Sometimes you just need to have the hard conversations with people. The kind that are the last resort, that you really really don't want to have. It sucks, but it's necessary. Here are a few examples of these tough conversations, courtesy of the people of Reddit.
u/Ryrylx asked: [serious] What's the hardest thing you've had to say to someone?
That's super tough.
Telling my dad on the phone that my mom was dead. They hadn't been together for almost 20 years but they were still good friends and loved each other very much. She was the first woman he ever loved, marriage just wasn't good. I had to call him as soon as he got to work. I asked him if he could come by my house and he asked what was wrong and I said, "Mom's dead." (I was still in shock.)
The sad and defeated "oh my god oh my god" he said over the phone broke my heart. It didn't fully hit me until he pulled up and I just collapsed in his arms. It was awful. Worst morning of my entire life.
Good for you.
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Told my mother she would no longer be a part of my life or my kids' lives.
It's been 12 years and counting. She's a toxic narcissist and the final straw was her saying something incredibly demeaning to my youngest daughter during a two week vacation on the beach (that I was 100% funding). I immediately put her a** in a cab back to the airport and have not seen or spoken to her since.
Definitely difficult, but my life is SO much better now.
Oh NO.
I had to tell my friend's mom that I shat my pants while watching a scary movie when I was at my friend's place. It was so hard to tell her. I kept talking about something else every time when I went to tell her. [seriously]
Sorry that happened to you and I hope it ended well but this is really funny to picture lol. 10th attempt: I....well...I was watching a movie...and it got me thinking, what's the deal with movies?
Wars kill in many ways.
Having to tell my daughter in law that my son, her husband, was dead.
Both my sons suffered from PTSD. The youngest became severely depressed and committed suicide. The eldest just rode his motorcycle into oncoming traffic on an interstate late at night. Wars kill in many ways.
It's good to communicate.
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"I feel like I'm being neglected by you." Followed by.. "Just because we love each other doesn't mean we are good for each."
That's some solid communication right there, well done. My ex had that talk with me (we were both bad for each other but I can't deny that as a younger man I was a bad boyfriend). Years later we are still friends and are both in healthy relationships. I am a proud decent husband and I owe a lot of my growth to my ex for calling out unacceptable behaviors.
Good for you.
The morning after a (now ex) boyfriend left my apartment, I had to call a sexual assault hotline. Saying out loud that he had hurt me and asking what I needed to do next was so hard to say out loud.
The out loud is so hard. I struggle with people's reactions too. Not that they react badly, but I hate breaking their hearts.
Alcoholism hurts everyone involved.
I had to tell my husband, whom I love more than life itself, second only to my children, that he couldn't come home until he seriously started making some good decisions about his problem drinking and his life.
I miss him desperately.
One of the hardest things in the world.
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Having to explain to all of the friends in my friend group that our other friend had killed himself. I had that conversation 12 times that day alone, and I remember each word for word. It's the hardest thing I've ever had to explain.
A couple of years back, one of my close friends died in a road accident. I had to make the call to the rest of our gang. It was traumatic. To think about it now, gives me anxiety.
That's such a hard ultimatum.
My ex had a brain tumor. He had two months to live or to get surgery. He didn't want to go under the knife because he was terrified of doctors. I had to tell him that I would leave him unless he got the surgery because I wasn't going to watch him die. He got the surgery and is alive today.
I don't feel bad for emotionally manipulating him. It was hard but it was for the best.
Oof.
I had to tell an employee that he smelled and needs to improve his personal hygiene.
I'm sure everybody else appreciated it.
I have problems with my nose and had a family member approach me about this once. I was pretty mad about how they did it, but really wished somebody had said something sooner. If anything, it shows you care about his well being.
A tough one.
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Having to tell my mom that I was scared to be alone with her. My dad had just been arrested and sent to a rehab facility, and my mom was a heavy cocaine user. On top of that she was off her meds. I hadn't eaten at all that day, and I hadn't been to school in three weeks. She was hallucinating and being paranoid.
I told her I didn't feel safe with her because she was too incapacitated to make dinner. Whatever I said snapped her out of it, and she called relatives to take care of me, and then she went to rehab. I was eleven.
That's so sad.
My friend handed me a card with cursive. She asked me to read it, since she can't read cursive. The card said that her mom had HIV, and I really couldn't bear to tell her. And when I did, she just took the card and walked off.
Ew.
I had to speak to an employee about his masturbating during work time. He would leave his work station multiple times a day and go to the bathroom and masturbate.
His co-workers were pretty fed up with his actions and the fact that one of the two bathroom stalls was always occupied.
Tragic.
Giphy
Awhile back, I found my best friend's dead body. His uncle was my housemate, and his parents lived a state away from me.
Not only did I have to come back to my own house and deal with his uncle's reaction... But I refused to let the cops call my buddies parents to tell them. The sounds his mom made during my phone call will stick with me forever.
That's a hard one.
I had to tell someone that I didn't love them in the same way they loved me. It was awful because they are a really close friend and I didn't want to hurt them.
