Human beings are cruel.
Humanity tries its best to sweep that all under the rug, but like dust, truth spreads when you dig deeper.
There are some historical facts and stories that could make one's skin crawl.
And you thought a late-night Dateline NBC episode could give you nightmares.
Redditor DaredevilDude36 wanted to share some sordid details about the past. They asked:
"What is the creepiest historical fact?"
I don't know much about history... so here I go learning.
Death Fear
tales from the darkside 80s GIFGiphy"Male mummies are found to better preserved because female bodies were not sent for embalming right after their death for the fear of necrophilia."
curiousstrider
"mummy brown"
"In the past, people used mummies for everything from medicines to colors to paint with. There was even a tonic to drink that had ground up mummies as part of the ingredients. As for painting, the color was called 'mummy brown.' It became in such high demand that, in some instances, the remains of executed criminals were mummified and used to satiate the demand of artists."
jlanger23
Stocking Up
"In WW1 there was a Hungarian man that said he was stocking up on oil and was sent off to war. His towns people needed it and opened up the cans to find several dead women in there apparently he also tried to suck their blood and he was never seen again."
AffectionateBat6818
The Yellow Tiger
"Zhang Xianzhong, also known as Yellow Tiger, was the leader of a seventeenth-century peasant revolt which conquered the Chinese province of Sichuan at in the end days of the Ming Dynasty. There he lived the life of a warlord, in constant battle, and eventually descended into madness and barbarism wherein he turned upon his own people in merciless slaughter."
"He would pile the heads, hands, ears and noses of those he had killed, so as to better keep count of his murders. In Chengdu, there was erected a stele to commemorate his murders. It has come to be known as the Seven Kill Stele, and read: Heaven brings forth innumerable things to nurture man. Man has nothing good with which to recompense Heaven."
wogatic662
Oh Cleo
Elizabeth Taylor Cleopatra GIF by 20th Century Fox Home EntertainmentGiphy"Cleopatra was the product of four consecutive generations of brother-sister marriages."
pivasi5937
History is really littered with scandal. How is so much of this left out in school?
Leather
"The Leather Man was an individual who would walk the same 360 mile route between the Hudson and Connecticut Rivers approximately every 30 days for 30 years. He was named Leather Man because of the hand sewn leather clothes he wore and the fact that he never spoke to anyone other than shopkeepers for supplies and would never divulge anything about his past. He is believed to be French or Quebecois because a French bible was found on him when he died. When his grave was recently exhumed to test his DNA, no remains were found."
figejiy586
No Air
"3 sailors survived the sinking of the USS West Virginia at Pearl Harbor, only to die 16 days later, due to the lack of air. The Navy knew they were there, but couldn't get to them."
pivasi5937
"To add to this: if I’m remembering correctly, they couldn’t get the cut open the ship to get them it could flood the whole ship, and they couldn’t use a torch as it was covered in oil, it would cause a massive explosion. Marines who were in the immediate area would hear them banging on the hull, they’d cover their ears to block out the sounds."
TalkingFishh
During the Famine
"I live in a city named Halifax in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. During the potato famine in Ireland thousand of immigrants would land here first before heading on to other parts of Canada. Many did not survive the crossing so mass graves were dug. One day workers who had been loading bodies into these graves went to lunch and upon their return found one person had crawled out."
feyeb41097
It Worked
"Berlioz's 'Symphonie Fantastique' was written by him for the woman he was relentlessly stalking and harassing. His idea was to basically reveal to her that he had written it for her after she attended the performance, which he had pressured her into attending. Somehow, that crap worked, and I believe they married... don't believe the marriage lasted. They literally did not speak the same language."
figejiy586
Painful on Purpose
"Vlad III, better known as Vlad the Impaler. It's said that when he impales the Ottomans, he'd use a stick with a dull tip to impale them from the anus through the mouth STRAIGHT UP. And from what I've heard, he used sticks that has dull tips because it would push the organs aside rather than stabbing through."
"So they won't just die right away but they would have to suffer painfully. I can't imagine being a soldier marching through a forest of my comrades moaning in pain, knowing that if I make one mistake, I would end up with them suffering their fate."
TR45H_Pr0TaT0_69
'entertainment'
"Probably not the creepiest but still disturbing. Japanese warriors during many battles used to behead enemy generals/higher ups and present it to their lord/general at dinner as an 'entertainment' after winning the battle."
TomokaTheAxolotl
"The ancient Celts would embalm the heads of the enemies they had slain in battle and nail them above the entry of their house, or keep them in a chest to show to guests."
phailanx
To Shore
"The Raft of the Medusa. In 1816, France sent a ship called the Medusa to go reclaim the French African colony of Senegal. The captain was appointed based on politics rather than merit. Captain Dumba** ended up running the ship onto a sand bar and refused to dump the cannons in order to make the ship light enough to get back into sea."
"The giant raft they built to hold the ship's cargo was eventually used to float the 147 people who couldn't fit onto the lifeboats. The idea was that the lifeboats could tow the raft to shore. The lifeboat folks, including Captain Dumba** and the governor, decided to cut off the raft and leave everyone for dead while they sailed to land. After two weeks, there were only fifteen men left alive on the raft and boy, did they have a story to tell."
neporap453
“unhygienic”
"Not really creepy more like.. gross. One of the King Louis. His servant said that he had so much lice that when he would eat, clumps of lice would just fall onto his food. Apparently washing your head/hair was 'unhygienic' back then. I don’t know much about lice or medieval times, or which King it was, this was just something I heard from several people and I never thought it was fully true. I thought it was something I could share on this question. Again I’m so sorry and just wash your hair, people!!!!"
M1lk_st1ck
Trial and Tribulation
"One of the creepiest events I tell students in my Western Civilizations class is the ecclesiastical trial of Pope Formosus around 875 AD. This event was called the Synodus Horrenda, also known as the Cadaver Synod. Formosus had been dead for 7 months, but the new Pope, Pope Stephen VI, found it necessary to exhume Formosus' body and bring it to the papal court to answer for accusations of perjury and acceding the papacy illegally."
"Granted, the Catholic Church has gone through many strange things over the course of its history, however, this event always gets a reaction, especially when the Jean-Paul Laurens painting is shown."
VisualInstruction378
full of absolute psychopaths...
"Ancient Japan was full of absolute psychopaths, for example during the Sengoku period if a daimyo won a battle a lot of them would order the executions of entire villages, women and children included, just to send a message to their rivals that they weren't to be f**ked with. Nobunaga Oda and Masamune Date were both definitely noted for this. Absolutely unnecessary, they cared more about their own reputation and flexing than they did about the lives of an entire village."
Conqueror4life
Dirty
"The assassin of US President James Garfield, Charles J. Guiteau, had a long history of priapism and phimosis. This resulted in chronic pain because his foreskin was so tight that it would not and could not retract normally. A group of doctors claim the severe pain led to a form of insanity that led him to kill the president. At Guiteau's autopsy, he was found to also have an advanced case of balanitis and balanoposthitis with a significant accumulation of smegma. Go figure. A dirty *ick killed a president."
figejiy586
The Emporer
"The first emperor of China Shih Huang Di wanted to live forever so he was looking for the elixir of immortality. His doctors were given a choice find it or die.. Anyhow soon he discovered a liquid that is considered to be it... Thus he drank it daily... Not knowing his magical liquid was actually Mercury and it was slowly poisoning him... He died of Mercury poisoning..."
wogatic662
Pure Evil
"Madame Delphine LaLaurie was a wealthy socialite in New Orleans Louisiana who happened to be a most disturbing sadist and serial killer with a secret torture chamber in the attic. She tortured and killed her servants and was found out because of a fire that started in her house."
feyeb41097
Dominoes
"The Einsatzgruppen has always freaked me out. They were the Nazi death squads that went around and shot people into mass graves. But they started to go crazy having to look people in the eye and shoot them, so the high command came up with the idea for death camps."
"The whole series of events is basically the worst game of dominoes ever. Edit: Also, I think the cost of bullets was too high - another contributing factor to developing gas chambers. While we are on the topic: they used to suffocate people in vans with exhaust pumped in."
wogatic662
History is gruesome. It's like real life horror movies.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny or heartbreaking moment again.
People Share The Most Disturbing Theories About Disney Movies They've Ever Come Across
Disney films hold a special place in people's hearts.
Iconic animated films like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Peter Pan have transcended time and continue to enchant new generations while contemporary classics like Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin revived the genre when Disney struggled through an uninspired transition during rough economic times.
All of these films regardless of the decade in which they dazzled moviegoers have one thing in common. They inspire hope through the empowering message that the love of family and friends endure in even the toughest of times.
But underneath all the magic, dreams coming true, and happily ever afters, some plot points may have been more sinister than the conflicts presented to our beloved protagonists in the final cut.
Fans have explored fascinating theories that may have driven the storyline that was absent from the animators' storyboards.
To hear some examples of these, Redditor Marquis_de_Skiatook asked:
"What’s the most disturbing Disney movie theory?"
Identities of certain characters were explored.
The Sales Pitch
"The merchant at the beginning of Aladdin is just making up the story, as he is just trying to sell you a lamp, which is crazy because the Dead Sea Tupperware was a better deal."
– PompeyMagnus1
Who Fired The Shot?
"Bambi's mom wasn't just killed by a hunter. She was killed by a poacher."
"There's a hunting scene right before winter where the whole family escapes. That was hunting season. You don't hear a single gunshot during the winter because it's off season. Bambi's mom was killed in early spring by a poacher."
– lllSnowmanlll
The Little Teacup
"There's a line in Be Our Guest that specifies '10 years we've been rusting...' meaning they've been enchanted for 10 years at that point. Chip is pretty clearly well under 10 when they break the spell and he becomes human. Which means that either the spell also froze their ages in time, or the teapot version of Mrs. Potts both conceived a teacup child (with who/what?!) and gave birth at some point."
"Also, there was a cupboard full of teacup children that weren't given names that also appeared to be under Mrs. Potts's care. What's the deal with those kids?!"
– killebrew_rootbeer
These films may need PG-rated prequels.
Child Was Suspect
"Lilo is responsible for her parents death because she failed to bring pudge the fish a sandwich."
– monorail_pilot
An Egg-cellent Theory
"Gaston was responsible for single-handedly supporting the egg industry of Southern France based on the amount of eggs he consumed, and his death caused a minor economic depression."
– BabaYagaOfKaliYuga
Woody's Original Owner
"Woody is Andy’s fathers old toy and it’s the only thing he has to remember him."
– ptepfenhart
Some Disney films may have war commentaries.
A Duck's Origins
"My favorite is Donald Duck being a WW2 vet. Donald is responsible for single-handedly taking an island from the Japanese, but the experience gave him serious PTSD and that's why he acts the way he does. The Department of Defense officially issued him an honorable discharge in 1984, meaning he retired as well."
– No_Improvement7573
Quacked Up History
"this was canon that Donald duck was a sailor but US naval fleet. But not many people know he was also Airborne or a para-marine."
"thats entirely his gimmick from the disney war propaganda videos."
"being in the marines at the time meaning donald duck would've seen pearl harbor from the hawaiian training videos all the way to the dolittle raids which is why he also knows how to fly a plane in the event if the pilot gets shot dead."
"donald duck was an airman in the pacific theater and took over entire japanese gun nests. Due to the time of the video(Commando Duck), the layout on the map and very much the actual role donald duck was a paratrooper in Guadalcanal."
"Donald duck wasn't a reservist or a volunteer since he was drafted so very much he fought all this mostly against his will. So it questions me why we would be there untl discharged in 1984."
"basically there is proof that everything that the previous person said is 100% true by overlooking two videos. Commando Duck 'Donald Duck vs Japan' and Donald Duck gets drafted as the release timing of both videos would match up the which battled and what unit Donald Duck would've fought in canonly. Based on merit he probably retired as a sergeant or e-5 rank. i did too much research."
"Its safe to say that Donald Duck was a paratrooper serving the 11th Airborne division n the battle of Guadalcanal. No only that he served in Guadalcanal but the timing itself means that Donald Duck served in Midway, Coral Sea, Pearl Harbor, Papa New Guinea, and the Philippines, Palau, Okinawa and based on the timing of the US fleet naval movements and as well as the history of the unit. Donald Duck probably seens some of the worst losses in US history and slept under the constant nightmare of a Japanese Air raid, death camps, jungle combat. It is also possible he saw combat in the Korean war since the same unit was posted for Korea but because he wasn't discharged until 1984 its save to say hes been in combat until Vietnam."
– ghigoli
Post-Apocalyptic World
"Cars takes place long after a war where the sapient machines wiped out their human creators."
– brak-0666
Vehicular Genocide
"Cars has a cars pope. Christianity is canon in the cars universe. This meaning there was also a cars Jesus who suffered a cars crucifixion."
"Furthermore the Jeep character is actually canonized as a WW2 veteran. There was a cars WW2 this meaning there was also a cars Hitler who killed scores of presumably Jewish cars."
– funkyjiveturkey
While many of these examples have not been officially substantiated by Disney, they sure do add another level that heightens the stakes for challenges faced by our favorite characters.
But one thing is certain.
You may never look at some of these classics the same way again.
There are few feelings more disappointing than revisiting a place you loved going to as a child, or finding a food you used to love to eat, only to discover that it isn't quite as wonderful as you remember.
While it's easy to chalk this up to no longer having your childhood naivité, your outgrowing it might not be what's behind the apparent decline in quality.
Instead, what could have very well happened is that the people behind the upkeep or the quality control have been asleep at the wheel, and thus what was, in fact magical, during your childhood is anything but now that you've grown up.
From amusement parks to candy bars, there are countless things that have gone from being a "must have" or "must visit", to something you find yourself avoiding at all costs.
"Redditor Unfair-Independent48 was curious to hear all the things people think have seen a sizable decline in quality with each passing year, leading them to ask:
"What's a product that's gotten significantly worse over the years?"
A Casualty Of Online Shopping...
"Outlet malls."
"It used to be a place where you could find designer stuff for cheaper, but now most of it is just crappier stuff made specifically for the outlet."- tickingkitty
Those Celebrity Colnols Aren't Fooling Anyone...
"KFC."- Oryx
Almost All Natural...
Breyer's ice cream."
"It used to be really good quality, and they'd advertise how it was made with only a few natural ingredients."
"Now most of their stuff is 'frozen dairy desserts' because they can't legally call it 'ice cream' anymore, and it all tastes like garbage'."- Doctor_Juris
When Your Sofa Is The Last Place You Want To Recline...
"Furniture."
"Everything used to be solid wood."
"Now it’s all paperboard."- gonewildecat
New Technology Has Such A Short Shelf-Life
"Almost every household appliance."
"Sh*t used to be built to last for 4 f*cking generations, man."
"My grandma's old fridge from the 60's is still running like a champ out in my garage."
"Thing is built like a tank and gives no f*cks about the long march of time."
"These days you'll be lucky to get 5 years out of some appliances you buy, and good luck getting any warranty service if you even approach one with a screwdriver in an attempt to fix it yourself."- buddypalamigo25
comic power rangers GIF by Paul WindleGiphyTorn Jeans Are So Passé
"Jeans."
"I have GAP jeans, from when I was 14, that are in great shape."
"Meanwhile, I’ll buy overpriced designer sh*t today and I’m lucky if it lasts 2 years."
"Why is everything so THIN?"- Brewnonono
Don't Ignore The Fine Print...
"Turbo Tax."
"The fees to file basic taxes is crazy."
"Free Tax USA is much better and I wish more people knew about it."- Action3xpress
Some Places Photograph Much Better Than They Actually Look...
"Airbnb."- Imboredboredbored
You Can't Manufacture Chemistry
"Tinder and dating apps in general."- justadudenameddave
Sure, The Screen Is Huge, But How Do You Turn It Off?!?!
"The lack of buttons that tv's have these days. I hate it."- Responsible-Sail1921
GiphyThe Fall Of The Big Red Roof...
"Pizza Hut was the place to be when I was a kid in the 80's."
"The buffet."
"The personal pan pizzas paid for with Book-it."
"Pitchers of pop drank from those weird red cups that no longer exist."
"Dig Dug, Galaga, and Centipede."
"The last time I ate at Pizza Hut was about 15 years ago."
"Stopped at on when we were driving out to Colorado Springs."
"So pointless."
"Nothing special about it."
"It didn't even have the decency to be bad."
"It just had no anima."
"No spirit."
"No Galaga."- mostlygray
pizza hut GIFGiphyQuality control is difficult, and some things sadly just aren't sustainable.
This doesn't make it any less disappointing when you bite into a personal deep-dish pizza, and the taste sensation is anything but what you remembered as a child.
Things that go bump in the night.
Creepy crawlers lurking everywhere.
True crime stories on TV.
Life is constantly trying to freak us out.
Let's talk about it.
Nobody is sleeping anyway.
Redditor Galactic_Blueberry1 wanted everyone to share the weird oddities that keep us concerned with life, so they asked:
"Reddit, what is the most eerie thing that's ever happened to you?"
Being creeped out in life is part of living.
There should be a warning.
Coincidence?
twins GIF by Soul TrainGiphy"I once met the same set of twins in the same day. One after the other. One at a library and then another at the mall."
willywonkerbonker
Normal
"I’m a medic and firefighter. We once had a call for something normal, like chest pain or something, I can’t remember. The caller said he was in his barn/garage, which isn’t weird really around here. Anyway, we pull up on the scene and something just felt off. No idea why but something just told me in my gut that something was wrong."
"I decided to do a 360 around the building before we went through the door at the front that was clearly the entrance. I walk around and come to a window on the side of the building and look in. There was a shotgun rigged to the door. The guy had set a booby trap for us. And he had hung himself as well."
"We kicked in this plexiglass-type material on the side of the building and entered that way. Guy was dead. Nothing we could do about it at that point. I would have been the first through that door. No idea why I didn’t just walk through it that day. I’ve posted this before but I feel it’s a decent story."
pokemon-g**gbang
Talk to the Neighbor
"I was driving home per usual and got this random, unwavering feeling that my house had been broken into. I kind of laughed and said 'Please don’t let my house have actually been broken into' out loud as I turned the corner onto my street. The first thing I noticed when I pulled up to the house were the blinds on my bedroom window. They were yanked around and twisted up."
"Some guy that lives across the street turned out to have been stalking me and decided to climb through my bedroom window. He took nothing valuable. Just some weird personal items. It was terrifying to walk in and see my things rummaged through. It was even scarier when I talked to the neighbor and they admitted that multiple people in the neighborhood had seen it happen."
"But they were all too scared of ol’ dude to say anything. The weirdest part of it all (and I mean this guy took some creepy personal things) is that nagging feeling I had before I found the remnants of the break-in. I swear I knew before I knew, and that was such an eerie feeling."
No_Sense_7384
'Hey! What are you doing out here?'
"This happened last year. I was having a recurring dream where I was in the woods at night. I noticed a campfire in the distance. Whoever was sitting at the fire noticed me and yells out 'Hey! What are you doing out here?' and starts moving towards me until I wake up."
"Late last summer I decided to go out to the woods for a hike. Once I got out there, I needed to pee. I hopped off of the trail to get closer to the creek so I could take care of business and not worry about anyone walking up on me."
"As I approached the creek, I see a hidden shelter and a man setting up a campfire. When he noticed me, he said "Hey! What are you doing out here?' Nothing else happened. I apologized and went on my way. It was the only time in my life that I had dreams of an event before it happened. I was pretty shook at the time."
Imahorrible_person
Very Weird
The Kid Mero Showtime GIF by Desus & MeroGiphy"One time my husband and I were lying in bed and the bottom drawer to his nightstand slammed shut. There was no logical explanation for why that happened and we still don’t understand to this day! I should clarify that we were both awake when this happened."
"We were just lying there reading and playing on our phones and we both heard the drawer shut clear as day! My husband has a habit of keeping his lower drawer open and we looked over and it was closed. Very weird!"
mrsjay717
Things that go bump in the night.
NO THANK YOU!!
Jump Out
Rain Storming GIF by reactionseditorGiphy"During a severe thunder/lightning storm one night, I was alone in the cathedral - high up in the loft above the nave practicing the large pipe organ for a forthcoming recital."
"The flashing lightning illuminated the stained glass around the pipes with such intensity that it made the biblical characters seem to 'jump out' of the windows and remain suspended in mid-air all around me (as if they had somehow come to life)."
Back2Bach
Oh Grandma...
"When I was in middle school, I used to spend my free time playing on my Gameboy or listening to CDs in my room. It was a three-family house. Most of my family, including my parents, sister, and I, lived on the top floor, while my grandmother lived alone on the second floor."
"My grandma used to take care of my sister and me while my parents were at work. She would frequently walk up the stairs at least twice a day to check on us. She wore loud wooden slippers in the house, so we could always hear her walking around on her floor and especially when she was coming upstairs."
"One weekend while I was alone at home with my grandma, I was sitting on my bed playing my Gameboy when I heard my grandma's unmistakable footsteps coming up the stairs. I heard her walking down the hallway and stopping in front of my door. I looked up to meet her gaze, but there was no one there. I felt startled and ran out of my room to check the hallway, kitchen, and stairs, but I couldn't find anyone else upstairs beside me. I found my grandma sitting downstairs on the couch watching television."
lovelybliss
In Dreams
"I had one of those dreams that you couldn't wake up from. I knew I was asleep and I was aware but I couldn't wake up. I was absolutely terrified thinking that I was stuck in a coma or something. I had a gun with me for some reason and as the terror of not being able to wake up grew I for some reason had a thought and belief that if I killed myself in the dream I would die in real life and that that was a better alternative than being in a coma. So I brought the gun to my head and pulled the trigger. I physically felt pain in my temple and heard the shot. I woke up right afterward."
StraightsJacket
What did he hear?
"My ex and I lived in a remote part of Northern Nevada. The house was literally in the middle of a field and our neighbors were far away. He worked nights and I never liked how dark and quiet it was. On the night he was working, I fell asleep and had a dream about him. In the dream, he was standing on the edge of a cliff (like the Grand Canyon), looking out at the view."
"I tried many times to get his attention but he wouldn't acknowledge me. He was just staring straight ahead. After ignoring me for a while, he abruptly turned to me and grabbed the outside of my arms firmly. His face looked panicked and he said, '(name), there's somebody in the house.'"
"Like the movies, my eyes shot open and I woke up with my blood running cold. I lay in bed silently, listening for any sound. I was even more terrified when the dog woke up almost immediately, started barking, and ran out his dog door, into the yard. What did he hear?"
"I never saw or heard anything out of place. I couldn't see anything outside in the dark. The dog came back in and fell asleep. I stayed up the rest of the night, totally creeped out."
bae_guevara_
Outside my Body
Shirley Manson Transformation GIF by GarbageGiphy"I was walking to a college class and felt as if I'd suddenly stepped outside of my body and was watching myself move around like a puppeteer."
"It lasted for about 10 minutes while I called a parent to ground myself to reality. Happened again the next week for a smaller amount of time. I'm guessing it was some kind of stress-induced disassociation episode since it was midterms season and my first semester away from home."
I_Ace_English
College can drive anyone to insanity.
An always out of body experience.
While dating can be a wonderful experience, it can also be unnecessarily complicated and not all it's cracked up to be.
For some, it's simply easier to remain single and independent, rather than to be left guessing by a potential partner.
Redditor chewysnacc asked:
"What is stopping you from getting a partner right now?"
Lack of Communication
"It kinda seems like everyone I meet and am interested in is already dating/in a situation with someone. I get plenty of connections on dating apps but they usually just stop replying."
- TwoChaptersIn
Missed Opportunities
"I’m too shy and don’t meet new people. My life is a cycle of waking up, university, sleep, and when I get opportunities, I don’t take them."
- Arcofly
Grief Takes a Toll
"I just lost my wife after years of illness and have no desire for another relationship."
- gtnair
"It's been four years now since her death after a three and a half year fight that she put up. We spent 12 years together and I still just can't bring myself to really go out there again when all I want is her back."
- Anunnaki2522
Feeling Unworthy
"Being a 62-year-old dishwasher with no money."
- thomas4004
"I met my current partner while I was a dishwasher. There are people out there for everyone. Don't focus on what you don't have."
- JustwantedAUsername
In Need of a Solo Journey
"I'm just not ready for one. The biggest reason is laziness, probably."
"The idea of being in a relationship is way more appealing than the actual responsibilities involved in my current stage. Relationships take work, and I'm not gonna just half-a** it like an a**hole when I can't guarantee that I'd fully commit."
"I'd just be wasting somebody's time and that's not fair to them. Plus, there are plenty of things that I'm already not putting enough time into that are way more pressing.""
- PEEWUN
"Yeah. I hear this."
"It’s not necessarily that I’m too lazy to get into a relationship and be with someone. Instead, after six months, I start becoming 'lazy' and want to do my own things by myself waaaaay more frequently, and it’s pushed every girl I’ve been with away."
"I’m probably destined to remain single. However, I’ve become entirely content with that. Sometimes I do miss having a partner and the advantages of having a partner, but those reasons are purely selfish on my own part."
"Partly blame being an only child with parents that both worked 60+ hours a week. I’m far from upset by it though. Instead, I cherish the fact that I can be nearly 100% content being alone."
- Blacksheepoftheworld
Self-Improvement Era
"Just got out of a toxic relationship where we both played our part in being toxic. I‘m currently working on myself so it doesn’t happen in my next relationship again."
- Crounty
"I'm working on myself. I'm in no position to date anybody and have nothing substantial to give another person right now. I need everything I have to fix me."
- scienceforbid
Procrastination: The Dating Edition
"Pragmatically speaking? Nothing really, maybe some internalized form of procrastination?"
"I keep myself decently well-maintained mentally, emotionally, and physically. Career-wise/professionally, I've built myself up as a pretty well-rounded person and although I've still got a ways to go, I'm decently stable with my currently established work-life balance."
"And I'm also a decently well-socialized person who interacts well with the public, can hold a conversation, and is decent at paying attention to social cues and body language."
"If I actually tried to get into the dating game, I'm decently confident that I could do okay for myself and my partner; but I guess I just haven't had a reason to actually take that initiative step..."
- mythrilcrafter
The Introvert Has Entered the Chat
"My pathetic social battery and conversational skills."
- Capt-N3M0
Updated Priorities
"I'm divorced with a three-year-old boy in my mid-30s."
"It’s a minefield out here, and my threshold for nonsense is way lower than my threshold for loneliness."
- ChickensPickins
Ableist Thinking
"My wheelchair. I’m completely self-sufficient and independent. I’m a moderately attractive 29-year-old male, I’m in good shape and have a very active and athletic background."
"Girls simply won’t look past it and treat me like a human. I don’t identify as a wheelchair or as disabled, I identify as human, treat me like one."
- DocShaayy
Wrong Place, Wrong Time
"I don't go to places where it is socially acceptable to approach women often. I hate loud a** clubs, don't go to many concerts, and really don't go to bars much. I don't really have a friend group, either. Even when I do go, I don't even know how to do it. I can talk to them, but that never goes anywhere."
- HooterEnthusiast
Prioritizing Trust
"Just some trust issues and with no one around me who is genuinely interested in getting a long-lasting relationship."
- lilac_skyy
Dating in Real-Time
"Maybe it's just not the right time for me."
- common_Database_1322
"Sitcoms and tv/social make everything appear like it happens fast."
"Time in real life is an important factor."
"'Right Now' only works for people who have the privilege to choose and we all know if you have the privilege to choose, you have the power to wait."
"Life is crazy."
- typesett
Social Cues
"I am a high functioning Autistic and have issues interacting with strangers. My looks are good enough to get dates with women I find attractive, but they are generally put off by my lack of eye contact and I'm unable to tell if they like me or not."
"I've actually botched quite a few dates where I thought they weren't into me, but I thought we'd make good friends so I stated so. They stopped talking to me after that."
- MrStealYoBichonFrise
A New Season in Life
"Just got out of a marriage with someone I’ve spent 12 years with. I’m starting to enjoy my new freedom. I get to do what I want when I want. I don’t have to worry about explaining any purchases. I’ve been able to give up weed since I’m not around her."
"Even though it was a traumatic experience initially, I’m starting to thrive and my friends and family have noticed a difference in my attitude and anxiety. Even though she was a big part of my life and I still feel love for her, it’s becoming clear that our time together has come to an end. We were what we needed for that season in life."
"Plus I got an awesome kid out of it."
- No_Key_6276
This conversation was a great reminder of how similar we all are, in the sense of experiencing insecurities and living through parts of our lives when it's more important to work on ourselves than to develop a new relationship.
But there was hope in these responses, as well. Most of these reasons are temporary, but even if they are long-lasting, there are others who have managed to date under those same conditions.