Maybe it's paranormal, maybe it's trauma, but something has at some point shaken you deeply to your core. You know what I'm talking about. Even the thought of it makes your hair stand on end.
u/dontgetsaltyplease wanted to collect some of these stories:
What's the scariest/most disturbing thing that's ever happened to you?
Here were some of the most hair raising.
Two Weeks Gone
GiphyAn accident in which I lost 2 full weeks of memory. I have seen pictures where I'm in a wheelchair being pushed around the hospital by my parents and brother, I have my eyes open, I'm laughing, but I remember literally zero of it. Nothing. It's a void.
A Horrible Wreck
GiphyI had my back turned to the road when an extremely drunk person jaywalking got hit by a drunk girl in a Jeep Cherokee (it was Halloween in a party town, no one was sober). He was still in the air when I turned around, landed roughly 50 feet from where he was hit. I had never heard that sound before but I knew what it was as soon as I heard it. The kid survived, but his body was pretty mangled. I think the fact that he was drunk and didn't tense up before impact is what saved him. The girl driving was 17 and wasn't charged as an adult. Don't drive drunk, and don't jaywalk in night when you're shirtless in dark green body paint.
Close Call
GiphyI was partially ejected from a car crash in December 2008. I fractured my spine, compression fractures. I was asleep in the back seat of a truck that flipped.
I woke up in horrible pain. I thought I was going to die. I was pleading with the EMS to not let me die. When I got to the hospital they thought I was internally bleeding and had to do an emergency exploratory surgery. I didn't know if I would come out of the surgery or not. I did :)
Twist Ending
GiphyA group of friends and I were hiking in the mountains near my home one evening and we, being stupid high schoolers, and also stupid stoners, lost track of time. As we were about a mile from the trailhead the sun was already set and it was starting to get dark. If anyone has ever been hiking in the forest at night you know how unnerving it can be. It was especially unnerving after having smoked a bowl.
Well there were four of us and as we rounded a bend in the trail we we're stopped by probably the worst luck possible. Standing in the middle of the trail, about a quarter mile from the cars was a HUGE grizzly bear. Of the four of us, my close buddy and I were probably the least pants sh-ttingly terrified. We hiked here a lot and the trails where I grew up are famous for their bear population and we saw them pretty regularly. But there was something f-cked about this bear.
The way it sat there staring at us was uncommon and to this day I've never seen a predator stand so stock still and loom over me like that. It felt like ages before someone finally realized it's already dark we need to do something and picked up a stick and waved it above his head. Goddamn if bear was fazed at all. Asshole didn't move an inch. Which turned out to be the most telling part of the story. Since it was a dead tree wrapped around a boulder and we were all sh-tting our pants over nothing in the moonlight. We still laugh about that today.
No Words
GiphySeeing a women hit by a train and getting splatted was pretty disturbing. Not so much for the aftermath but the noise and the way she looked at me before she jumped has stuck with me
The Shoe's Not Important, Linda
GiphyWas on a date with my fiancé a few years ago, and had just gotten these shoes I had been eying. About to hop off the top of the escalator when lord knows how the heel of my shoe gets caught in the teeth of the escalator and begins to absolutely tear through these leather shoes with a hard-a** rubber sole like butter.
Thank god my first instinct was to yank my foot out instead of worry about that shoe or my foot would be mangled to this day, probably would never walk right again. She was so sad I had just lost my new shoe, I was frankly ecstatic that i went home with a normal leg that day.
Narrow Escape
GiphyDirectly behind my house is a huge recreation area with miles and miles of hiking trails. People have gone missing there in recent years and they've found bodies there too. One day about two years ago I fell asleep on the couch accidentally and at like two AM, my dogs went absolutely crazy barking at the front door and they wouldn't shut up so I got up to see what it was. There was a man standing in my doorway with the screen door already opened in his hand- like I caught him the second between opening my screen door and opening the door to my house, which I had accidentally left unlocked because like I said, I accidentally fell asleep. I was totally out of it and still half asleep so the situation didn't really dawn on me and the first thing out of my mouth was "Oh, hey. What do you need?" Then I woke up and realized what the hell was going on and slammed my door shut in his face and locked it and called 911. The dude left and the police never found anyone. I obviously don't know why that man was on my doorstep but the fact that he could have taken me into that park very easily and no one would have known until it was too late shakes me up every time I think about it.
Rag Doll
GiphyWhen I was crossing a road and a car came screaming around the corner didn't see me and hit me. This happened right outside my sons school. He saw the accident but didn't know it was me ( I was in all black gym clothes ). Concision, head trauma, obliterated my left shoulder ACL and tore my ACL in my left knee. Huge bruise from hip to lower calf.
Hospital said they only thing that saved me was I didn't see it coming so was not expecting it and was basically a rag doll. Turns out the driver was not insured, suspended license and the car wasn't his.
Near Miss
GiphyAs a child, around 12, I was walking back to school, from a tennis lesson. The route was around a km and some.
I just started on my way back, and this car soon comes by and pulls over. A senior, possibly in his late 60s is the only occupant.
He asks where I'm going, and if I need a lift. I politely decline, then he started asking other questions. Being oblivious, I answer him, discussing my father's work, what my mother did with her time, and how many siblings I had. Didn't think anything of it for so many years, till around 2 years ago, the memory popped up in my head.
Only then did the gravity of what was happening at the time come home. He was trying to familiarize himself with me, and in some way grooming me to see him as a friend.
I'm still glad to this day that I never got into that car.
A Helmet, PLEASE
GiphyAbout two years back, I saw a live road accident involving a bike and a truck. The biker's head was squished like a water melon. This was too disturbing to see. A human body in a shape like that. I will never forget that sight.
ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET GUYS!
Black Mamba
GiphyNot as morbid as some of the others in this thread but probably getting stuck in the shower ( technically a wet room) with a black mamba while on holiday aged 8. That was pretty terrifying.
Not The Instrument I Had In Mind
GiphyI was going through a hard time and needed money. I saw an ad in a local paper that said "buying musical instruments. Any condition. Call ####." So, I called to sell my guitar. I talked to a man on the phone, and he seemed nice enough. He asked about the condition and what model it was and what not. He said he wanted to buy it and agreed to meet me at a guitar center near by.
So, I meet this guy in the parking lot and I show him my guitar. He asks, "why are you trying to sell your guitar?" I tell him that I am going through a hard time. He then says, "well, you could stay with me if you want." I say, "um, no sir. Are you still going to buy my guitar?" So he asks, "How about you watch me pleasure myself in my car and I'll give you $50." To which I replied, "No! What the F-CK?!" I grabbed my guitar, went into the store and waited inside until he left.
He stayed in that parking lot for a bit too. So dang creepy. I called that paper and got his ad removed.
Seatbelts Are Important
GiphyMy friend was driving 45 mph and hit black ice which led us swirling off into a ditch flipping once.
Stupid me didn't put on a seatbelt. Luckily I came out with just glass in my hands and a sore back.
Grateful now and I always remember to put on my seatbelt.
An Invisible Stalker
GiphyWhen I was about 10 years old my family lived in this old rent house. My parents were in the process of buying a house from my moms family. One night we came home and there was a bag of candy with a picture of us in our car at McDonald's. We were pretty creeped out but figured it might be some kind of prank from my older sister's friends. We forgot all about it. Then we moved into our new house. It was in the middle of summer. We live in Louisiana so it was also the middle of hurricane season. In late July we came home from school shopping and found a ziplock bag filled with stuff that would have gone unnoticed but we knew was ours. Each item came from a room in our house. Whoever did it went through every room collecting one item and then left it in plain view for us to find. And in that bag was also a picture of us in the front yard. It was a picture that had been obviously taken from far away and without our knowledge. At this point we realized this wasn't a joke and my mom reported it. August came around and a hurricane passed knocking out all the power. To alleviate some of the heat we opened the windows in the house. During the calm part of the storm my sister and I both woke up to someone whispering our names outside of our windows. We went check our parents' bedroom and they were still sleeping. We huddled up together and didn't sleep that night. We still have no idea who was terrorizing us and the cops never found the person. I'm now 28 and my sister is 32. Sometimes we still talk about those creepy months and it still scares me that the person is out there watching us and now our own kids.
Cuckoo's Nest Revisited
GiphyI ended up involuntary committed to a mental hospital because of two small superficial cuts on my arms. My first night I meet my psychiatrist who had complete control over when I left and what I could do. Still I figured I could trust her. I was upset about being committed and didn't believe it should have happened. Because I trusted her and felt that she could and would help me out I loudly vented my frustration to her. She was across the room from me. I stayed where I was. I never made a move towards her or a threat against her or anyone. She tells me that she was going to figure something it why I was there and see if she could get me out. I was so relieved. She avoided me the rest of the night.
The next day when it was time for her to see me. She is sit out in the main area for people to be and told me she was afraid of being alone with me. She then decided to change my meds and put me on one that I would take twice a day that I had taken before to help me sleep. I told her I wasn't comfortable with changing my meds. I told her I really only trusted my actual doctor that I saw every two weeks. Still she changed my meds. Now when it comes to taking your meds you have the choice to take the full dosage prescribed or not taking the drug at all. She had me over medicated and so I had to stop taking my meds.
Now hospitals have a place where you can make a complaint and also request a change in doctor. My complaint about it her was ignored and my request to change doctors was denied.
They also have times to let the patients outside. When I tried to go I was told my doctor had ordered that I not be allowed outside.
It was a disturbing experience because I had no rights in that week. I was at the will of a doctor I didn't trust and that I felt had a vendetta against me. My stay there taught me to lie. I was in the care of this place that was supposed to help me and all I got was a hellish experience I couldn't get out of.
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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.