that I was born in the present rather than any time in the past. There are many reasons beyond the obvious fact that life was black and white before the 1960’s. Let us begin with the basic necessities of life.
Food: There was no refrigeration. Limited ingredients based on the region you are from. Imagine living your whole life not experiencing an entire spectrum of taste. In the absence of industrial scale farming, meats and fish would have been a rarity in most cuisines. No ice meant either lukewarm or hot food for life. Fresh water would have been hard to come by and therefore alcohol would have been more common. Getting a meal in a day would have been a big deal.
Health: Life expectancy has increased over the years but would have been very low. High infant mortality rates were the norm. Given that you lived more, the chances of you not dying improved. An average life must have been really painful. Without the knowledge of germ theory, stomach upsets would have been common. With growing urbanisation the problem would have been worse. Quacks all around instead of medical professionals. Bathing would have been occasional for a lot of folks. Bi-phasic sleep cycles : sleep when the sun is down, wake up at 11pm and have supper. Hunt witches for an hour or two and then go back to sleep at 3am.
Sex and Gender: Being born as a woman would have been a big bummer (that is with a probability of 50%), at least after agricultural societies formed. All religions looked down upon women and objectified them. Homosexuality would have been less of an issue in the earlier ages but turned into a taboo following the Abrahamic religions’ establishment. Sexual freedom varied by culture but almost everywhere it converged into conservative territory.
Technology: A city would have stunk in the past. The lack of sewer systems and the use of horses as transportation and their excreta would have made any great city an assault to the nose. Travel would have been a nightmare. It took really long for humanity to invent a cycle. Communication through birds of course reduced the spread of fake news. For the longest time, earth was thought of as flat which meant that people would have been afraid to venture too far near the brim of the world. Wheels were never invented in the Americas. Must have been a lot of cardio for those gentlemen. Note to self: No toothpaste and poor dental hygiene? When it comes to information all you ever did was process audio visual information without text. Imagine doing that now.
Society: Crime was rampant. In addition to the painful life caused by germs, the pain inflicted by other people also made things worse. Torturing mechanisms were perfected in all the cultures. Tribalism and xenophobia has been the norm. Religion gave people meaning and they gladly sacrificed the little fun they could have. People could sleep despite their sins. The kings decided religions and the people were happy with the food, bread, and circuses. Animals must have played a large role in your life - as predator, pet, travel, or gods.
In short if you time travel, make sure you are a straight white male with a large supply of deodorants and sanitizers (and a lot of mochi).