Top Stories

People Dispel Common Misconceptions That Far Too Many People Believe To Be True

You can't actually think that can you?

People Dispel Common Misconceptions That Far Too Many People Believe To Be True

Don't be gullible. Everything you hear is NOT true... no matter how old the saying is or whatever family lore can accompany it. Do research before you believe anything. Google is a wealth of knowledge. Just try... think of the craziest and simplest things you've been told and look them up.

Redditor u/Dememria wanted to know what beliefs we've all been bamboozled by, by asking.... What stupid myth do too many people believe?


To Tell the truth....

"You won't get in trouble if you tell the truth."

Edit: Yes I know that morally, this is not the good option. But if you are in a sticky situation (and I bet you once did) you probably lied. Forg1ven1738

I'm laughing. Chuckling really. You get told this from the time you are a little kid. Right up there with being able to trust a police officer.

I once walked right up to a cop one time and handed him a bag of weed I found. It was at a place where kids were, so. Well guess what? I got arrested. ShinzoAbeFroman

Lights Off.

Giphy

Its illegal to turn on lights in your car. Lakinther

While it isn't illegal, it is more likely to get you pulled over. Especially if you're also swerving and driving erratically.

The real reason people say it's illegal is because the glare from an interior light can make it really damn hard to see through the glass. mechwarrior719

The 10%.....

That human beings only use 10% of their brain. Ervaloss

Good grief I can't listen to people who say this is true. The worst thing is, my teacher in elementary school thinks that humans only use 10-15% of their brain, and the reason Albert Einstein, for example, was super smart is that he used about 30% of his brain. The biggest amount of bullshit I've ever heard, and the person saying it is a science teacher. yoyosarefun123

Multiple People....

"My arm's not broken, it's only fractured." It's the same thing!

Source: I'm an x-ray tech. powerpatch90

In my experience, it seems that most people think a fracture is when it's not broken the whole way and broken means it's broken clean in half (or multiple pieces).

In this case, I understand their intent, they simply don't know the right words. Still annoying though, they do mean the same thing. Laivine_sama

Tax Issues.

Giphy

The most annoying one to me is the idea that in America you pay the percent from your highest tax bracket on the whole of your income. I've had people brag to me about how they know to clock out early on certain days so that they don't make enough to go up a tax bracket - as if you would make less money by making more money! CaramelleCreame

Seeing Red. 

That blood is blue in your veins but turns red when exposed to the air. Total bull. Blood is always red, it just goes from dark crimson to bright, almost-pink depending on how much oxygen is present in your blood. The blue color of your veins is just that: The color of the vein tissue. because of how light shifts as it passes through the skin. If someone persists, ask them what color the blood is when they have it drawn, because it's not in contact with the air. (hint: It's red.)

EDIT: Corrected statement regarding where the blue is coming from. In any event, the blood inside the arteries and veins is red. cadomski

Hair be Gone.

Giphy

Shaving makes your hair grow back thicker. gt35r

Had very short hair my entire life and now that I want to grow it out and do something with it, I find that I'm actually losing my hair. That myth is super bull. nowshowjj

REPORT NOW! 

You don't need to wait 24 hours to report a missing person.

If you sincerely think someone is missing, then report it. The faster that a missing person report is filed, the better chance there is that the person will be found.This is especially crucial when it comes to missing children. -eDgAR-

Nifty Notes. 

Snakes will chase you and bite you, opossums have rabies, pigs are dirty, there's tons of misinformation about animals. hannibalstarship

Here's a nifty little Opossum fact, they almost never have rabies because they run too cold!

Bonus fact, they will eat massive amounts of ticks and bugs! They look like mean rat cats but they're really not! They're quite beneficial to keeping your home pest free! PigsAndCats

People think that if you ask an undercover cop is they are an undercover cop, they have to tell the truth.

An undercover cop does not have to reveal that they are a cop, even if the person asks. Back2Bach

I don't think I've ever heard this outside of comedy movies. I'm not sure anyone actually believes this. Immortal_Azrael

The Frog Story...

Giphy

That if you put a frog in tepid water and slowly raise the temperature, the frog won't try to escape and save itself when the temp gets too high. Great for illustrating certain points, but completely untrue. Ted_Shred

Hey Goldie. 

That goldfish are meant to live in bowls! The average goldfish gets about fourteen inches long in proper conditions, and because they're such dirty animals (they generate ammonia like you wouldn't believe) they need heavy proper filtration. Yes, you should have 20 gallons per goldfish. That means two goldfish go into a FILTERED forty gallon tank. No, an air pump is not a filter. No, a plant is not a filter.

No, you cannot put other tropical fish with your goldfish, because goldfish require lower temperatures (65 degrees Fahrenheit) while tropical fish require higher temperatures (78 degrees Fahrenheit).

Goldfish can live up to 25 years. Putting them in a bowl means you are stunting their growth, but not the growth of their inner organs. They stay 2 inches while their organs keep growing inside of them, which is why they die in 2 years, instead of living to be 25 years old, and over a foot long.

That turned more into a rant than anything but oh well, PSA brought to you by a humble aquatics associate at a pet store. Mothman8130

Yes!

Fire Sprinklers. They don't all go off by pulling a fire alarm, they're individually heat activated. Not_A_RedditAccount

Yes!

I started in facilities maintenance- big buildings have water reserves for the sprinkler systems (concrete cisterns / tanks)

Very few buildings I ever worked with drained/cleaned/rotated this water.

Getting hit with the sprinkles was begging for Legionnaires or Staphylococcus... Dr_Doctor_Doc

"vanished" 

Bermuda triangle. For any given same sized sea area there is statistically the same amount of missing ships and planes. skreed

And a surprising number of ships and planes that "vanished" in the triangle...

  • Sank/crashed for perfectly understood reasons.
  • Went missing for a few hours, then were found perfectly safe and sound.
  • Sank/crashed/went missing nowhere near the triangle (in one case in the Pacific!)
  • Never actually existed in the first place. TheMightyGoatMan

7...

Giphy

That it takes 7 years to digest gum if you swallow it. WaffleJonesthe3rd

Spot Off....

Spot reduction of fat. People think that doing sit ups will burn fat around your belly area. 6PrivetDrive

I'm telling you, I have a 6 pack under all this flab. CamQueQues

Cracked....

You get arthritis by cracking your knuckles. All it is is just gas bubbles popping. Also some guy did a long term experiment (several decades I think) where he constantly cracked all knuckles in one hand and left the other one alone. After the experiment was over, they took X-rays and tests to find that both hands were practically identical in terms of condition. Waeiwa

Jabbed.

Giphy

Too many people believe that porcupines can shoot their quills when they actually have to jab you with their quills. AngelicalTal

When I say "The Church".......

If birds eat rice their stomachs explode. This was started by the church because people were slipping on the rice and getting hurt.

Edit: When I say "The Church" I meant local churches not some shadowy evil organization so everyone relax. The closest thing I can find to the original spread is an advice column by Ann Landers. https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/against-the-grain/Scoob1978

Saved. Or Not.

Giphy

That if you're an organ donor then doctors won't try hard to save you and might 'let you die'. I'm a doctor, when I'm treating a patient whether the patient is an organ donor or not never crosses my mind, I will genuinely have no idea. And even if I did, why would I want to sacrifice MY patient for some random other patient across the country? Surely that would just make me look like a crap doctor! Ivehitanewlow

REDDIT

People Reveal The Weirdest Thing About Themselves

Reddit user Isitjustmedownhere asked: 'Give an example; how weird are you really?'

Let's get one thing straight: no one is normal. We're all weird in our own ways, and that is actually normal.

Of course, that doesn't mean we don't all have that one strange trait or quirk that outweighs all the other weirdness we possess.

For me, it's the fact that I'm almost 30 years old, and I still have an imaginary friend. Her name is Sarah, she has red hair and green eyes, and I strongly believe that, since I lived in India when I created her and there were no actual people with red hair around, she was based on Daphne Blake from Scooby-Doo.

I also didn't know the name Sarah when I created her, so that came later. I know she's not really there, hence the term 'imaginary friend,' but she's kind of always been around. We all have conversations in our heads; mine are with Sarah. She keeps me on task and efficient.

My mom thinks I'm crazy that I still have an imaginary friend, and writing about her like this makes me think I may actually be crazy, but I don't mind. As I said, we're all weird, and we all have that one trait that outweighs all the other weirdness.

Redditors know this all too well and are eager to share their weird traits.

It all started when Redditor Isitjustmedownhere asked:

"Give an example; how weird are you really?"

Monsters Under My Bed

"My bed doesn't touch any wall."

"Edit: I guess i should clarify im not rich."

– Practical_Eye_3600

"Gosh the monsters can get you from any angle then."

– bikergirlr7

"At first I thought this was a flex on how big your bedroom is, but then I realized you're just a psycho 😁"

– zenOFiniquity8

Can You See Why?

"I bought one of those super-powerful fans to dry a basement carpet. Afterwards, I realized that it can point straight up and that it would be amazing to use on myself post-shower. Now I squeegee my body with my hands, step out of the shower and get blasted by a wide jet of room-temp air. I barely use my towel at all. Wife thinks I'm weird."

– KingBooRadley

Remember

"In 1990 when I was 8 years old and bored on a field trip, I saw a black Oldsmobile Cutlass driving down the street on a hot day to where you could see that mirage like distortion from the heat on the road. I took a “snapshot” by blinking my eyes and told myself “I wonder how long I can remember this image” ….well."

– AquamarineCheetah

"Even before smartphones, I always take "snapshots" by blinking my eyes hoping I'll remember every detail so I can draw it when I get home. Unfortunately, I may have taken so much snapshots that I can no longer remember every detail I want to draw."

"Makes me think my "memory is full.""

– Reasonable-Pirate902

Same, Same

"I have eaten the same lunch every day for the past 4 years and I'm not bored yet."

– OhhGoood

"How f**king big was this lunch when you started?"

– notmyrealnam3

Not Sure Who Was Weirder

"Had a line cook that worked for us for 6 months never said much. My sous chef once told him with no context, "Baw wit da baw daw bang daw bang diggy diggy." The guy smiled, left, and never came back."

– Frostygrunt

Imagination

"I pace around my house for hours listening to music imagining that I have done all the things I simply lack the brain capacity to do, or in some really bizarre scenarios, I can really get immersed in these imaginations sometimes I don't know if this is some form of schizophrenia or what."

– RandomSharinganUser

"I do the same exact thing, sometimes for hours. When I was young it would be a ridiculous amount of time and many years later it’s sort of trickled off into almost nothing (almost). It’s weird but I just thought it’s how my brain processes sh*t."

– Kolkeia

If Only

"Even as an adult I still think that if you are in a car that goes over a cliff; and right as you are about to hit the ground if you jump up you can avoid the damage and will land safely. I know I'm wrong. You shut up. I'm not crying."

– ShotCompetition2593

Pet Food

"As a kid I would snack on my dog's Milkbones."

– drummerskillit

"Haha, I have a clear memory of myself doing this as well. I was around 3 y/o. Needless to say no one was supervising me."

– Isitjustmedownhere

"When I was younger, one of my responsibilities was to feed the pet fish every day. Instead, I would hide under the futon in the spare bedroom and eat the fish food."

– -GateKeep-

My Favorite Subject

"I'm autistic and have always had a thing for insects. My neurotypical best friend and I used to hang out at this local bar to talk to girls, back in the late 90s. One time he claimed that my tendency to circle conversations back to insects was hurting my game. The next time we went to that bar (with a few other friends), he turned and said sternly "No talking about bugs. Or space, or statistics or other bullsh*t but mainly no bugs." I felt like he was losing his mind over nothing."

"It was summer, the bar had its windows open. Our group hit it off with a group of young ladies, We were all chatting and having a good time. I was talking to one of these girls, my buddy was behind her facing away from me talking to a few other people."

"A cloudless sulphur flies in and lands on little thing that holds coasters."

"Cue Jordan Peele sweating gif."

"The girl notices my tension, and asks if I am looking at the leaf. "Actually, that's a lepidoptera called..." I looked at the back of my friend's head, he wasn't looking, "I mean a butterfly..." I poked it and it spread its wings the girl says "oh that's a BUG?!" and I still remember my friend turning around slowly to look at me with chastisement. The ONE thing he told me not to do."

"I was 21, and was completely not aware that I already had a rep for being an oddball. It got worse from there."

– Phormicidae

*Teeth Chatter*

"I bite ice cream sometimes."

RedditbOiiiiiiiiii

"That's how I am with popsicles. My wife shudders every single time."

monobarreller

Never Speak Of This

"I put ice in my milk."

– GTFOakaFOD

"You should keep that kind of thing to yourself. Even when asked."

– We-R-Doomed

"There's some disturbing sh*t in this thread, but this one takes the cake."

– RatonaMuffin

More Than Super Hearing

"I can hear the television while it's on mute."

– Tira13e

"What does it say to you, child?"

– Mama_Skip

Yikes!

"I put mustard on my omelettes."

– Deleted User

"Oh."

– NotCrustOr-filling

Evened Up

"Whenever I say a word and feel like I used a half of my mouth more than the other half, I have to even it out by saying the word again using the other half of my mouth more. If I don't do it correctly, that can go on forever until I feel it's ok."

"I do it silently so I don't creep people out."

– LesPaltaX

"That sounds like a symptom of OCD (I have it myself). Some people with OCD feel like certain actions have to be balanced (like counting or making sure physical movements are even). You should find a therapist who specializes in OCD, because they can help you."

– MoonlightKayla

I totally have the same need for things to be balanced! Guess I'm weird and a little OCD!

Close up face of a woman in bed, staring into the camera
Photo by Jen Theodore

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.

Man's waist line
Santhosh Vaithiyanathan/Unsplash

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.