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People Describe The Darker Effects Of The Pandemic No One Really Talks About

People Describe The Darker Effects Of The Pandemic No One Really Talks About
Image by rottonara from Pixabay

These last nineteen months and counting have been challenging to say the least. A lot of people have fallen into despair. And before Covid we were already in dark times.

The even bigger issue is that when we discuss this pandemic that there is a lack of important discussion about the effects of this pandemic.

This is not the time to be quiet. If you're in pain, if you're terrified or lost, speak up, speak out. Because times aren't heading back to normal anytime soon, and with frank discussion comes preparation and community.

We can survive, but be we can't stay silent.

Redditor u/dis_2much wanted us all to share about life with and after COVID, by asking:

What are some of the darker effects Covid-19 has had that we don't talk about?

This pandemic has depleted my entire faith in humanity. I don't believe humans will ever be capable of empathy again. Change my mind.

"found alone"

"Pediatrician here- we have had multiple babies and toddlers brought to the hospital by police for "found alone in the home with caregiver deceased."

- greyathena653

"OMG. So in Ireland they were all allowed to have one support family they interacted with during lockdown but here in the US many people shunned each other and when people needed help most and/or the help wasn't there. I feel strongly that this should have been addressed and a plan was made to help families find support or ways to cope better... so many tragedies may have been avoided. Maybe, maybe not."

- SeaLow4549

Reality

"The serious mental health impact and the shifted routine perceptions. I still feel like going out of the house is a dream state and my house is reality."

- KaidenAlenko1992

"If you get over this, it makes your mind stronger. People aren't used to not having social validation of identity and existence. You get to hear the reality better because you are isolated and it can be depressing initially. However the reality is we are born of this world alone, and we will die alone."

- Dangerous_Area_5738

Not Cool Guys

"So many people have been getting pets that veterinarians cannot keep up. There is also a very real chance that animal shelters are going to be overloaded with abandoned pets once people stop working from home."

- OrneryConelover70

"From my understanding, this is already beginning to happen (not sure about the overloaded part but at least the returning part). Not just from people who have died from covid and their pets being sent to shelters, but also people going back to work who can't keep up with caring for an animal like they could while working from home."

"Part of this is due to animals having severe separation anxiety and poor training and there being a lack of animal trainers/behaviorists to help (and a lack of trainers/behaviorists who have seen problems on this scale and to this degree). Gonna be a crapshow for sure."

- pileofanxiety

I thought I was the only one.

"I only feel safe at home. I thought I was the only one. Any avoidant behavior I had before multiplied by infinity. I want to stay in our apartment, grow my own food, clean and keep our tiny apartment nice, and never leave again. I never wanted to do anything like this before. It's like I think it's time to prepare for the apocalypse. I just came from the dentist which was scary as sh*t and I now have tons of cavities."

"I literally thought about removing all my teeth and getting dentures when I found out. I figured one surgery and a couple fittings is better than leaving my home several times for root canals etc. that's right. I wanted to have all my teeth pulled out to avoid a few more trips with my mouth wide open. I'm fully vaxxed and they are fully vaxxed but I'm petrified. And the outside world feels odd AF now. 🤦🏻♀️"

- SnarkFest123

Or yesterday...

"This Christmas is going to be a disaster. I work for a major dept store that carries toys and we're expecting to be sold out of everything by like November. Even regular clothes and stuff, we're still waiting on some products to show up from factories that were supposed to arrive in like July. We've basically had two years of crippled production across the board but because of shipping times, we're only really just starting to see it. Do your Christmas shopping now. Or yesterday."

- 5lytherin

Now I have to start Christmas shopping before Halloween?

"Is it Monday?"

"Cognitive decline, even in those who aren't infected. Lack of stimulation, excessive stress, etc. People's attention spans and memories are shot. Their reasoning ability is dimmed. Self included."

- Oh-Oh-Ophelia

"I feel as though half of my existence in the past 6 months has been trying to remember the word I was just about to say. Today a co-worker asked, "Is it Monday?" Someone else flatly answered, "It's Tuesday." Pre-Covid, we would have made fun of him at least a little bit, but now we're so used to wading through brain soup that we know it could be any of us forgetting what day of the week it is."

- whosthemotherflippin

People Share Dark Secrets From Their Profession The Public Doesn't Know | George Takei’s Oh Myyy

31% of children in the U.K.

"Children of vulnerable parents with disabilities or immune disorders who are disproportionately affected by long covid are now acting as carers for their parents, off the books, trying to care for their parents and go to school at the same time. Because of a lack of canvassing and the closure of charity shops in the U.K, children's charities lost millions over the pandemic (Barnados for example lost 65 million)."

"At the same time, up to 31% of children in the U.K. are now living in poverty, exacerbated by cruel government cuts to services/support. The government are now reducing payments for these families relying on universal credit by £80 a month. While food and utility prices are skyrocketing."

- stesha83

Uptick in 911 calls...

"People that didn't get COVID but do have ongoing health problems were less able and less likely to get the ongoing care that they would normally get. What you're seeing now is an uptick in 911 calls and ER visits because their conditions worsened and now have become medical emergencies. The health crisis that this pandemic caused is much farther reaching than just the people that got COVID."

"Source: I'm a firefighter."

- SeanShreds

Treatment

"In my opinion the darker effect is definitely the people with other illnesses that couldn't get treatment because of the lockdown rules. Many people couldn't get life extending radiation treatment and are no longer around. Somehow I feel there could have been a better alternative to no treatment."

- The_Gentle_Viking

"Absolutely this! When they say "elective" surgeries are being canceled, they don't mean cosmetic surgeries. People aren't getting mitral valve replacements, and other VERY SERIOUS surgeries. I've lost one friend to a stroke because his surgery was postponed (M42), and another to cardiac arrest because he couldn't get his old pacemaker swapped out (M35)."

- wiltedletus

Evil Lives

"I work a call center job for restaurants and a man threatened my life over not being able to call the restaurant to ask for Sriracha and soy sauce to be added to his order. Coworker was told by a customer that unless we refunded him, he'd shoot up the restaurant (it was a refund that required the delivery platform, not us). People are absolutely evil lately. I've been harassed with all sorts of things."

- Keykitty1991

Domestic Issues

"911 dispatcher for a small town here. The amount of domestic violence calls I have taken has sky rocketed. It's beginning to seriously dragged me down and exhaust me. I also helped the local programs try to get food to families with kids. I broke down when I realized some kids only get food at school."

- EreeB2017

The Roids

"This is a bit embarrassing because I'm in my 20s, but lockdown made me develop hemorrhoids. It's common among ppl who sit a lot for their work and because of lockdown I get less exercise, and here I am with damn hemorrhoids on top of all the stress and chaos of the pandemic."

- Leemour

We Lived

"I haven't heard a lot of people talk about it, but I had/still have survivors guilt. The guy in recovery next to me passed away in the middle of the night. We had our Hospital dinner hours before and it we had a great conversation. As just before we went to sleep he said "Hey, I really like you man, once we get outta here let's get actual dinner." I said "Absolutely, anything would be better than this stuff!"

"Later that night, I heard his machine go off (we were blocked by curtains) and heard the nurses and doctors come in and wheel him out saying to get the defibrillator. I don't remember much, but that has stuck with me mainly because I thought I was next. I figured I'd never see my wife, family, or friends ever again so I was trying my best to come to terms."

"I didn't find the peace everyone says you find near death. Anyways, after 47 days 10 in the ICU, I was able to leave. Year and a half later I'm here telling you all about my experience. I do still think of that man often, I don't remember his name, I don't know what he looked like, I just know our conversations helped us through."

- Joecus90

Education Messes...

"I know it's been mentioned, but my high school students are woefully lacking in terms of behavior and meeting social expectations. It's like they have no idea how to function at school. This group has been affected by the pandemic since grade 8, which is when work habits tend to take form. This will take a few years to rebuild."

- captaintrips_1980

Sounds of Silence

"How much hearing-impaired people were affected. My mother, who wears hearing aids, also depends on reading lips especially in louder, busier areas (hearing aids can have trouble sorting through complex noise situations). You can imagine what happened when everyone covered their mouths. Now she's more isolated than ever."

"Since then, I've ran into a co-worker who is also hearing impaired but doesn't want to return to office because while she can read lips on zoom, she won't be able to if we mask-up in person. They were an invisible casualty of this pandemic."

"EDIT: The response to this has been more than I expected! If anyone has links to their favorite organizations to donate to help the hard of hearing, please share them! I hope the stories below help us all be a little more empathetic to each other. Thanks!"

- muffinslinger·

Losing Parts

"Parts are harder to come by, and everything is more expensive."

- Fishmayne

"Yep, and there's going to be knock-on effects from this for years to come. Those parts are hard to come by because they weren't being produced in sufficient numbers for perhaps a whole year or more; since the manufacturers weren't manufacturing, a huge number of them went out of business permanently."

"Every downstream supply chain that relies on any product that isn't being produced is royally screwed, which could cause them to go out of business, and then the companies they supply to, and so on and so forth, until all the dominoes are down."'

- Thick-Poetry·

Less is bad...

"Less cancer and other serious diseases diagnosed and treated, less needed surgeries performed because of the hospital staff being reassigned to covid wards. Less referrals written to not overwhelm specialists. In person health services becoming harder to reach, so less conditions like skin cancer diagnosed. The health of all of us suffers, not only those affected by covid."

- lizalupi

Limbs

"I'm a prosthetist and I'm not sure people are aware that amputation can happen post COVID. I work in a small private clinic and we have about 15 patients who had various levels of amputation secondary to COVID. Would love to know the statistics."

- peg_leg_dog

Job Woes

"People who were furloughed had time to realize they hate their job. I can only speak in service industry, but it feels like a soul crushing job more than ever. I used to love bartending, and now it feel trapped by it. Everyone I talk to seems to feel the same."

"The money doesn't seem worth it anymore. Guests are worse and more entitled than ever, and staff shortages have made shifts harder and longer. It has left me with a sense of hopelessness, as it's the only career I've known, but I cannot imagine a future continuing to do it."

- Ch3wbacca1

Shortage

"Supply chain shortages! It's contributing to skyrocketing cost of living everywhere. Every time things shut down, it only gets worse."

- jay000999

"This one hurt right in my pockets. Also rent has raised so much, so between that and groceries I barely have any money left to pay for streaming services, much less go out. My parents started to help me out with medical appointments and we were WAYYYY past that."

- possum_20

I'm going to hold out hope for all of us. I'd like to think we'll be able to get through this, but we'll see. Try smiling a little wider and laugh a little louder. It's a start.

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/

People Describe The Creepiest Things They Ever Witnessed As A Kid

"Reddit user -2sweetcaramel- asked: 'What’s the creepiest thing you saw as a kid?'"

Four mistreated baby dolls are hung by barb wire
Photo by J Lopez

For many childhood memories are overrun by living nightmares.

Yes, children are resilient, but that doesn't mean that the things we see as babes don't follow us forever.

The horrors of the world are no stranger to the young.

Redditor -2sweetcaramel- wanted to see who was willing to share about the worst things we've seen as kids, so they asked:

"What’s the creepiest thing you saw as a kid?"

Serious Danger

"Me and my best friend would explore the drainage tunnels under the Vegas area where we grew up. These were miles long and it was always really cool down there so it was a good way to escape the heat of our scorching hot summers. We went into this one that goes under the Fiesta casino and found a camp with a bunch of homeless people."

"Mind you we are like 11 years old lol. And we just kept going like it was nothing. It wasn’t scary then but when I look back at it we could have been in some serious danger. Our parents had no idea we did this or where we were and we had no cellphones. We could have been kidnapped and never have been found."

oofboof2020

Waiting for Food

"I was at a portillos once when I was 12 and I was waiting with my little brother at a booth while my parents got our food. This guy was standing with his tray kind of watching me then after a couple of minutes he started to walk over really fast not breaking eye contact with me."

"He was 2 feet from the table and my dad came out of nowhere and scared the s**t out of him. He looked so surprised and just said he wanted to see if I’d get scared or not. He left his tray full of food near the door and left. My folks reported him but we never went to that location again since we found a better one closer to home."

nowhereboy1964

Captain Hobo to the Rescue

"When I was a pretty young teen, my friends and I were horsing around in San Francisco and started hanging out to smoke with some homeless guys. Another homeless dude came up and began aggressively trying to shake us down for anything (money, smokes, a ride, drugs- all of it) and wouldn’t take no for an answer."

"We got in over our heads and could tell this guy was now riling the other 2 guys up and they were acting like they wanted to jump us. Some grandfather-looking old homeless man appeared out of nowhere and yelled at us to get the f**k out of here- nice kids like us don’t belong down here at this hour!!"

"Captain Hobo saved our lives that night. My parents sincerely thought we were at a mall all day lol."

FartAttack911

Survival

tsunami GIF Giphy

"I was 7 and survived the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. Witnessed the wave rise way above the already massive palm trees (approx. 40ft?) and my family and I watched/heard the wave crash into the ground from a rooftop."

faithfulpoo

These Tsunami stories are just tragic.

On the Sand

Scared The Launch GIF by CTV Giphy

"We were a group of kids who went to swim in a local lake. And there was a dead body on the beach with their hands raised and their legs bent unnaturally that local police just took out of the same lake. I've never put my foot in these waters again."

oyloff

Be Clever

"I was walking to school and I was about 5 or 6 years old and some guy pulled up beside me in his car and asked if I would get in. He also offered me sweets to do so. I said no. The creepy bit was when he calmly said ‘clever boy’ to me, then drove off. I’ve never even told my parents or anyone else about this as it would most likely freak them out."

OstneyPiz

Bad Jokes

"Dad's side of the family pranked me by burying a fake body on our back property and had me dig it up to find valuables. Was only allowed to use a lantern for light. They stuffed old clothes with chicken bones. Sheetrock mud where the head was... Random fake jewelry as the treasures... I was like maybe 10 or 11.. I remember digging up the boot first and started gagging because it became real at that point."

Alegan239

YOU

Who Are You Reaction GIF by MOODMAN Giphy

"Woke up to find my little brother staring at me in the dark, asking, Are you really you?"

PrettyLola2004

Siblings can really be a bunch of creepers.

No one should talk to others in the dark though.

Woman stressed at work
Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

When we hear about other people's jobs, we've surely all done that thing where we make assumptions about the work they do and maybe even judge them for having such an easy or unimportant job.

But some jobs are much harder than they look.

Redditor CeleryLover4U asked:

"What's a job or profession that seems easy but is incredibly challenging?"

Customer Service

"Anything customer-facing. The public is dumb and horrendous."

- gwarrior5

"My go-to explanation is, 'Anyone can do it, but few can do it for long.'"

- Conscious_Camel4830

"The further I get in my corporate career, the less I believe I will ever again be capable of working a public-facing job. I don’t know how I did it in the past. I couldn’t handle it in the present."

"I know people are only getting worse about how they treat workers. It is disturbing, embarrassing, and draining for everyone."

- First-Combination-12

High Stakes

"A pharmacist."

"You face the public. Your mistake can literally kill someone."

- VaeSapiens

"Yes, Pharmacist. So many people think their job is essentially the same as any other kind of retail worker and they just prepare prescriptions written by a doctor without having to know anything about them."

"They are very highly trained in, well, pharmacology; and it's not uncommon for a pharmacist to notice things like potentially dangerous drug interactions that the doctor hadn't."

- Worth_University_884

Teaching Woes

"Two nuggets of wisdom from my mentor teacher when I was younger:"

"'Teaching is the easiest job to do poorly and the hardest job to do well,' and 'You get to choose two of the following three: Friends, family, or being a good teacher. You don't have enough time to do all three.'"

"We all know colleagues or remember teachers who were lazy and chose the easy route, but any teacher who is trying to be a good teacher has probably sacrificed their friends and their sleep for little pay and a stressful work environment. There's a reason something like half quit the profession within the first five years."

- bq87

Creativity Is "Easy"

"Some creative professions, such as designers, are often perceived as 'easy' due to their creative nature. However, they may face the constant need to find inspiration, deal with criticism, and meet deadlines."

- rubberduckyis

"EVERYBODY thinks they are a designer, up until the point of having to do the work. But come critique time, mysteriously, EVERYBODY IS A F**KING DESIGNER AGAIN."

"The most important skill to have as a designer is THICK SKIN."

- whitepepper

Care Fatigue Is Real

"Care work."

"I wish it could be taken for granted that no one thinks it's easy. But unfortunately, many people still see it as an unskilled job and have no idea of the many emotional complexities, or of how much empathy, all the time, is needed to form the sorts of relationships with service users that they really need."

- MangoMatiLemonMelon

Physical Labor Generally Wins

"I’m going to say most types of unskilled labor and that’s because there’s such little (visible) reward and such a huge amount of bulls**t. I’ve done customer service, barista, sales, serving, etc; and it was all much harder than my cushy desk job that actually can be considered life or death."

- anachronistika

Their Memory Banks Must Be Wild

"I don't know if I'd call it incredibly challenging, but being one of those old school taxi drivers who know the city like the back of his hand and can literally just drive wherever being told nothing but an address is pretty impressively skilled."

"Not sure if it's still like this, but British cabbies used to be legendary for this. I'm 40 and I don't think most young people appreciate how much the quality of cab service has gone down since the advent of things like Uber."

"Nowadays it's just kind of expected that a rideshare/cab driver doesn't know exactly where you're trying to get and has to rely on GPS directions that they often f up. Back when I was in college, cabbies were complete experts on their city."

"More even than knowing how to get somewhere, they could also give you advice. You could just generally describe a type of bar/club/business you're looking for, and they'll take you right to one that was spot on. Especially in really big cities like NYC."

- Yak-Mak-5000

Professional Cooking

"Being a chef."

- Canadian_bro7

"I would love to meet the person who thinks being a chef is easy! I cook my own food and it’s not only OK to eat but I make a batch of it so I have some for later. So, to make food that is above good and portion it correctly many times a day and do it consistently with minimal wastage (so they make a profit), strikes me as extremely difficult."

- ChuckDeBongo

Team Leading, Oof

"Anything that involves a lot of people skills and socializing. I thought these positions were just the bulls**t of sitting in meetings all day and not a lot of work happening but having to be the one leading those meetings and doing public speaking is taxing in a way I didn’t realize."

- Counterboudd

Not a Pet Sitter At All

"Veterinary Technician."

"Do the job of an RN, anesthesiology tech, dental hygienist, radiology tech, phlebotomist, lab tech, and CNA, but probably don’t make a living wage and have people undervalue your career because you 'play with puppies and kittens all day.'"

- forthegoddessathena

Harder Than It Looks!

"Sometimes, when my brain is fried from thinking and my ego is shot from not fixing the problem, I want to be a garbage man... not a ton of thinking, just put the trash in the truck, and a lot of them have trucks that do it for you!"

"But if the robot either doesn't work or you don't have one on your truck, it smells really bad, the pay isn't what it used to be, you might find a dead body and certainly find dead animal carcasses... and people are id**ts, overfilling their bags, just to have them fall apart before you get to the truck, not putting their trash out and then blaming you, making you come back out."

"Your body probably is sore every day, and you have to take two baths before you can kiss your wife..."

"Ehh, maybe things are not so bad where I am."

- Joebroni1414

Twiddling Thumbs and Listening

"Therapist here. I’ve always said that it’s pretty easy to be an okay therapist—as in, it’s not that hard to listen to people’s problems and say, 'Oh wow, that’s so hard, poor you.'"

"But to be a good therapist? To know when your client is getting stuck in the same patterns, or to notice what your client isn’t saying? To realize that they’re only ever saying how amazing their spouse is, and to think, 'Hmm, nobody’s marriage is perfect, something’s going on there'?"

"To be able to ask questions like, 'Hey, we’ve been talking a lot about your job, but what’s going on with your family?' And then to be able to call them on their s**t, but with kindness and empathy? Balancing that s**t is hard."

"Anybody can have empathy, but knowing when to use empathy and when and how to challenge someone is so much harder. And that’s only one dimension of what makes being a therapist challenging."

- mylovelanguageiswine

Constant Updates

​"For the most part, my job is really easy (marketing tech). But having to constantly stay on top of new platforms, new tech, updates, etc etc is exhausting and overwhelming and I really hate it."

"Also, the constant responsibility to locate and execute opportunities to optimize things and increase value for higher-ups. Nobody in corporate roles can ever just reach a point of being 'good enough.' More and better is always required."

"Just some of the big reasons I’m considering a career change."

- GlizzyMcGuire_

Performing Is Not Easy

"Performing arts and other types of art. People think it’s a cakewalk or 'not a real job,' not realizing the literal lifetime of training, rejection, and perseverance that it takes to reach a professional level and how insanely competitive those spaces are."

- ThrowRA1r3a5

All About Perception

"I suspect everything fits this. Consider that someone whose job is stacking boxes in a warehouse has to know how to lift boxes, how many can be stacked, know if certain ones must be easily accessible, know how to use any equipment that is used to move boxes around."

"Not to mention if some have hazardous or fragile materials inside, if some HAVE to be stacked on the bottom, if a mistake is made and all the boxes have to be restacked, etc."

"But everyone else is like, 'They're just stacking boxes.'"

- DrHugh

It's easy to make assumptions about someone else's work and responsibilities when we haven't lived with performing those tasks ourselves.

This gave us some things to think about, and it certainly reminded us that nothing good comes of making assumptions, especially when it minimizes someone else's experiences.

Left-handed person holding a Sharpie
Kelly Sikkema/Unsplash

Many of us who are right-handed never even think about how the world is designed to cater to us.

It probably doesn't even cross your mind that 10% of the world's population is left-handed.

Because of this, there tends to be a stigma for being left-handed since society tends to associate the left with negative things.

For example, the phrase "two left feet" applies to those who are clumsy and therefore, incapable of dancing.

Curious to hear more about the challenges facing those with the other dominant hand, Redditor johnnyportillo95 asked:

"What’s something left-handed people have to deal with that right-handed people wouldn’t even think about?"

If only manufacturers appealed to an ambidextrous world.

Furniture Obstacle

"Those desks or couch chairs that have a small desk attached. They do make left handed/sided ones but they are few and far between."

– Prussian__Princess

"And they’re only on one side of the lecture hall, and it’s never a good seat. There is ONE front row, lefty desk in the entire room and it’s in the far corner, obscured by an ancient overhead projector."

– earwighoney

Everyday Objects For Everyday People

"as a left-handed person myself, one thing we often deal with is finding left-handed tools or equipment. many everyday objects, like scissors or can openers, are designed with right-handed people in mind, which can make certain tasks a bit more challenging for us lefties. we also have to adapt to a right-handed world when it comes to writing on whiteboards or using certain computer mice."

– J0rdan_24

Dangerous Tools

"The biggest risk is power tools. I taught myself to use all power tools right handed because of risks using them left handed."

"Trivial, I love dry boards but they are super hard to write on."

– diegojones4

It's hard to play when you're born with a physical disadvantage.

Sports Disadvantage

"Allright, Sports when you are young. Every demonstration from PE teachers are right handed. You cant just copy the movements they teach you you need to flip them and your tiny brain struggoes to process it. As well, 98% of the cheap sports equipment the school uses is right handed."

– AjCheeze

No Future In Softball

"I tried to bat right handed for so long in gym class growing up because the gym teacher never asked me what my dominant side was and the thought never occurred to me as a child to mention it! Needless to say I never became a softball star."

– Leftover-Cheese

Find A Glove That Fits

"In softball and baseball we need a specific glove for our right hand that's often impossible to find unless you own one, and we have to bat on the other side of the plate."

– BowlerSea1569

"I was one of two left-handers in a 4-team Little League in the 1980s. Nobody could pitch to me. I got a lot of "hit by pitch" walks out of it."

– Jef_Wheaton

These examples are understandably annoying.

Shocking Observation

"Having right handed people make comments whenever they see us write, like we’re some kind of alien."

– UsefulIdiot85

"'Woah! You're left-handed????'"

"I find myself noticing when someone is a lefty, and sometimes I comment on it, but I try not to. I'm primarily left-handed (im a right handed wroter but do everything else left), and every single time I go to eat with my family, someone says, "Oh hey, give SilverGladiolus22 the left hand spot, they're left-handed," and inevitably someone says, 'Wait, really?' Lol."

– SilverGladiolus22

Can't Admire The Mug

"We never get to look at the cute graphics on coffee mugs while we’re drinking from them."

– vanetti

"I just realized…I always thought the graphics were made so someone else could read them while you drink. Hmmm."

– Bubbly-Anteater7345

"I'm right-handed and I often wondered why the graphics were turned towards the drinker instead of out for others to see."

– Material-Imagination

The Writing On The Wall

"Writing on whiteboards is a nightmare. I have to float my hand, which tires out my arm quickly, and I can't see what I've already written to keep the line straight."

– darkjedi39

"Also as a teacher, it means I'm standing to the left of where I'm writing, so I'm blocking everything I write. I have to frequently finish writing, then step out of the way so people can see, instead of just being able to stand on the right side the whole time."

– dancingbanana123

Immeasurable

"Rulers."

"How the f'k is no one talking about rulers? It's from 30cm to 0 cm to me, or I have to twist my arms to know the measure I want to trace over it."

– fourangers

Just Can't Win

"EVERYTHING. The world has always been based around people being right handed. As a Chef, my knife skills SUCKED until I worked with a Left Handed Chef. Then it all made sense."

"Literally, everything we do must be observed, then flipped around in our heads, then executed. This is why Lefties die sooner, on average, than Righties."

"I had to learn how to be ambidextrous, just to complete basic tasks (sports, driving a manual, using scissors, etc). I am used to it now, and do many things right handed out of necessity, as wall as parents and teachers 'forcing' it upon me."

"But, at least we are not put to death anymore, simply for using the wrong hand (look it up, it happened)."

"Ole Righty, always keeping us down."

– igenus44

The world doesn't need another demographic to feel "othered" for being different.

But if you're right-handed and tend to make assumptions about left-handed people, you may want to observe the following.

Ronald Yeo, PhD, professor of psychology at the University of Texas-Austin told CNN:

"We shouldn’t assume much about people’s personalities or health just because of the hand they write with."
"And we certainly shouldn’t worry about lefties’ chances of success: After all (as of 2015), five of our last seven U.S. presidents have been either left- or mixed-handed."

Word.

Dog lying down on a bed
Photo by Conner Baker on Unsplash

Not all pet owners have the same relationship with their pets.

While anyone who decides to become a pet owner, or pet parent as some say, love their pets equally, some never ever let them leave their side.

Taking their pet with them to work, running errands, even on vacations.

Many pet parents even allow their pets to share their bed with them when going to sleep.

For others though, this is where a line is finally drawn.

Redditor Piggythelavasurfer was curious to hear whether pet owners allowed their pets to share their bed with them, as well as the reasons why they do/don't, leading them to ask:

"Do you let your pet sleep in your bed? Why/why not?"

The Tiny Issue Of Water...

"Absolutely not."

"I have fish."- Senior-Meal3649

Everyone Gets Lonely Eventually...

"I adopted an eleven year old cat the day before Halloween."

"She has mostly lived in my closet since I got her, and she hasn’t been too interested in coming out."

"Last night, she came out of my closet and jumped up on my bed, and crawled under my covers and curled up by my feet to sleep."

"I was so happy!"- YellowBeastJeep

The Comforting Reminder That You're Not Alone...

"I recently lost my Greyhound but I used to let him sleep on my bed with me."

"The company was nice and he was no trouble to have on my bed."- HoodedMenace3

Hungry Cookie GIF by De Graafschap Dierenartsen Giphy

What Do You Mean Allow?

"I have no choice."

"She is a cat, cats do whatever they want."- Small_cat1412

"He lets me sleep in my bed."- Poorly-Drawn-Beagle

Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way

"I carry my old boy upstairs to bed every night."- worst_in_show

Hug GIF by The BarkPost Giphy

Who Needs An Alarm Clock?

"I let my two cats sleep with me."

"They're so full of love and just want cuddles all the time."

"And so do I."

"We've all developed a lil routine."

"Get to bed, oldest sleeps on my feet to keep them warm, youngest lies in my arm while I lie on my side (she the little spoon), then when I snooze my alarm for work in the morning the youngest paws at my face and meeps loudly to wake me up."- GhostofaFlea_

Whose Bed Is It Anyway?

"Yes."

"They're also kind enough to let me squeeze into whatever space they've left for me."

"Although I do get a few dirty looks off them."- Therealkaylor

"I found this tiny kitten screaming her head off under a car."

"Would not come out."

"Got some food and some water in dishes."

"I stood by the tire so she couldn't see my feet."

"She got curious about the food and water and started gobbling it down."

"I thought she would bolt when I squatted down."

"She was too busy eating."

"I grabbed her by the nape of the neck and all four legs went straight out and she tried to scratch me to death."

"I got her in the door and tossed her toward the couch."

"She ricocheted off the couch as if she was a ping pong off a table and I lost sight of her."

"I put out food and water and a sandbox and did not see that kitten for three days."

"On the third day, I came home and she was on my bed pillow."

"I thought she would bolt when I came near, but she didn't."

"I wanted to sleep so I tried to scoot her little butt off my pillow."

"She would not go."

"I put my head down to sleep and that is the way it was from then on."

"She ran the roost."- Logical_Cherry_7588

sleepy kitten GIF Giphy

Sleeping Is A Prerequisite...

"No, he's a cat and he cannot keep still during the night."

"He walks across the headboard, opens the closet doors, jumps into the windows and rustles the blinds, etc."

"If he would sleep he could stay, but alas, he's a ramblin' man."- Spong_Durnflungle

Saying No Just Isn't An Option...

"'Let'."

"Lol."

"It's a cat's world and I'm happy to be on her good side."- milaren

Felines Only!

"The cat does, the dog doesn't and the horse certainly does not either."- Xcrowzz

Angry Tom And Jerry GIF by Boomerang Official Giphy

Is That My Hair On That Pillow?

"My dog is perfect."

"She comes up, cuddles til we start to fall asleep, then gets down to sleep on her bed so she doesn't get too hot."

"Jumps back up in the early morning for wake up cuddles."

"The hair everywhere is the only downside but she is so cozy, what can you do."- HoodieWinchester

It is easy to understand how some people are able to fall asleep more easily knowing their friend and protector is there, in bed, with them.

Though we can't blame others who don't want to run the risk of being scratched or bitten in the middle of the night either...