Remember when a name was just a name? You could walk into a room with your head held high, a grand smile and say "Hi. I'm Karen or Chad (or a few other now infamous names)," and people wouldn't snicker or sneer. Now thanks to pop culture and the popularity of a few high profile tv shows and films, some names have taken on meanings to describe people in a "certain" unflattering light. It has to be wearing on the nerves for Karens and Chads and their peeps. But also, there is some truth when it comes to a few of these people.
Redditor u/BringBackWaffleTaco wanted to hear from all the people out there who know some Chads and Karens and what the life effect is by asking...
To all of those actually named Chad, Stacy, or Karen, how does it make you feel knowing that your names are used as insults?
Perfect Fit.
Giphy"My mom's name is Karen and a stereotype has never fit a person more."MeggieAC
"My mom is Susan, and I too feel personally vindicated by the memes."jvanderh
A Little Salty.
"My mom's name is Karen and she is the sweetest lady on earth and i cannot recall a single time she has ever asked for a manager. It makes me a little salty."LadyRarity
"Same. My mom Karen might be the most non confrontational person in human history. And the only time she took the kids was to take us to the park/swimming pool/shopping."DucksGoQuackQuack
Gosh Karen...
"Am a Karen. I'm also asian so... I don't immediately fit the stereotype for the jokes to come. Still get a lot of "gosh Karen, you're so stupid!" and jokes (hopefully) about me being a witch. I think I am nice. :("
"BONUS edit: in Vietnamese, "khai rình" (read: cai-rin) means smelly/stanky, like how pee smells. I am Vietnamese. Guess what my relatives called me growing up :D"
And then there are the Beckys....
"My old baby sitter is named Becky. She was a mega witch. I find it funny."LouTenant6767
"I'm a Becka and have never gone by Becky, but the amount of times I got "Becky with the good hair!" yelled at me was insane. I eventually found a sweater that said "NOT BECKY" on it and would wear it to functions where I knew I might get it."TwinkiWeinerSandwich
Chad Here.
Giphy"Chad here. Never played lacrosse. I'd never be accused of going to the gym on face value alone. My hygiene is quite good... shower every day. Am also a standup comedian, and the worst part is other comics using your name as a punchline when you're following them, but I get by."3rdCoastChad
And then there is Jake.
"I'm a Jake. Damn State Farm."
"Had a couple of friends in high school named Jake. Both of them owned it to the point of wearing red shirts and Khakis (and in one case a name tag that said Jake) on Halloween."ironlion99
REPORTED HIMSELF TO HIS MANAGER!!
"Am Karen as well. I don't relate to the Karen memes at all as I am of Asian decent and super shy and introverted. I find the memes hilarious though! The only thing that stinks is I feel like I'm not allowed to complain about anything."
"However, I guess I am so Karen that a server at a restaurant forgot an appetizer we ordered, we told him it was fine, and he REPORTED HIMSELF TO HIS MANAGER. Everything was fine! I told him not to worry about it and it was okay!"
"Manager comes to our table to apologize and I anxiously had to tell her we were good and nothing was wrong. We got free dessert though."karencakes
Truth.
"Am Karen. I think the memes are hilarious and sometimes, very accurate. I never ask to speak to the manager because irl, I am a manager, and I believe strongly in retail Karma."
"Side note: I used to date a guy named Chad, who was actually cheating on his gf Bunny with me. He was a real Chad."MorbidlyObsolete
Wine and.... Cherd?
"I had two friends who both have suburban white moms named Karen. Karen 1 drinks wine and Karen 2 posts facebook memes."Reddit
"A friend of mine is both super buff and very nerdy so we just call him a Cherd."Hydrys
Family Affair.
Giphy"Dad is named Chad, mom is named Karen, and little sister is named Stacy. My family is painfully aware of their names being used on the internet to the point where we try to see who can find the best insult bonus points if you use it in a appropriate setting."zerogear5
Nice Girl.
"Perhaps worse, when my daughter was in middle school, she had a lovely classmate named Isis. No idea what became of her, but she really was a wonderful kid."stupidlyugly
"I'm still friends with a woman named Isis. She said it was bad when they (the terrorist group) was on the news a lot, but it's mostly calmed down."reutermj
Kyle is Over it!
"As a dude named Kyle I can honestly tell you Im so damn over the Monster Energy drinks memes."poornose
"Preach. I thought it was dead for a bit but it came back with area 51 memes."kwehbber
'Despacito'
"It's honestly probably better than being named Alexa."
"Edit: from this point forward if your comment comes into my inbox and it contains a story of someone you know named Isis or the word 'Despacito' just know I'm the only one who's going to see it and I'm downvoting you."LegendOfDylan
Not a Cheerleader!
Giphy"I can honestly say my mum most certainly doesn't 'got it going on.' I'm neither popular, hot or a cheerleader. I'm probably closer to being a Karen!"rapidbubbles
"My sister is named Stacy, and my mom has never been more flattered than when that song got big."meeeehhhhhhh
My Friend.
"My friend is a Chad but it doesn't bother him. He was a total Anime nerd back in HS and has two kids with his adorable wife and they are walking Mormon stereotypes."notjawn
Middle Class....
"It was weird at first to see my name everywhere, but now... well, I'm a white, middle-aged, upper middle class suburban mom named Karen, so stereotypes exist for a reason, I guess."KLWK
"Oh my God, they killed Kenny!"
"Not a Chad, Stacy, or Karen, but I am a Kenny so 90% of the time when people hear my name they have to make the joke "Oh my god, they killed kenny!"
"It's died down a lot since the shows focus has shifted from killing Kenny all the time."
"I haven't heard it too often in public, but when I'm playing a video game of some sort, everyone thinks they're HILARIOUS when they say it to me."Technicallykenny
Thanks Bro...
Giphy"I got called a Chad the other day by a co-worker and it honestly made my day. Thanks for noticing the gains bro. I guess I was just thirsty for anything resembling a complement."gigglemetinkles
Jewish Karen.
"My lady friend is a middle aged white woman named Karen. It amuses her greatly. She frequently threatens to ask to speak to life's manager."DashCat9
"My sister's an older white woman named Karen. I just got off the phone with her and introduced her to Internet Karen."
"She finds it absolutely hilarious, and wants bonus points for being a Jewish Karen."disgustipated
The Drywall...
"Hi, my name's Kyle. I use to binge monster cans and while I never punched drywall i did get angry enough to punch a concrete wall very hard. This is my story."blackrose4242
There's so much in a name without all this added cultural baggage!
Do you have similar experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.
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.