Your parents want you to go to college. And by "go to college", they mean study for a career with the highest salary possible, be that a lawyer, doctor, or anything else with a big paycheck. Sometimes we just really want to study what we actually, you know, love, but in doing so we're greeted with a sea of adults calling our majors "useless".
blackandwhitenod asked: College graduates with stereotypically useless majors, what did you end up doing with your life?
Living the dream.
"Art history with a biology major and got my masters in museum studies. I work at an art history website making art history fun for people who don't think art and museums are for them.
Though the dream job is collections manager at a museum so I can touch all those things regular visitors can't."
That's a lot of things.
Giphy"Majored in Buddhism.
Then taught English, then worked in logistics, then tourism, then renewable energy, then energy efficiency, then Salesforce consulting and now I'm an in-house Salesforce admin."
Who says that isn't useful?
"Animation major here. I pretty much just draw adult cartoon for cash. Turns out I wasn't good enough to make it into the business, but good enough to draw some boobs. That's pretty much what I have to show for it now."
Goal: Achieved.
"English literature, specifically in 18th century British literature and philosophy, and pro-slavery literature during the antebellum period.
I'm a high school teacher, but I was on the professor track to begin with. It's so much less stressful, more fun, and has much better pay with summers off as a teacher.
The major taught me to critically think for multiple perspectives, communicate in a clear and effective way, and actually how to write and how to think about writing. I also get to integrate my love of philosophy of language in my lessons and pedagogy. I love my career!"
Theatre people are the worst sometimes.
Giphy"Theater major here. Fell out of love with it pretty quickly when I realized that I A) don't like other theater people and B) like paying bills and eating.
Now I'm an Instructional Designer working for a large bank. I design and deliver training material and teach people how to do their jobs.
My degree has been invaluable. I can get up in front of people and talk to them, deliver a clear message and make them believe me. I can improvise when things go wrong. Being able to communicate your ideas well is almost as important as the ideas themselves."
Film people, on the other hand...
"'You're majoring in film? Have fun waiting tables.'
Jokes on you, literally every company is looking for somebody who can do video for them, and the freelance market is insane. I watched movies for college and make more money than most of my friends with "more useful" majors.
Except for the engineers, but... Duh."
Still useful knowledge to have, at least.
"Psychology major.
Spent a year bartending then worked for a few months as a leasing agent. Finally ended up going through a 2nd degree nursing program and got my BSN within 11 months."
She got the last laugh.
Giphy"Not me but my wife. When we met she was getting a degree in Radio, TV, and Film. I was a Bio major and jokingly mocked her major often.
I work in an Vet Medicine lab and she works for a pharma advertising agency. She makes more than double what I do. Guess who is laughing now."
NICE.
"BAC on Visual Arts, emphasis on painting. Am now a tattoo artist - for 5 years already.
Am not rich but I can provide for myself."
Good for them.
"Got a degree in journalism, the slightly more targeted version of getting a degree in "English." I do security at fine art museums.
I'm glad it worked out this way. Reporting is more important than ever but I learned I didn't want my job to be my life. I make a living wage in a fascinating institution, get to meet artists and people from all over and have an ethical job mission. And I get to leave all my work at the door, take nothing home."
Following their dreams.
"I'm not sure how to translate this but I have a diploma in theology (you can study this at an academic university here, not the hardcore church/bible stuff). I work as editor (permanent employee) for a big publishing company and kind of "make" books. That was, what I always wanted to do, so I ended up perfectly fine.
For a lot of positions you don't have to study the actual subject but work on your profile while you are in college."
That counts as a use, right?
Giphy"Art history. Brief stint as a paralegal, longer stint in a non-technical role in the tech industry, and now I'm a locksmith-in-training.
I am a fine example of all that can go wrong when you let bright, academically-inclined teenagers blindly choose a course of study without asking them what they might actually want to do all day. I do not recommend my particular career path unless you're really desperate to make interesting small talk at cocktail parties."
Not too late.
"English major. Now a translator.
Wouldn't be so bad if I didn't find the work to be boring and unfulfilling. Pay isn't great either (unless you work directly for the EU or something, but I have no desire to move out of my hometown and they usually require knowledge of French and/or German in addition to English, neither of which I'm really interested in mastering).
Currently figuring out what else to do. I'm in my 30s. Brushing up on math and looking into learning how to code after that. If it wasn't for my 30k student debt I'd probably just go back to school part time. Can't really afford it at the moment.
But hey, I've got a permanent contract at my job so it ain't all bad. Never have to worry about being able to pay the rent, and I can save about €100 a month while still having some money left for fun stuff like the occasional night out or video games (yay Steam sales)."
Thanks a lot, Grandma.
"I have two degrees in Anthropology. I work as a project manager for a cultural resources management firm. We do archaeological survey work.
My grandma once told me she thought I was doomed to never have a job."
A collegiate happy ending.
"Went back to school at 30 to finish my BFA. And not just any BFA, a BFA at a multidisciplinary strongly conceptual school of contemporary art.
I spent the first year working as a preparator at a gallery, while doing a decent amount of freelance gigs locally and eventually with art fairs that would send me around the world. When I made a major move with no real prospect in the art world nearby I was able to get a job doing stained glass restoration in a studio that really valued the multiple skills I had from a studio artist's background.
After a year of that and a change in my relationship that freed me up to explore options elsewhere I've been offered a gig as a preparator at a University museum in St Louis, and have an interview in the next week for a University Museum in Madison Wisconsin. Three years out of school and getting a professional job in a legit museum environment is pretty big in the art world, so I'm feeling pretty good about it and don't much regret the path I took."
Experiencing death is a fascinating and frightening idea.
Who doesn't want to know what is waiting for us on the other side?
But so many of us want to know and then come back and live a little longer.
It would be so great to be sure there is something else.
But the whole dying part is not that great, so we'll have to rely on other people's accounts.
Redditor AlaskaStiletto wanted to hear from everyone who has returned to life, so they asked:
"Redditors who have 'died' and come back to life, what did you see?"
Sensations
Happy Good Vibes GIF by Major League SoccerGiphy"My dad's heart stopped when he had a heart attack and he had to be brought back to life. He kept the paper copy of the heart monitor which shows he flatlined. He said he felt an overwhelming sensation of peace, like nothing he had felt before."
PeachesnPain
Recovery
"I had surgical complications in 2010 that caused a great deal of blood loss. As a result, I had extremely low blood pressure and could barely stay awake. I remember feeling like I was surrounded by loved ones who had passed. They were in a circle around me and I knew they were there to guide me onwards. I told them I was not ready to go because my kids needed me and I came back."
"My nurse later said she was afraid she’d find me dead every time she came into the room."
"It took months, and blood transfusions, but I recovered."
good_golly99
Take Me Back
"Overwhelming peace and happiness. A bright airy and floating feeling. I live a very stressful life. Imagine finding out the person you have had a crush on reveals they have the same feelings for you and then you win the lotto later that day - that was the feeling I had."
"I never feared death afterward and am relieved when I hear of people dying after suffering from an illness."
rayrayrayray
Free
The Light Minnie GIF by (G)I-DLEGiphy"I had a heart surgery with near-death experience, for me at least (well the possibility that those effects are caused by morphine is also there) I just saw black and nothing else but it was warm and I had such inner peace, its weird as I sometimes still think about it and wish this feeling of being so light and free again."
TooReDTooHigh
This is why I hate surgery.
You just never know.
Shocked
Giphy"More of a near-death experience. I was electrocuted. I felt like I was in a deep hole looking straight up in the sky. My life flashed before me. Felt sad for my family, but I had a deep sense of peace."
Admirable_Buyer6528
The SOB
"Nursing in the ICU, we’ve had people try to die on us many times during the years, some successfully. One guy stood out to me. His heart stopped. We called a code, are working on him, and suddenly he comes to. We hadn’t vented him yet, so he was able to talk, and he started screaming, 'Don’t let them take me, don’t let them take me, they are coming,' he was scared and yelling."
"Then he yelled a little more, as we tried to calm him down, he screamed, 'No, No,' and gestured towards the end of the bed, and died again. We didn’t get him back. It was seriously creepy. We called his son to tell him the news, and the son said basically, 'Good, he was an SOB.'”
1-cupcake-at-a-time
Colors
"My sister died and said it was extremely peaceful. She said it was very loud like a train station and lots of talking and she was stuck in this area that was like a curtain with lots of beautiful colors (colors that you don’t see in real life according to her) a man told her 'He was sorry, but she had to go back as it wasn’t her time.'"
Hannah_LL7
"I had a really similar experience except I was in an endless garden with flowers that were colors I had never seen before. It was quiet and peaceful and a woman in a dress looked at me, shook her head, and just said 'Not yet.' As I was coming back, it was extremely loud, like everyone in the world was trying to talk all at once. It was all very disorienting but it changed my perspective on life!"
huntokarrr
The Fog
"I was in a gray fog with a girl who looked a lot like a young version of my grandmother (who was still alive) but dressed like a pioneer in the 1800s she didn't say anything but kept pulling me towards an opening in the wall. I kept refusing to go because I was so tired."
"I finally got tired of her nagging and went and that's when I came to. I had bled out during a c-section and my heart could not beat without blood. They had to deliver the baby and sew up the bleeders. refill me with blood before they could restart my heart so, like, at least 12 minutes gone."
Fluffy-Hotel-5184
Through the Walls
"My spouse was dead for a couple of minutes one miserable night. She maintains that she saw nothing, but only heard people talking about her like through a wall. The only thing she remembers for absolute certain was begging an ER nurse that she didn't want to die."
"She's quite alive and well today."
Hot-Refrigerator6583
Well let's all be happy to be alive.
It seems to be all we have.
Trying to lose weight is a struggle understood by many people regardless of size.
The goal of reaching a healthy weight may seem unattainable, but with diet and exercise, it can pay off through persistence and discipline.
Seeing the pounds gradually drop off can also be a great motivator and incentivize people to stay the course.
Those who've achieved their respective weight goals shared their experiences when Redditor apprenti8455 asked:
"People who lost a lot of weight, what surprises you the most now?"
Redditors didn't see these coming.
Shiver Me Timbers
"I’m always cold now!"
– Telrom_1
"I had a coworker lose over 130 pounds five or six years ago. I’ve never seen him without a jacket on since."
– r7ndom
"140 lbs lost here starting just before COVID, I feel like that little old lady that's always cold, damn this top comment was on point lmao."
– mr_remy
Drawing Concern
"I lost 100 pounds over a year and a half but since I’m old(70’s) it seems few people comment on it because (I think) they think I’m wasting away from some terminal illness."
– dee-fondy
"Congrats on the weight loss! It’s honestly a real accomplishment 🙂"
"Working in oncology, I can never comment on someone’s weight loss unless I specifically know it was on purpose, regardless of their age. I think it kind of ruffles feathers at times, but like I don’t want to congratulate someone for having cancer or something. It’s a weird place to be in."
– LizardofDeath
Unleashing Insults
"I remember when I lost the first big chunk of weight (around 50 lbs) it was like it gave some people license to talk sh*t about the 'old' me. Old coworkers, friends, made a lot of not just negative, but harsh comments about what I used to look like. One person I met after the big loss saw a picture of me prior and said, 'Wow, we wouldn’t even be friends!'”
"It wasn’t extremely common, but I was a little alarmed by some of the attention. My weight has been up and down since then, but every time I gain a little it gets me a little down thinking about those things people said."
– alanamablamaspama
Not Everything Goes After Losing Weight
"The loose skin is a bit unexpected."
– KeltarCentauri
"I haven’t experienced it myself, but surgery to remove skin takes a long time to recover. Longer than bariatric surgery and usually isn’t covered by insurance unless you have both."
– KatMagic1977
"It definitely does take a long time to recover. My Dad dropped a little over 200 pounds a few years back and decided to go through with skin removal surgery to deal with the excess. His procedure was extensive, as in he had skin taken from just about every part of his body excluding his head, and he went through hell for weeks in recovery, and he was bedridden for a lot of it."
– Jaew96
These Redditors shared their pleasantly surprising experiences.
Shopping
"I can buy clothes in any store I want."
– WaySavvyD
"When I lost weight I was dying to go find cute, smaller clothes and I really struggled. As someone who had always been restricted to one or two stores that catered to plus-sized clothing, a full mall of shops with items in my size was daunting. Too many options and not enough knowledge of brands that were good vs cheap. I usually went home pretty frustrated."
– ganache98012
No More Symptoms
"Lost about 80 pounds in the past year and a half, biggest thing that I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen mentioned on here yet is my acid reflux and heartburn are basically gone. I used to be popping tums every couple hours and now they just sit in the medicine cabinet collecting dust."
– colleennicole93
Expanding Capabilities
"I'm all for not judging people by their appearance and I recognise that there are unhealthy, unachievable beauty standards, but one thing that is undeniable is that I can just do stuff now. Just stamina and flexibility alone are worth it, appearance is tertiary at best."
– Ramblonius
People Change Their Tune
"How much nicer people are to you."
"My feet weren't 'wide' they were 'fat.'"
– LiZZygsu
"Have to agree. Lost 220 lbs, people make eye contact and hold open doors and stuff"
"And on the foot thing, I also lost a full shoe size numerically and also wear regular width now 😅"
– awholedamngarden
It's gonna take some getting used to.
Bones Everywhere
"Having bones. Collarbones, wrist bones, knee bones, hip bones, ribs. I have so many bones sticking out everywhere and it’s weird as hell."
– Princess-Pancake-97
"I noticed the shadow of my ribs the other day and it threw me, there’s a whole skeleton in here."
– bekastrange
Knee Pillow
"Right?! And they’re so … pointy! Now I get why people sleep with pillows between their legs - the knee bones laying on top of each other (side sleeper here) is weird and jarring."
– snic2030
"I lost only 40 pounds within the last year or so. I’m struggling to relate to most of these comments as I feel like I just 'slimmed down' rather than dropped a ton. But wow, the pillow between the knees at night. YES! I can relate to this. I think a lot of my weight was in my thighs. I never needed to do this up until recently."
– Strongbad23
More Mobility
"I’ve lost 100 lbs since 2020. It’s a collection of little things that surprise me. For at least 10 years I couldn’t put on socks, or tie my shoes. I couldn’t bend over and pick something up. I couldn’t climb a ladder to fix something. Simple things like that I can do now that fascinate me."
"Edit: Some additional little things are sitting in a chair with arms, sitting in a booth in a restaurant, being able to shop in a normal store AND not needing to buy the biggest size there, being able to easily wipe my butt, and looking down and being able to see my penis."
– dma1965
People making significant changes, whether for mental or physical health, can surely find a newfound perspective on life.
But they can also discover different issues they never saw coming.
That being said, overcoming any challenge in life is laudable, especially if it leads to gaining confidence and ditching insecurities.