People Who Were Wrongly Accused Of Cheating On Their Significant Other Share Their Stories
It wasn't me....
When we fall in love it's a beautiful experience. We always become so swept up in the glory of it all we neglect to think about what it means to actually succumb to the heart's desires. Falling in love and deciding to pursue a relationship with another means you're placing implicit trust in another human. Because if you can't trust them or yourself, there is no point.
But too often we sully that trust. Yes people cheat. But not all people. And if you're going to be obsessed about it, stay single. Too many people have never strayed and they live under suspicion they don't deserve.... or do they?
Redditor u/Sparrowflyaway wanted to hear from y'all about why we should believe "it wasn't you" by asking.... Innocent people whose SO wrongly thought you were cheating on them, what's your story?Clean Up Screw
Was told one time that going to help my parent's clean up their house was me secretly going to their neighbor's house to cheat, even though my parents attested for me it was chalked up to them "taking their child's side because they're my parents" and also not to mention their only neighbor is an elderly couple.
In the Act
He had been behaving progressively strange for some time. My whole social life pretty much happens online, it's always been like that, and most of my friends are male. It started with him worrying about me having feelings for my male friends because I was smiling at my phone when I was chatting to them. I was suddenly defending myself almost full time, had a new job of constantly reassuring him.
That evolved into him coming home early from work, or lying about his shifts so he could come home without me expecting him, hoping to "catch me in the act". It just kept getting worse. His behavior was never abusive in any way, but it definitely caused a rift in our relationship. It came to the point where I was so tired of always having him look over my shoulder, and checking on me constantly when I left the house that I was getting ready to leave him, and told him as much.
He asked me to stay, promising he would seek help. He booked us a marriage counsellor, which we saw for a year, and he went to a physician to get a referral to a psychiatrist. The doctor sent him for some blood tests, and as it turns out he has a severe b12 deficiency which was causing extreme paranoia.
True to his word, he worked on himself. He saw a therapist for some time, we went to counseling together, and he took b12 supplements and started taking anti anxiety medication (which he still takes).
I fell very deeply in love with him again, and decided I wanted to stay after all. We're still together, and while we have our ups and downs, we have a very strong and loving relationship.
He gotta go!
My Bf, who I lived with, wasn't working and I was working 4 jobs to pay all the bills and save a bit. After a year of this I told him I wasn't happy and gave him a deadline to move out or have a job. He started accusing me of cheating. He would call the places I worked or show up to make sure I was where I said I was. He would follow me to the gym then yell at me for flirting with the trainers (it was a crossfit gym and everyone there were all friends). If I went out with friends he would call every 20 minutes and it would always be a fight when I got home.
Eventually he isolated me from my friends, the gym owner banned him from the property and two of the places I worked had talks with me about him interrupting my work day. We had huge fights about him accusing me of cheating. He would pull up personal ads online and accuse me of creating them. He went through my phone and computer, deleted a lot of things including messages and pictures from my fiancé who had passed 5 years before I met my ex. He would not leave and would not get a job.
I talked to the landlord and she sympathized but said that if i left and he did not leave the apartment an eviction would include both of our names. I finally talked to his parents and they agreed to take him. I convinced him to move l, he thought we were moving together and were going to start over in a new place, when we got to his parents I left the next day.
SUPRISE!!!
So one night after Christmas a few years ago my wife was trying to set up a toy for our daughter.
It was one of those smart toys that you could program to say the kids name and other stuff. Well her phone died so she asked for mine. I said "no, don't worry about that I will do it later." She kept asking why I wouldn't let her use my phone, and I kept saying I can't right now its a secret." She eventually let it go and grabbed her laptop but she made it clear she was unhappy with me.
The reason I couldn't let her right that moment is literally moments before she asked, I had reached out to all of her friends to plan a surprise birthday party for her. So while this is happening I'm getting dozens of texts that I wont let her read... it was a long night. Eventually her party came and she was happily surprised, and laughed when I explained why I couldn't lend her mine at that moment.
Explain Yourself....
Ohhh man.
About 7 years ago my wife found a woman's earring in our house and accused me of cheating (she had been away for three months doing a summer program out of the country).
I get why she was suspicious, it does look incriminating, especially since it was this fancy dangly earring in a style that my wife doesn't wear.
Except I literally had no idea who the earring belonged to or how it got there, and it's been a mystery in our life since then. No woman came to visit the house while she was away, and I was working ludicrously long hours and was not home for most of the time. My wife found it sitting on a bookshelf in our home office when she returned from her studies.
We legitimately have no idea how the earring got there. No. Freaking. Clue. I told my wife bluntly (after many arguments on the matter) that the only explanations I have left are that some woman broke into out house, stole nothing, and left the earring, or that I genuinely had dissociative identity disorder and apparently lived another life without knowing it.
If someone out there did break into my house and planted that earring to screw with my life... I salute your efforts, you conniving savage.
I love my BB
I call my youngest brother bb ( bébé, cause i'm french ) because he was born when i was 14 and i almost raised him. My boyfriend was jealous, when he saw "bb" on my tel contacts list ... He then asked me if my bro was physically attractive.. The question was weird but screw it ! I said yes, my little brother is handsome, intelligent, I love him and I'm proud of him so what? Overly Jealous people are ridiculous.
It's not Mine or it is but there is a reason....
So my best friend and her bf watched my cat for me and stayed at my apartment when I was out of town for a week. Months after I was back from the trip, my boyfriend was helping me move my bed and a condom wrapper fell out of the bed frame. We had literally never used condoms so he understandably was like what the hell. I had to call my best friend on speaker and idk if he really believed me.
Lookin' Good Girl
She found a pair of panties mixed in with my laundry.
She accused me of cheating on her. I tried to explain to her that they were mine, she called me a liar as well. Huge fight. A few days later I asked her to come over so we could talk. She agreed. When she arrived I answered the door dressed in drag. And that's how she found out. That was the only way I could think of to show her that they were my undies. We had an overdue conversation about it. She commented on how well I was walking in heels and knew I wasn't lying.
Hold me Bud
One time I thought my girlfriend (now wife) was cheating on me. We lived about an hour apart and she moved into a house with a bunch of work mates, both male and female. I drove up to surprise her, and when parked out front, everyone was sitting outside. She was sitting on this guy's lap and they were all cuddly.
I walk up and say "Surprise, I came for a visit!".... expecting the worst.
She got up, came over and hugged me and introduced me to her seatmate James, who I quickly learned was very gay. He sashayed over and hugged me as well.
I have never been so glad to have been hugged by a gay man.
Dream It. Be It.
My boyfriend accused me of cheating. He said he'd had a dream that I said to him, "do you have a condom I can borrow? I'm going home with whatshisname from the gym tonight." Of course, because he dreamt it, it must be true.
Crazy is Crazy
Accused me of being the woman in a random porn video he had been watching (her face was not showing).... Accused me of sleeping with coworkers, neighbors.... I used to be afraid to arrive even five minutes later than usual from work.... Made me lose my job by starting a confrontation with a coworker on work premises after calling his house - this was a married man I barely even interacted with, but for some reason he got it into his head and was very sure something was happening between us.
I could go on and on and on with endless examples of how he twisted everything in our life together to conclude I was a cheater.
If you have a jealous SO, don't blink twice, just run like f***ing hell, it does not get better with time, only worse. They will literally ruin your life and leave you a whimpering shadow of who you used to be. I was a nervous and emotional wreck when I finally left him.
Uninterested
The suspicion arose because I seemed distant/unavailable and uninterested in sex.
You must be getting it somewhere. Everyone does.
Nope. Depressive episode.
But I didn't know how to explain it and it was even less acceptable to talk about then even if I could have.
The Past
She'd been cheated on by her ex and so was very suspicious of anytime I went out alone, work or leisure- she admitted she didn't trust me but in reality didn't trust anyone. It became a very big issue before we separated.
Suddenly....
My ex suddenly became convinced that I was cheating on him. I really don't know where the thought came from. He never accused me of cheating before, but when he started to he was certain that I was and there was no convincing him otherwise. It could be a possibility that he was cheating on me at the time and I was just unaware because he moved 3 hours away and I didn't really know what he was doing anymore. He was already verbally abusive and controlling and it just ramped up. He basically forced me to be on the phone even if I was busy.
If I didn't he would blow my phone up. On the phone he would be degrading me and telling me things like I go out at night. It was really stressful more than anything. Trying to talk logic into someone that is crazy just isn't possible. Thankfully the relationship ended not long after that.
Indisposed
I take my phone into the shower so he thought I was hiding something. I just poop before I shower and I can't poop without my phone. :(
The Last BF
My last boyfriend would accuse me of cheating at the drop of a hat. As a floor manager going into a backroom to witness a write up? Obviously cheating. Can't get ahold of her because she's sleeping? Cheating. Got into an argument? His favorite response is that I was probably cheating on him. My favorite was when I broke up with him I'm the clearest wording I could think of.
I went on a date with my now fiancè. Word got to me through my best friend that he found out about it and claimed I was cheating on him. 3 months after I broke it off him for good and 8 months after the initial break up. He was super emotionally and mentally abusive and I couldn't see it until I left.
The First
My first boyfriend.
He always flirted and went behind my back with girls and would assume i was doing the same with guys. literally just projected his own crap onto me and then eventually did cheat on me in secret for an entire month with his friends step sister. i found out because a mutual friend felt guilty for knowing he cheated and thought i deserved to know, and when my sh!tty bf found out someone told me the truth he bent over backwards to lie to me and tell me that was fake info and how it never happened. he did everything to convince me and himself he didn't cheat. he was beyond abusive to me and treated me like an object and sadly would encourage others to do the same to me.
It's been 10 years and the abuse and trauma he caused still screws with me. thank god for therapy, am i right?
With Anybody
He thought I was cheating on him at work. No one in particular, just general "cheating with someone" I was not. It escalated very quickly from accusation to half hourly texts that he got angry about me not answering immediately (I worked at an ice cream shop in a shopping centre food court at the time, just to give a picture of how ridiculous this was), to him showing up at my work and sitting in the food court watching me for three hours. Which of course he defended with "It's a public shopping centre, I'm allowed to use the food court, are you trying to control where I go?"
I broke up with him. I don't know what his side was, I don't care, I was not dealing with that nonsense.
He then texted me all the lyrics to Gives You Hell (on his flip phone with no crap 00's level of internet access, he typed that sh!t on a number pad) then a few days later My Immortal. Then I got his number blocked.
The Rookie
My ex went to a rookie gynecologist because she was having some problems with her lady jiblets. He examines her, and says it looks like an STD, but he'll have to run a few more tests to confirm. She comes home, with MURDER in her eyes and ready to KILL me! I deny that I've ever cheated, but the tests don't come back for a few days. I mean, who are you gonna believe?
Me, or an educated professional? Those few days were, you might say, not fun for me. Doctor calls and says, it was just a bad yeast infection.
She stopped going to him. Later we heard from other people, he wasn't the best doctor, and had close his private practice because he tended to mess up A LOT!
Out of Spite
He made comments about me putting on a lot of makeup before going out with friends, he thought I was seeing someone.
We argued, I still went out, came back afterwards.
This was during a sexless relationship that lasted a bit less than a year. I ended finding out he was not sexually attracted to me at all because he said I was too fat for him.
We were at the 9th month without sex at the point where I left, I then enrolled in school, dropped 50 pounds and kept getting fitter ever since.
Spite is a great motivator.
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- People Explain Whether They Think Cheaters Will Always Cheat Again - George Takei ›
- People List Red Flags That Your Significant Other Is Cheating On You - George Takei ›
- People Falsely Accused Of Cheating Divulge What Made Their Partner Suspicious - George Takei ›
- People Divulge How They Found Out Their Significant Other Was Cheating On Them - George Takei ›
- People Who've Cheated On Their Partners Share The Real Reason Why - George Takei ›
- People Break Down The Circumstances Where They'd Stay In A Sexless Relationship - George Takei ›
- People Share The Most Insane Lies Their Significant Other Ever Told Them - George Takei ›
- People Divulge The Worst Excuses They've Ever Heard To Justify Cheating - George Takei ›
- How People Would React To Catching Their Best Friend Sleeping With Their Significant Other - George Takei ›
- The Best Ways To Get Revenge On A Cheating Partner - George Takei ›
Being horny can lead to some questionable decision-making.
Something happens to the brain when blood is flowing to other regions of the body.
They should discuss this in health class.
It's perfectly normal, but we have to learn how to deal.
Redditor Sir_Baconstrips wanted to see who was willing to discuss actions made while randy, so they asked:
"What's the biggest mistake you've made because you were horny?"
I can't tell you mine, because my mom might read this. But Reddit was more than happy to share.
History Help
"I browsed porn and then I asked my mom how to delete the history."
Ramon80589
What was that?
"Probably my most embarrassing moment. Was on my work computer (family business so nothing locked) and it was a super slow day and I was alone. Anyways was doing a classic 3 min facebook check and scrolled down for a second and saw the news post about Adriana Chechik injuring her back in a foam pool. Figured top comments on that would be golden. Read one funny one that said 'her and her scene with [performer I can’t remember] is still goat.'"
"Never heard of said performer so I got curious and google her. Of course photos never do justice, had to see the performance ya know? So I clicked a random video, quick glance and thought 'meh' and was about to close the tab before I noticed my mouse twitch on the screen… What was that? No.. that wasn’t mouse error, that was someone… then within seconds I realized the accountant who taps in remotely to finish work came in at that exact moment that I had a browser open for less than 60 sec."
"The worst wart was I could have sworn I had all those remote services off, but she tried to tap in for over an hour and must of did something to wake splashtop (probably had it on some type of standby mode). She even called earlier but I saw a random number and was speaking with a client and ignored it."
"Anyways, decision time, do I call her and play it off as nothing or apologize? Naturally as a fearful 28 year old I play off as nothing. I call, no answer… then a few minutes later i get the call back and her words after exchanging 'hellos … are you finished with whatever you were doing…' still burns me."
Satmatzi
Years Later
"Let my (ex) boyfriend dry-hump me for an hour on a bench outside after summer school."
"The bad news: this bench behind our school was also beside a swimming pool. Where parents were taking their children for swim lessons. Eventually a staff member came out and yelled at us for being inappropriate."
"I still have shame flashbacks today, over 10 years later."
hannlouiseols
Size Issues
"I had a one night stand with a guy who was, in retrospect, seriously self-conscious about his penis size and kept going on about how if it was on the small size it was just because he has to have sex with it a few times and it would gradually get bigger until it was it’s 'true' size. I really didn’t care."
"But then to make himself feel better he turned it around and started talking about how big and wide my vagina was but kept reassuring me that it was ok because he liked the challenge. I wish I had snapped my legs shut and given him the boot right then and there."
bewarethes0ckm0nster
In San Diego
"Lost my entire tax refund and got my phone stolen at a strip club in San Diego."
BigFatPapaBear
Always check your pockets on the way out.
The Reward
"Hooked up with a girl at a party. Just kind of bored, drunk, and horny. Having to go to the doctor for a case of pubic lice was my reward for poor self-control."
No_External7289
Dedicated...
"I got my first serious gf in high school. She was two grades below me. So when I finished third year and moved 500 km south we was still a couple. I was so in love (and most of all horny) I commuted every. Single. Weekend. And I was poor. So I took the bus to the nearest station after school. Waited for the long distance bus for 4-5 hours."
"Went to a larger city to hitchhike my way there. I was there Friday night or Saturday morning. Locked ourselves in her bedroom and went at it until Sunday morning. I made my way down to school again and went to class straight from the bus Monday morning. This went on for almost a year…"
pelo_ensortijado
I'm Out
"Was trying to get with a girl in college. We were texting and I asked her what she was up to, she said she was training for a marathon and going to the gym and asked if I wanted to come."
"I ended up running 9 miles before I tagged out. So now I know how far I'd go to have sex it's up to 9 miles."
euesquecimeunome
Lord the things people will do when slightly turned on.
People Who Accidentally Sent A Family Member A Nude Picture Describe The Aftermath
Why in this day and age are people still taking nudie pics without triple-checking the recipient?
Why take the gamble?
And half of the time we hit send, mistakes get made.
One minute you're feeling sexy, the next minute grandpa is having a stroke.
Be careful.
Redditor Im_A_Freakin_Joke wanted to hear about the times people have sent photos to the family that left everyone SHOOK, so they asked:
"Redditors who accidental sent a family member a nude, what was the aftermath?"
I have done many things, but I never allow a snapshot.
Gross
"'You should clean your room before you take that.'"
Emergency_faceplant
What's What?!
"I meant to send it to someone on WhatsApp that I was dating at the time and didn’t realize I accidentally sent it to my brother, their names were next to each other in my chat list and I chose the wrong one. I frantically called my sister in law and told her what happened and begged her to go into his phone and delete the message with the photo."
"This is before WhatsApp added the functionality to delete your own messages. She was so sweet and understanding and deleted the message. I was so embarrassed. To this day she has kept my secret, this happened five years ago."
room_temp_butter
Bad Pics
"For context, my mom had some life-threatening medical issues when I was a kid, so there were a few month+ long periods where we rarely saw her. One night, I got a text from her that says 'send me a pic of u in bed."
"I thought she wanted a picture of me and my dog snuggling, as he slept with me and was the cutest sleeper. I usually sent her one every few days, even when she was home. It also doubled as her way to make sure I was following my bedtime."
"I was taking the picture, and I get a follow-up 'ignore that' text. At the same time, my dad opens my door so hard the hinges break. He says 'you get a text from mama?' I say yeah, and he says, 'it wasn't meant for you.' And leaves. I felt weird about it for days, even though it was years before I figured it out."
bleeding_inkheart
Leave it there...
"I happened to live across the street at the time and a dirty message meant for my now wife was sent to my mother! Luckily for me my mom is notorious for ignoring her phone so I sprinted across the street and said 'hey where is your phone' she told me it was on her desk so I calmly walked over unlocked it and deleted the message. In response to the look of confusion I told her 'deleted a message that was meant for now wife...' And left it at that."
Twandle_D-Vorago
AHHHH!!!! NO!
"One time my dad accidentally texted me 'sex if the Patriots win' and I still don’t believe I have recovered."
ayepeyday
Mom and dad have their own lives.
Disconnect
"I didn't accidentally send a nude, but my phone did auto upload ALL my pictures when I connected it to my mom's computer. I'm no longer allowed to connect hardware to my mom's computer."
teethalarm
Hey Sis...
"I gave my sister my old Iphone (I’m 25, she’s 22). She didn’t realize that her photos were uploading to my cloud and when I went to send a photo to a coworker, at work mind you, I see her pasty a**. I immediately text her and was like STOP TAKING PHOTOS. She called me and asked if I was okay and I told her what was happening. She responded with 'My a** look good though,' and I died laughing. Love my sis, but Christ."
PushingPepperoni
Shower Scene
"I didn’t sent a nude. I was in the shower, about age 15, and I heard the phone ring. My best friend had a habit of calling while I was showering. So, I bolted out naked as the day I was born to grab the phone before she hung up. I didn’t realize pretty much my entire dad’s side of the family was visiting my terminally ill mother."
"They saw it all. My aunt jokingly said, 'Well, dang, I didn’t know there was gonna be a show.' And someone said, 'we were just joking when we said you’d grow up to be a stripper.' I had to do a walk of shame back to the bathroom as well."
"It was laughed off and it hasn’t been brought up since."
TheSaltyMelon
Let me see...
"Sent a pic of my boobs to my mom. Managed to convince her I was trying to take a pic of what I thought was a lump but ended up dropping my phone and sent it while fumbling. Which has happened before. But then she made me show her where I thought the lump was so that was very awkward."
3milyBlazze
Recover Mode
"I once sent a pic to a GF in college when we were home for break… only I searched her contact by last name and accidentally sent it to her mom!"
"Thankfully it was late and she was able to sneak into her parents’ room and delete it before they saw."
BleekerTheBard
What have we learned?
At the very least, triple-check who you are sending it to one whichever app you use for that sort of thing.
People Share The Things They Learned Embarrassingly Late In Life
There is so much to learn in the world, it's impossible for one person to know absolutely everything there is to know.
But there are certain things, like common phrases and idioms, that everyone seems to use that might be a little embarrassing to not understand until later in life.
Redditor Curious-2577 asked:
"What's something you learned 'embarrassingly late' in life?"
Addictive Personality
"My sister was in her fifties when she found out the meaning of, 'You have an addictive personality.'"
"She thought after all these years of therapy that it meant that people were addicted to her personality."
"We laughed hysterically when we talked about this (in a very sad way)."
- casper02127
Horse Toes
"I thought that horses had toes until I was 22. I thought the hoof was a 'horseshoe' and the toes were tucked inside."
"How did I learn how wrong I was, you ask?"
"I was walking past a cavalry museum and saw a horse statue and loudly remarked, 'It must hurt so bad when they fold a horse’s toes to put them into the shoe!'"
"Dozens of horse enthusiasts turned and looked at me with wild bewilderment in their eyes."
- BronNatsPulisic
Referencing Flowers
"The saying is, in fact, 'Nip it in the bud' and not 'Nip it in the butt.'"
- too_sharp
Pastures New
"A few months ago, two of my colleagues both handed in their notice at around the same time."
"I kept reading/hearing the sentence, 'They’re both moving on to pastures new’ being thrown about the office in the weeks leading up to them leaving, and I hadn’t heard this phrase before and thought that was the name of the rival company that they were going to, like, 'Pastures New.'"
"I thought it was weird that nobody was talking about how they were both leaving for the same company."
"I was in the car with one of the two people who were leaving and said, 'So where is it that you and X are going to be working? Is it...’"
"And just before I could embarrass myself and say ‘Pastures New,' they interrupted me and said they’re not going to the same place and asked me where I had heard that."
"I think at that moment, I realized I was stupid and didn’t mention it again."
- WorriedSoft
Mario Brothers
"I think I was in college when I realized that Mario and Luigi are plumbers. I thought they just went and up down these tubes just because that was the theme of the game."
- dontbemystalker
Bonsai Trees
"That Bonsai are not a species of tree, but a way to grow them. Any tree can be a bonsai."
- ixent
Houston, We Have a Problem
"Houston is not the name of the guy astronauts talk to."
- vienna_versailles
Cowboy Beans
"I learned that pork and beans are not called 'cowboy beans.' I was 18 and asked a grocery store clerk to help me find the 'cowboy beans.'"
"We were looking everywhere and I was getting frustrated because I know that every store carries these beans. After a while, I picked up a pork and beans can with a picture and said, 'See, they look just like this!'"
"He said, 'You mean pork and beans?'"
"Then I realized that my mom called them that so that I would eat them."
"The look of disappointment from that grocery store clerk haunts me to this day."
- whyunoletmepost
The Pulitzer
"Let me tell you about how I thought you were awarded a 'Pullet Surprise.'"
- BendyBrains
Rum and Coke
"Not too late in life, but I thought my parents were making 'Roman Cokes' until I went to college."
"Which, I think is a much better name for the drink (Rum and Coke) anyway."
- Th3seViolentDelights
Oh No, Not Acoma!
"That a coma was 'A' coma. Until I was probably 19 or so, I thought it was 'acoma.'"
"I thought you fell into acoma."
- FightWithBrickWalls
It Must Have Been a One-Way Trip
"My parents were divorced the whole time and my mom was not, in fact, taking a vacation, lmao (laughing my a** off)."
- artemus_who
Multitasking
"I live near the Hospital for Joint Diseases… when I was a kid, I thought was a special hospital for people who had two or more different diseases at the same time."
- Baffhy_Duck
Ore-Ida Fries
"Moving cross-country, driving east to west, and crossing from Idaho to Oregon, I noticed huge fields with signs for the Ore-Ida Potato company."
"So I was in my early 20s when I figured out Ore-Ida wasn’t just a brand name but was because their potatoes came from Oregon and Idaho."
- Deadhawk142
Kid Logic
"When I was really young, my sister told me she threw her guts up. So I was really afraid of vomiting my entire insides up for years."
- Presitigious_Sweet_50
Some of these really had us laughing as we realized the revelations some of these Redditors were having.
But when we're really honest with ourselves, we probably didn't figure out some of these until later, too.
People Break Down The Absolute Worst Parts About Having A Child
While starting a family and having children is a goal that many people have, some do not realize that it's not easy, fun, and loving one-hundred percent of the time. Rather, it's expensive, exhausting, and hard, though it might be worth it in the end.
With this in mind, people shared what they felt were the hardest hurdles of their parenting.
Redditor ApprehensiveShock655 asked:
"What's the worst part of having a child?"
Fear of Not Doing Enough
"The constant anxiety that you’re doing enough to shape them to make good choices, a good life, be a good person and for them to have the life they deserve."
- nakedreturnsthe1st
Like the Energizer Bunny
"It's incessant. It never stops. You never get a day off."
"Going from having two days per week to relax and do whatever to literally never having a moment free from responsibility."
- mrbuh
No Break In Sight
"I’ve always wanted kids and still do, but this is the only thing that has come close to giving me pause."
"Both my siblings have young kids and I cannot get over how CONSTANT it is."
"From the second the kids wake up to when they finally shut their eyes, it’s non-stop. Then they get maybe an hour or two to themselves, which is mostly spent tidying up, etc., before the nighttime stuff starts with the baby crying, the toddler coming into bed, nightmares, etc."
"It requires years of not getting a full night's rest. You can never just go out whenever you want. No sleeping in, even on weekends because someone has to be up with them at 6 AM."
"Raising human children is an insane task."
- GirlisNo1
Mom's Body After Baby and Dad Bods
"The weight gain is the worst! During the pregnancy, I gained 35 pounds. My belly has stretch marks. My boobs are all saggy."
"And it’s not even fair because my wife only gained like 15."
- Wise-Reaction-7526
The Meal Planning
"Coming up with three meals to eat per day EVERY DAY stresses me out so bad."
"This sounds like such a small thing, but it really wears on you over time. You can’t just make something for yourself or something you and your spouse feel like eating: You have to constantly be thinking about if the kid is hungry and what they might be willing to eat."
- Ravenclaw79
Keeping Them Safe
"When people ask me this I say, 'do you know those video games where you have to escort a character to a destination without them being attacked?' That's parenting. Those missions are a pain in the a**."
- Infiniski_Gaming
Seriously, Keep Them Safe
"Having to deal with their total lack of self-preservation. They are creative and come up with all kinds of ways to try and kill themselves. Keeping ahead of the game is exhausting."
- Quizzical_Chimp
Constant Contact
"They’re just always there. On you, behind you, in front of you, just a little speed bump impeding every task."
- Tangboy500000
Letting Them Live Their Life Their Way
"Having a kid is like having a little piece of your heart running around in the world. When they're sick or get disappointed or just feel sad, it's worse than having it happen to you."
"Yet at the same time, you need to let your kids work through those things to learn to handle them. If you give into the worry and try to shield them from everything, you risk creating harmful co-dependence."
"So it's a constant struggle. But worth it!"
- um_chili
What Is "Sleep" Again?
"I'm only nine years in, but so far, it's been the sleep deprivation. Hands down."
- tessiegamgee
And What Are These "Sick Days" You Speak Of?
"Having to take care of a sick child when you are also sick. For me that has been the most challenging part so far."
- MrsLouisaMercury
Another Full-Time Job
"It's like taking a second job that lasts 18+ years with a 24/7 schedule with no holidays or sick days."
"…And no second paycheck. It's actually like YOU are paying your second salary instead of getting one."
- mouse_rat
Personal Freedom
"The loss of freedom. I can't just... go somewhere. Even with older kids, there's so much planning and thinking and getting ready."
"I miss being able to just decide to go somewhere, and go there."
- poetris
The Time Flies
"The best advice I got was from an ancient hospital security guard in an elevator. 'The days are long, the years are short, cherish them while you can.'"
- WayOfTheHouseHusband
So Unexpected
"The phrase I hate is, 'You don't know it, but one day you pick your kid up for the last time.'"
- 3_pac
There are all kinds of troubles that come from being a parent, many of which people don't necessarily think about until they already have a baby in the house.
But reassuringly, many people in the subReddit pointed out that no matter how hard some of these hurdles are to get over, it's still worth it in the end, and it goes by far too fast.